Today's blog was written by Caitlin McCreary, a sophomore at the University of Notre Dame. Caitlin is a Program of Liberal Studies major and a member of the Notre Dame Ultimate Frisbee team. Caitlin hails from Pasadena, California and is generally a San Diego Chargers fan, but thought this story was important to tell despite her feelings about the Seahawks.
In a recent Duracell commercial Derrick Coleman, fullback
for the Seattle Seahawks, addressed the disability that has defined his entire
life; he has been deaf since he was three years old. He narrates this commercial with stories of
how he was bullied, excluded, misjudged, and left behind because of his inability
to hear. Imagine being told from a young
age that you are a “lost cause,” that because of a disability you cannot
control, your dreams are impossible.
Imagine hearing that over and over again. Then imagine ignoring every coach, every kid,
and every word to pursue your dreams. In
Derrick Coleman’s words “I’ve been deaf since I was three, so I didn’t
listen.” In a commercial that was meant
to remind us of the strength of a battery, we are left instead with an
impression of the strength of one man.
Coleman’s perseverance is inspiring and it left me wondering
how I would respond under the same circumstances and how other children facing
similar prejudices deal with the constant degradation. One aspect of his torment that Coleman
mentioned that really stood out to me was how he was always picked last for
teams as a kid. Even for someone who
loves football as much as he clearly does, it must have tainted his opinion of
the sport. Looking back on middle and high school, I remember the expressions of the kids who were constantly
chosen last for everything. They were
heartbroken and yet they seemed to expect nothing else. They hated anything that required teams
because it was a chance for other kids to be cruel, intentionally or
unintentionally, all because they were smaller, skinnier, dorkier or different
in any way. Unlike Derrick Coleman many
of these kids abandoned sports and team activities because they associated them
with this cruelty.
Getting picked last in itself is a form of bullying, but despite the fact
that we recognize bullying as a major problem these days, I am not sure I have
ever heard this mentioned as one of its many dangerous facets. While not every child is meant to be a star
athlete or go on to play in the NFL, no child should be deterred from playing
before they can find out for themselves.
And even then no one should feel as if they cannot participate because
they are different. Sports are meant to
be fun, especially when you are young. One of the things that I like about working with Play Like a Champion Today is that they strive to put the "play" back in sports. Nothing should prevent a child from playing the sport that he or she
loves. Derrick Coleman didn't let the
comments of his peers and coaches hold him back. Instead he let them drive and strengthen
him. But not everyone can have his will
and determination and at some point we need to start helping those who do not
either by encouraging them to play or by stopping other kids from degrading
them.
