Outcasts United - Refugees

Outcasts United was a powerful book with many strong themes. Coach Luma’s refugee team, “The Fugees,” endure countless struggles, from getting kicked off soccer fields, practicing in parking lots, using Luma’s car headlights to study, wearing rejected uniforms, to dealing with opposing racist coaches and slurs throughout games. Luma would always tell them to just ignore these things and smile. Through all this, the boys never complained and held their heads up high.

Another major hardship was school. The kids were just passed through the system as to not be a burden, being thrown into classes not knowing basic algebra or even how to read. This opened my eyes tremendously to the struggles and stigma not only refugees go through, but people from different cultures deal with.

For me, the biggest takeaway from Outcasts United, especially as a freshman at UCF, is the importance and value of hard work. Refugees and people from different cultures can experience many forms of discrimination, hate, violence, and poverty. The concept of hard work helps inspire people and keep them working towards their goals, pushing them to not give up. Achieving accomplishments through diligent work and determination gives a sense of dignity and ownership, increasing confidence and a sense of belonging. Hard work aids people in moving up in the world, maturing, exceling in any work or study, and growing in life. Without hard work, many people wouldn’t survive the evils in the world.

In addition, other major factors that impacted me from Outcasts United are happiness, money, and community. Happiness is a major key, with the refugees having many struggles, yet still staying positive and happy with smiles on their faces. I relate to this because I realized the importance of happiness. Happiness is important for one’s well-being and mind. Pursuing what you love with genuine happiness is more valuable than just surviving. Another factor is money. These refugees are dealing with poverty, playing barefoot and going home to no food most of the time, yet still getting up and working towards their goals every day with no excuses. With this, money impacted me immensely, especially with the responsibility of choosing a career, mainly considering salary. Many people grow up thinking money is everything and are determined to make loads of money to be wealthy. I include myself in that category. I’ve wanted to pick a career to pursue that will make tons of money, especially because people, mainly adults, have been telling me not to do what I love, but to do what’ll be most beneficial because it’s worth it once I’m older and living comfortably. However, this made me realize how these kids facing poverty with their families are possibly some of the happiest and driven kids, more than kids who do have money. One last influence is community. The refugees all stick together, and especially with Luma, form a community where they support each other and work together for the benefit of everyone. This made the community here at UCF even more clear to me, where everyone comes together like one big family and doesn’t hesitate to help those in need or support friends.

As a student, the knowledge I have gained from Outcasts United I can use to work towards welcoming diverse people, especially since UCF has tons of diversity. I am more open and work to make people feel comfortable and offer help with anything. I also have a more Also, I have more knowledge and open minded views on certain things, like money, thus helping me grow more and succeed. Having students read Outcasts United can open their minds and hearts towards diversity and inform them about issue’s faced. Like myself, students can incorporate the themes and takeaways from the book into their daily lives and interactions with others, impacting them greatly.