Review of Fordson: Faith, Fasting and Football

By Nadia S. Mohammad

“Islam is a violent religion. It is not a religion of peace,” announces an unnamed political pundit in the opening of the documentary Fordson as shots of Fordson high school football players and early Arab American settlers flash across the screen. Ten years after the tragedy of the September 11, 2001 attacks, the hateful rhetoric is so familiar we do not need names to remember. But the rarely seen images remind us of both the rich history of Arabs in America and how this new generation of Arab Americans is moving us forward in quintessential American fashion – by playing high school football.

And so begins the premise of the entire film – ‘faith, fasting and football.’ Director, Rashid Ghazi, and his crew follow former Fordson principal, Imad Fadalallah; team coach, Fouad “Walker” Zaban; four players, Baquer Sayed, Bilal Abu Omarah, Ali Baidoun, Hassan Houssaiky through the 2009 season as they gear up to play their archrival, Dearborn High, in the middle of Ramadan, the Muslim holy month of fasting. Interwoven between each story is backdrop of a community struggling to deal with the side-effects of 9/11 and the intense government and media scrutiny it has faced ever since. As Osama Siblani of The Arab American News says, “We were hit twice – once by Osama bin Laden, like all Americans, and second by those who associated us with Osama bin Laden.”

Muslim Arab American football players are probably not what you would expect to see as the focus of a film coming out of school built by Henry Ford for his son, Edsel. But as Ghazi demonstrates Fordson is a fascinating cultural anomaly. Ninety-five percent of the student population is estimated to be of Middle Eastern descent; no other school outside the state can compare. The surrounding area of Dearborn is home to the largest concentration of Arabs outside of the Middle East and over the past century the residents there have been working hard to achieve the American Dream by working at the Ford factory, building up formerly run down businesses and developing the area, in general.

Perhaps most intriguing for sports fans is that in an area with so much Middle Eastern influence, it is American football, not soccer that is most popular. A soccer team was started due to the influx of Arab students according to Ron Stockton, a professor at the University of Michigan in Dearborn, and many had high expectations that the Arab passion for soccer would make it the best high school soccer team in the United States. However, as Stockton points out in the film, it ended up an average soccer team because all the athletic talent went out for football, since football gets far more attention and as evidenced by the film football stars become local heroes.

Indeed, football runs the town. It has not only become a family tradition for many, but is the center of many community events. For some it is even become a Ramadan tradition, to break fast each evening with family while watching football. The Fordson football team has gained notoriety for its players continuing to fast whenever Ramadan has coincided with the football season, though Coach Zaban has at times made adjustments to their practice schedule during pre-season. The Muslim players recite Surah Fatiha, the opening chapter to the Qur’an, before every game as they pray for a victory. When two Fordson graduates are picked up by the FBI, on what turns out to be trumped up terrorism charges, it is football that brings the community together again.

Yet, despite the intrigue, and often fear, the Dearborn community seems to draw from outsiders the locals show they have no confusion about who they are and see no distinction between their identities as Muslims, Arabs and Americans. As Coach Zaban says, “How can you be a Muslim, an Arab and an American? Well, quite honestly, what do you have to do differently? You’re a Muslim – you’re following a religion. You’re an Arab –that’s just your background. But now you’re an American cause you live in this country. So what’s so hard to be an Arab American Muslim who lives in this country?”

You do not have to be Muslim or a football fan to enjoy this film or to be touched by the heartwarming stories of each character. Fordson, the film, represents what America is at its best – hard-working communities with big dreams and lots of heart. And it is this mentality exuding from the young men featured in the film that shows us that despite our divisions it is possible to heal and move forward together as a nation after all these years.

Already endorsed by documentarian Michael Moore, the award winning film will be in AMC theaters this week in select cities. Please check your local listings for more information or follow “Fordson the Movie,” on Facebook.

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