“Remember the Titans”

The coaches made nationally famous by the 2000 movie “Remember the Titans” are participating in a session on the movie at APA’s 2002 annual meeting in Philadelphia. The coaches, now retired, are Herman Boone and Bill Yoast. The session will be held on Tuesday, May 21, at 2 p.m. in media session 17.

Next to a family, a team is one of the most influential groups to which an individual ever belongs, according to session chair Ronald Kamm, M.D., a sports psychiatrist. The intensity of that relationship can be seen in “Remember the Titans.” The movie is based on the inspiring story of the 1971 integration of three high schools—two black and one white—into one high school in Alexandria, Va., and its football team. Not only are black students bused to the school over the objection of the white community, but a black coach—played by Academy Award-winner Denzel Washington—is brought in to a replace a beloved, highly successful white coach, who is demoted to assistant coach. Nonetheless, the coaches are determined to overcome the racism that threatens to destroy the team, and they go on to produce a squad whose members respect one another and become champions.