Moore said that he hoped the students would become more politically involved, as he was in high school, and said that people around the country are buzzing about the “Fordson” documentary movie.   PHOTO: Nafeh AbuNab/TAAN

DEARBORN — Academy-Award winning filmmaker Michael Moore spoke at Fordson High School on Thursday, Dec. 1 prior to a tour stop for his new book in Ann Arbor to speak to students and faculty.

Moore, who proclaimed about the movie documentary “Fordson: Faith, Fasting, Football” that “everyone in America should see this movie!” finally had a chance to see the campus and meet with students after being invited by the Fordson Club of Political Science.

“I am deeply honored, I had no idea that there was a political science club here, it’s really wonderful because it’s very rare that you see such a thing,” he said.

“I was already impressed before I came here but now I’m triply impressed.”

Speaking about “Fordson,” which was screened at his Traverse City Film Festival this year, Moore was complimentary.

“It was an incredible movie that opened a window into this community, people around the country have just been amazed by it and you should all be proud,” he said.

Moore had originally planned to speak in front of a small classroom full of students but once word spread around campus, the event was moved to Fordson’s auditorium where about 250 people altogether attended including faculty and media members.

Wearing a Michigan Wolverines cap instead of his traditional Michigan State cap “so that I don’t get beat up,” he said in reference to his anticipated event later that evening in Ann Arbor, Moore spoke about his own illustrious high school career.

As an 18-year-old he was elected to the school board in his high school’s city if Davison, finishing in first despite only “running on a platform to get the assistant principal fired.” Getting on the ballot only took 20 signatures, which shocked Moore and inspired him to work for social change. 

The assistant principal had beaten Moore with a large wooden paddle for not tucking in his shirt and also had prevented a fellow student from walking across the stage on graduation day because of a less expensive tie he had worn, among other incidents that students felt were not fair.  

Moore felt he had been typecast as a trouble maker by faculty because of his strong role in the school’s anti-Vietnam War club among other reasons. 

About eight months after being elected, Moore managed to get the man assigned to another job which he felt was better for all parties involved. 

Moore also managed to have a strong effect on civil rights in high school after he won a speech contest sponsored by the Elks Club organization about Abraham Lincoln during which he called out the club in front of high-ranking Michigan officials for their discriminatory “Caucasians only” membership policy, which had troubled he and his father. 

His speech criticized the Elks Club in front of one of its highest officials, leading to a standing ovation from the audience and media attention from all the major U.S. outlets as well as an invitation to speak before Congress in favor of changing laws allowing segregation at private clubs. 

Moore also highlighted the significance of the date as it represented Rosa Parks’ decision in 1955 not to move to the back of the bus in segregated Montgomery, Alabama. He called for a “Rosa Parks Day” and  encouraged the students in attention to become active in politics and rights issues. 

“If you just become a little bit involved, you can make something happen,” he said. 

“Change can occur anywhere even with what some consider the craziest of ideas.” 

Husain Bazzi, a member of FCOPS who helped bring Moore to Fordson, said he was surprised he accepted but excited he took the students up on their offer. Bazzi has now set his sights on bringing other well known figures to campus.

“I was inspired by what he had to say; he knows that the Fordson community really went through struggles,” he said.

Bazzi particularly enjoyed Moore’s recalling of how proud he was to see that President Barack Obama had used his full name including his middle name “Hussein” on the ballot even though Moore said he most likely had “a thousand”  political advisers telling him not to do so in order to become more “electable.” 

“I like how he told us to represent your true self matter who you are or what you have to say,” Bazzi said. 

Moore was given a Fordson sweater with his name on the back of it as well as an award plaque just as longtime White House correspondent Helen Thomas had been given. He said he would put it near his Oscar, and later posted a picture on his Twitter account which he said has about one million followers.

Moore later said he supported the Occupy Wall Street movement, relaying a stat to “the crowd that 400 Americans now control more wealth than 156 million other Americans combined” before fielding questions from the audience.

He once again spoke out against the Iraq War saying he hoped George W. Bush would be brought up on war crime charges, expressed his disappointment with Obama for sending “100,000 troops to fight what the CIA admitted was just 50 Al Queda members,” and told the students that he was extremely wary of more drum-beating to go to war with Iran. 

When Moore visited the University of Michigan-Dearborn’s Fieldhouse in 2004, he inspired a crowd of thousands with an emotional pledge to “stand up and protect the Arabs and Muslims of this country” that drew a standing ovation. The end of his Fordson speech recalled that moment as he addressed the audience.

“A lot your parents come from the Muslim world and a lot of you have had to deal with suspicious looks and comments here, but the majority of us are kind people (when the truth is known),” he said.

“We’ve got your back, I want you to know that.

“Democracy is not a spectator sport, this is a participatory system and everyone plays the game, everyone should get involved and everyone has a seat at the table,” he said.

“Thank you Fordson, what an honor this has been.”