THE BASKETBALL GAME

In this graphic autobiographical short, a boy recalls being the lesson in somebody else’s teachable moment.

It’s 1983, and Hart, a White Jewish Alberta boy, is away at Jewish summer camp. It’s kind of gross and scary, but Hart is grateful there are comic books, cute girls, and Shabbat services. He agrees to play in an intramural basketball game—only realizing the identity of his opponents when it’s too late to back out. Recently the grown-ups in nearby Eckville realized the kids taking social studies from a certain teacher were parroting antisemitic conspiracy theories and Holocaust denial. Jim Keegstra, the teacher responsible, was fired, and now the director of Hart’s summer camp is hosting a day of socializing, including a picnic and basketball game, in hopes of forging bonds between the communities. In Hart’s memory, the Keegstra kids are massive, terrifying, and look much older—and the first thing he hears from one of them is an antisemitic remark. The illustrations imagine the game as a stylized, colorful comic book–style event involving the defeat of skinheads, Nazis, and the KKK on the basketball court. As the counselors intended, there’s also a teachable moment for everyone. The simple, cartoonish illustrations include splashes of color to convey indelible sensory memories. Some of the art is abstract and oversimplified to the point of being unclear, however.

A brief and accessible entry point to learning about the ease of spreading ignorant hatred.