Englander, I. (Producer). Everett, D.S. (Director). (1983). Running Brave (Film). Canada: Englander Productions.

This film follows the track career of Sioux Indian Billy Mills. In the late 1950’s, Mills was recruited to run for the Kansas University Jayhawks. Upon arrival on campus, and on the track, Mills is faced with racism from both collegiate peers and tribal members at home. His coach believes he will quit, solely because Mills is Native American; a fraternity rejects his membership, based on his ethnicity; and a tribal member from home rejects his friendship, because he is acquiring the ways of the white man. Mills eventually leaves the university in order to find his love of running which he lost during his university experience. Mills succeeds in reevaluating his values, and the film culminates when he wins the gold medal in the 10,000 meters at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.

I chose this film out of memory for the time Billy Mills spoke at my high school. He addressed the entire school in an assembly about following dreams through adversity, and then showed film of his Olympic race. I remember my feeling of awe at the presence of an Olympic athlete, and yet today it strikes me that I could not begin to realize the racial struggles he pushed through to attain his dream.

Several questions occurred to me after watching this film:

• Does Mills have a traditional Sioux name, and would he have preferred its use when being addressed?
• What happened to the fraternity charter that denied Mills membership based on Native American ethnicity?
• What effects did Mills’ gold medal performance have on the reservation community he was raised in?
• Did the Kansas track coach ever successfully coach a Native American athlete?
•Was the intent of the movie to be a racial eye-opener, a motivational story, both, or something else?

Submitted by Patricia Larsell.

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