Dodgeball Movie | How “Speaking Out” Gets Easier…

Unless this just happens to be the first thing you’ve ever read here at Hollywood27.com, I’m sure you’re well aware that I actively encourage speaking out against racism.

I wrote a book for those who want to dig deep, we give away a free 10-minute guides on the site here for anyone just getting started, and with the End Racism Blog here (the Double Truth if you will), we constantly keep a pulse on what’s happening now.

But I’ve seen really good people sit silently in situations where a quick verbal interjection might have had a profound effect, and that cannot continue.  Inherently uber-shy people, that’s certainly one thing (although that can sometimes be overcome as well), but for the rest of us, sitting back and letting racist and hateful remarks or actions go unchecked, well… not cool.

Then of course there’s the other really important thing here – you also can’t be serious ALL the time, it’s not good for the soul. So today I’m bridging the gap between these two ideas in one fell swoop.  Today just so happens to be… wait for it… the 10-year anniversary of THE GREATEST FILM EVER MADE*… DODGEBALL!!! Check out this trailer for a refresher course if so needed.

Now the Dodgeball movie wasn’t all fun and games — there were some amazing lessons to be learned from this movie. Let’s not forget the Mr. Miyagi-esque character, Patches O’Houlihan, whose training methods, though unorthodox and certainly much more dangerous than waxing on and off, were oh-so-effective at crafting a team of championship-caliber dodgeball players.

I mean who doesn’t remember the 5 D’s of Dodgeball (dodge, dip, duck, dive, and dodge), and how essential those simple instructions truly were to success?

But I digress… as I want to focus on what was, perhaps, the most important and Miyagi-like concept in the entire film – “If you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball.” The key to this learning technique is that, on at least your first try, you will more than likely get hit with a wrench.

For those of you fortunate enough to have never been struck with a fast-moving metal object, well, let me end the suspense for you right now – it hurts like a &*$@!#%.

It’s that one painful moment however, which actually tends to last for several minutes depending on where the wrench hit you, that sets you up for future success.

Pain avoidance is a natural human instinct, but a desire to succeed is also a deep, human drive as well.  Overcome the pain, reach a new level of awareness, and then BOOM, you achieve success at a greater clip.

That’s where the fighting racism tie-in comes into play. If you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball, yes, but “If you speak up once, you can speak up again and again, and with more confidence each time.” Even if it’s shyness that holds you back, understand that a little confrontation (at a safe time of course), may be just the tonic you need.

If you’ve never confronted a family member, friend, etc. when he or she acts ignorantly, then ask yourself why on earth you feel that’s OK to sit idly? And if indeed you never have, then please click this link right now and download the free PDF 10-Minute Guide on fighting racism to get you started.

But I’ll give you the #1 key to rallying against racist behavior, because folks, we already have precedent here on what the worst-case scenario looks like. We can look back in recent history, less than even a measly hundred years, and see what nightmares evolve from a racist regime in power. The evils of Nazi Germany sit unparalleled in modern human history, and that’s something we can never, ever, let happen again. Period.

Staying inspired and focused is crucial, and holding a solid perspective on humankind helps this immensely. Thankfully I can sum up the deep importance of “speaking out” with two incredibly powerful quotes from our past:

1. The first comes from Martin Niemöller, a Protestant pastor and outspoken opponent of Adolf Hitler who spent the final seven years of Nazi rule in concentration camps.  (https://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10007392)

First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out–
Because I was not a Socialist.
Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out–
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out–
Because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me–and there was no one left to speak for me.

Those words need no explanation. It’s good vs. evil here folks… you vs. the wrench (yes, the wrench is evil).

2. The second breaks down the entire issue, and really any evil action, right to the core. There are multiple, shorter versions of this sort of quote, attributable to different people, with the most famous associated with philosopher Edmund Burke.

But I like to dig a little deeper and put the full truth out when writing, filming, etc. It’s a cornerstone of The Walk a Mile Project, and something I try to practice every time I publish something (article, video, etc.).

So here’s a confirmed quote, from British philosopher John Stuart Mill, delivered at an inaugural address at the University of St. Andrews back in 1867:

Let not any one pacify his conscience by the delusion that he can do no harm if he takes no part, and forms no opinion.
Bad men need nothing more to compass their ends, than that good men should look on and do nothing.

You’ve heard it summed up and incorrectly attributed to Burke as this:

The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.

Either way, please understand, we made that mistake once before, on a nearly global scale, in what led up to the crescendo of World War II.

We absolutely cannot afford to make that mistake again, and luckily each of us can stop it, on a regular basis, simply by speaking up… by doing our own small part. If you’re hesitant to speak out (and that applies to anything, not just racism), then think about the big picture… think about what will truly be at stake if we ALL just stand by silently. And then do it, the first time is always the toughest!

Besides, it’s better than getting hit in the face with a wrench, right?

* Please note, although I do very much enjoy the movie Dodgeball, no one, including every single person involved in the making of that film, considers Dodgeball to be the “Greatest Film Ever Made.” Everyone knows that honor belongs to the 1983 film Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone (in 3-D).