Society serves as a window into the beliefs and attitudes of American life, revealing the true values ​​of particular communities and humanity as a whole. At the high school level, sports can be used as a way to teach children the value of hard work, dedication, discipline and the role that teamwork can play in achieving important goals. However, as HG Bissinger's novel Friday Night Lights reveals, the desire to win can overshadow the importance of instilling other important values. “There seemed to be an opportunity in Odessa to observe not only the enormous effect of sports on American life, but also other notions, because Odessa's values ​​were those that firmly belonged to a certain type of America , an America that existed beyond borders. from Steinberg's cartoon, an America of industrial towns, farm towns, steel towns, and single-economy towns all trying to survive” (xii-xiii). Sports is an aspect of society that has the ability to bring people together while exposing the distinct divides between classes and races. In most American cities, it is common for residents to gather at a field or stadium to watch their hometown team compete against rival teams in an attempt to win the championship title. Fans put aside small differences to unite and cheer for their high school athletes, but once the game is over, life returns to normal. However, these fundamental differences may be more apparent than one realizes when looking closely at the athletic program. What a city may claim to support or believe often turns out to be gross hypocrisy. Sports play an important role in American life, and while they should be used as a means to improve society, they generally do not preserve the status quo. Say no to plagiarism. Get a custom essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay The city of Odessa is extremely racist, and the small percentage of African Americans living there are segregated from white residents by symbolic railway tracks. The Permian football roster gives the illusion of racial integration, but with careful examination of the role team members play and the treatment of black players and coaches, it clearly depicts the team's inability to escape the omnipresent racism in Odessa. The city fought segregation within the school system and managed to avoid integration until the 1980s, when the American courts ruled against it. The city's solution is symbolic of racist attitudes. Instead of forcing busing and disrupting the lives of white students, the city closed the high school located in the black neighborhood. The majority of Odessa residents had never seen the school, but became interested when they realized they could benefit from integration: “But with Ector closing, members of the white community suddenly began to see enormous value in some of his black students. It had nothing to do with academic potential. It had everything to do with athletic potential” (Bissinger, 105). Student-athletes are seen as a commodity, a chance to strengthen and increase the chances of winning games. Black student-athletes were not welcome in the community, any level of acceptance at Permian was strictly limited to the football field, and their goal was to bring enjoyment to white fans. “We know we are separated, until we get on the field. We know we are equalas athletes. But once we step off the field, we are no longer equal. When it comes to playing the game, we are part of it. But after the match, we are not part of it” (Bissinger, 107 years old). Black players were bused to the white part of town, and when their work was done, they were sent away. Interaction between races only occurred during practices or matches. The white fan mentality can be associated with the audience of a minstrel show. Blacks were the source of entertainment and when whites got what they wanted they relegated them to the bottom of society. Neglecting to look beyond the surface, the simulation of blacks in Permian athletics would appear as integration, but Permian sports simply reflect the status quo of the time. Integrating the schools should have been an opportunity for black student athletes coming to Permian High School to receive a better education, but the goal remained to make sure those players were ready for Friday night. The lackadaisical approach to educating black football players reveals the failure of the Odessa school system to ensure that all students are adequately prepared to meet the demands of being a productive and successful member of society. Boobie Miles suffered from documented learning disabilities and was educated in a small classroom. However, the Permian High administration ignored these accommodations and placed him in regular classes. The classes he took as an upperclassman were more like classes he would take as a freshman. “Boobie was on a schedule that would give him the required course credits to graduate from Permian. But he had no way of meeting the NCAA's requirements for the number of courses needed to qualify for an unrestricted scholarship” (Bissinger, 65). The school wasn't concerned with ensuring Boobie learned, just keeping him eligible to play football each week. “Some teachers worked diligently and patiently with Boobie, aware of the difficulty he had concentrating. Others seemed to just let him go, doing little more than guarding this kid who, as one admitted, was destined to become the next great black prospect on the Permian football team” ( Bissinger, 66 years old). Boobie being denied an education by Odessa is not a priority for Permian High, as concerns about Boobie only focus on the athletic ability he brought to their football team. The school's failure toward integrated black athletes in Permian supports the assumption that the city is not interested in making meaningful changes to the black community's educational opportunities, but is instead content to maintain the status quo. the Permian Football coach sends the message that these students are less important than their white teammates. Although the city of Odessa complied with federal laws in implementing integration, only 6 percent of Permian's students were black. The majority of black students are athletes and some are the best athletes on the football team. These students have the potential to be recruited by colleges and even a chance to play at the professional level. For the majority of these students, an athletic scholarship is the only way to attend college. Their families are extremely poor and have no experience or resources to guide these athletes through the college admissions process. Brian Chavez is not only a talented athlete, but he is also very bright and determined to succeed in the classroom. Her maids.