'The Fight' for Our Future
I am sitting in the theater as the credits roll for The Fight, directed by Elyse Steinberg, Josh Kriegman and Eli Despres, with tears sitting in my eyes. My head is filled with the overwhelming emotional impact of the story I just saw. I can not move, even as those around me stand to applaud the beautiful and inspiring film. I just sit there simply enchanted by the life-changing movie. Knowing it would stick with me for years to come and inspire me to make a change in this world.
The movie follows five ACLU lawyers, Brigitte Amiri, Joshua Block, Lee Gelernt, Dale Ho and Chase Strangio, and their stress-inducing journey to fight against four unfair and cruel laws proposed by the Trump Administration. And yet, these lawyers are not the heroes you see in books. They are not glorified and unreachable. Polished and shiny. No. They are only human. They are real people who deal with real issues. This documentary does an incredible job of showing the audience that the people fighting to change in our country are just that: people. It displays the courage it takes to do something like this. It shows the joy and sadness that comes with these court cases. It gives an inside view of the incredible hard work that goes into bettering our country. And the best thing about it is the tear-jerking stories it shares of those who have had to deal with the harsh repercussions of the Trump Administration, and the strength of such people.
A girl who was wrongfully refused her right to safe abortion just because of her status as an immigrant. A woman whose child was brutally separated from her right in front of her eyes. A transgender man who risked losing his family in the army just because of his identity. And the millions of people that wouldn’t participate in the census due to their lack of status as a citizen of the United States. These are just a few problems this documentary discusses. But there are many more. Our country is plagued with problems that seem too big to fix. Too big to even try to change. Millions of people are facing the same things as the people shown in this documentary. And yet, the movie leaves you with the feeling that you can do anything. That you can change anything.
As I walked out of that theater, my whole body was filled with a sense of inspiration and determination to make a change. These stories that are shown are the center of the natural conversation today. And yet, for some reason, the public has been desensitized to the reality of it. It’s almost as if it’s harder to empathize with these people because their lives seem so detached from our own. But, this documentary extinguishes that feeling and opens up your emotions and feelings to an avalanche of stories. It places you right in the moment as a mom gets reunited with her daughter that was taken from her, and as a lawyer faces his first big win against the looming Trump Administration. But it also places you in the losses. When the Trump Administration instituted a law that transgender people that were already in the military could stay, but no new transgender people could enlist. When Amiri, the lawyer fighting for reproductive rights, faces a win for one girl getting the abortion she chose, while there are still thousands of others denied that right. The movie shows the importance of fighting, even when the chances are slim. Of working hard for something important. It gives light to topics that are harder to talk about, and it illuminates your heart with the inspiration to make a change.
