A Coach, an Oscar, and the Children We Must Remember—Thank you Steve Kerr

I remember when Oscar parties rivaled the very best Super Bowl gatherings. Friends would dress up as their favorite actors, and the food went far beyond the usual party fare. Drinks and dishes were cleverly inspired by the nominees for Best Picture, Best Director, and more. In fact, my colleagues and I often used the Academy Awards as a cultural touchstone in the classroom—a shared experience that connected students to the broader world of film and storytelling. Times have changed.

I asked my class if anyone tuned in and all of two seniors raised their hands. I admitted that I too missed out. I didn't see most of the movies and I didn't even know much about who or what was up for best of anything. That is until I found out that Steve Kerr, the head coach of the Golden State Warriors won an Oscar.

As written on ESPN,

Kerr was one of the executive producers for "All the Empty Rooms," which won the Oscar for documentary short.

The 35-minute film chronicles how broadcast journalist Steve Hartman and photographer Lou Bopp told the stories of families who have memorialized the bedrooms of children killed in mass shootings. Kerr -- whose father, then the president of American University in Beirut, was shot and killed in 1984 -- has long spoken out about a need for common-sense gun regulation.

"I didn't have anything to do with the making of the film," Kerr said Monday. "But I am very proud to be associated with it."

"They called me about a year ago and asked if I would like to be an executive producer, which meant basically put my name on it and help promote it," Kerr said. And then after watching the film, I was just blown away by how beautiful it was and poignant it was. It was an easy decision."

I don't know if I would have heard about this film if it were not for sports and my love of Coach Kerr, but I am grateful I did.

I told my students about the short film and how I came to find out about it. Thank you, to KNBR—my morning sports talk radio station. I admitted that I didn't know if I was going to watch "All the Empty Rooms." I didn't know if I could. I wish had for I would have shared some of why I think it's important for them and for all of America to see. 

Steve Hartman was first assigned to report on a school shooting in 1997. Since he began, school shootings have increased from 17 to 132 per year. 

In the 33 minute film (available on Netflix), he said,  

for years I had been doing essays at the end of every school shooting week. Maybe it was a hero or the country coming together. Whatever it was, they were looking for some kind of positive message.  

I did so many of these essays that I felt like I was repeating myself. In fact, I was using the same lines in the stories. And I saw that America was moving on from each school shooting"quicker and quicker every time. 

I recalled  some of the tropes I have heard in times of tragedy. "Everything happens for a reason" or thinking back to law of attraction as promised by "The Secret" According to that best seller, your thoughts attract corresponding outcomes—positive thoughts supposedly bring positive experiences, while negative thoughts attract negative ones. Those ring hollow. I recommend "The Book of Job" instead.

I burst into tears in under one minute of viewing this film. I listened in total awe of the parents recalling memories of their children. I looked is sadness as they welcomed Hartman and Bopp into the sacred space of their late son or daughter's room. Hartman and Bopp navigate that journey with utter grace. 

Hartman caught my attention when he suggested that the media may bear some of the responsibility. He said, "I feel like the media is to blame a little bit for some of this. Or, at least its worth exploring. In the beginning, especially, it was just so overdone. And, the shooters were mentioned way too much. What we need to talk about is the child who is not here anymore." And there you have it. The name of this short film and the reason why it's so moving.

He said, "I wish we could transport all Americans to stand in one of those bedrooms for just a few minutes. We'd be a different America." 

Hartman speaks about solidarity. So does Greg Boyle, SJ—the founder of Homeboy Industries. Father Boyle has said that "nothing stops a bullet like a job." He's right. And maybe a bedroom could too.

His concludes with the message: 

I want the project to remind people that these were our children.

I want the project to remind people that these were your children.

These could be your children.

Thank you Steve Hartman and Lou Bopp. And thank you Steve Kerr, for your support of "All the Empty Rooms." That was your father. I don't need to see his room—or rather, his classroom. It is one you have already shown us. 

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