Why We Compete

The Washington Post's Eli Saslow was online Monday, Aug. 13 at 2 p.m. ET to discuss Why We Compete, a series exploring why sports endure and what they mean to people. In Part IV, Opportunity, Eli writes about how the residents of American Samoa view football as a way to improve their lives.

A transcript follows.

____________________

Eli Saslow: This was a wonderful story to work on. Visiting the island was great; the people were unbelievably friendly. I also managed to watch the entire season 3 of Lost on my plane rides to and from American Samoa. I guess that's one good thing about spending 30 hours in the air.

Anyway, thanks again for taking the time to read Part IV of the Why We Compete series. We're officially half way home, with four stories still left. E-mail me at saslowe@washpost.com if I don't answer your question here, or if you have an additional comment.

Also, if you haven't had a chance to watch Travis Fox's American Samoa video yet, make sure to do so. It's excellent, and I think it gives a wonderful visual of what life is like for Ne'emia.

Onward...

_______________________

K-ville, N.C.: When I was in the Navy during the mid 90's, we flew through Pago Pago a few times a year to refuel between Hawaii and New Zealand. The beauty of the island from the air contrasted with the poverty and litter when on the ground.

The people, however, were extremely friendly and laid back, even in the face of such apparent poverty. Did you hear of any instances where recruits could not attend a college that offered a scholarship due to the "other" costs of attending school, namely the expense of airfare off of the island?

Eli Saslow: First, an example of the absolute kindness of American Samoans:

Travis (the videographer) and I were driving up a mountain to get a nice visual of the entire island one afternoon. The road dead-ended into a gate, so Travis and I parked and started walking. A farmer ran out of his house and offered to open the gate for us, so we could continue to drive. We politely declined and walked up the mountain. We came back to our car and started to drive away, but then the farmer chased after us. We pulled over, assuming we'd trespassed or broken some rule. But this guy just walked up to our window and handed us two ice cold 7-ups -- not an insignificant expense for a Samoan farmer. It was really touching.

As for the other part of your comment, I didn't hear about any players who had to forfeit a scholarship because of the

"other" costs. I did hear from a lot of Samoan players who had almost no spending money in college, though. They were just scrapping by on their scholarships alone.

_______________________

Reston, Va.: Fascinating article this weekend.

Though, I did have a problem with the associated graphic: it pointed out the number of Samoan players currently in the NFL. I would have been interested in seeing how many players get college opportunities, or at least some slice at similar data (maybe Samoans in the PAC-10), or even the CFL. Thus illustrating how football opens more than just the door to pro-football, but out of the poverty that exists at home.

Eli Saslow: Good point. We actually tried to beging accumulating that data, but it's nearly impossible to do. There are so many Samoans playing in college -- and so many college teams -- that the exact number would be difficult to quantify. And then you throw in the fact that many Samoans are at junior colleges, and the math becomes even more of a nightmare.

But...if I had to venture a guess: Football coaches in Samoa seemed to think that, each year, about 70 boys leave the island to play football in the U.S. So, if you figure maybe five classes are now working their way through college, that would mean about 350 kids from Samoa are now playing in college. For a tiny island with only four or five high schools, that's a lot.

_______________________

Apple Grove, Md.: Did you get the feeling that the kids actually enjoyed playing football or was it just a way to get off "the Rock"?

Eli Saslow: They absolutely enjoy it. For most of these kids, practice -- no matter how long and hot and miserable -- is the highlight of the day. Ne'emia spends most of his time doing chores and going to church with his family. Four hours of football practice is really the only time that he has to himself. It's his one time to be selfish, to pursue something that HE wants. In American Samoa, that time is considered a luxury.

The players in American Samoa just treat the game so differently than players here. They're so used to crummy playing conditions that they don't complain about anything. They fall on rocks; they share mouthguards; they run and lift weights EVERY day; they practice year round; they share equipment. It's tough to imagine the kids at, say, Whitman putting up with the same.

_______________________

Auburn, Ala.: Thank you for another honest, enriching, and fascinating addition to the study of sport. Do you have any plans to follow up with Ne'emia and his family later in the year? I'm sure I'm not the only reader who would love to know if he does in fact make it off the island.

Eli Saslow: Thanks for the nice note.

That's a nice idea about following up with Ne'emia, and I'll suggest it to my editors. Maybe, if we really get on the ball, we can do something on-line so that each of the Compete stories is accompanied by a type of post script. That way, people could read a little udpate on exactly what's happened with all the people we've written about.

I think Ne'emia has a pretty good chance of leaving the island. His coach, Pati Pati, has a nice relationships with a junior college coach in Los Angeles, and he's been talking to that coach about Ne'emia. Hopefully it works out.

_______________________

Alexandria, Va.: I know my comments are somewhat off-point, but I wanted to make a couple comments based on my experience. I've been to American Samoa twice as apart of hearings conducted on the island by the US Department of Labor every two years to determine what the minimum wage should be in the various industries on the island. It has been much lower than the mainland minimum wage because of an exception in the law, and because of the fear expressed on the island -- and fed by the tuna industry -- that if the wages go up any more the tuna industry will leave the island and then there will be no industry, no jobs. That said, Congress just passed legislation that would raise the minimum wage by 50 cents per year until it reaches the mainland minimum. The minimum wage in tuna was only $3.26 until this month, when it went up to $3.76. The minimum wage in construction was $3.60, and has just been raised to $4.10.

The tuna industry and the American Samoan government are the two biggest employers on the island. In fact, the tuna industry employs very few American Samoans. The vast majority of its employees are alien workers, many illegal, from Samoa (an independent country 30 miles away) or other Polynesian islands. The general reputation is that no self-respecting American Samoan would work in the tuna industry. Instead they work for the government, which has a reputation for being corrupt and bloated. The government receives significant financial assistance from the US Interior Department.

Ne'emia's father works in construction and earns only $150 a week for 12-hour days. It is likely that his employer is too small to be covered by the minimum wage. Clearly he is earning much less, much less overtime.

That said, I can certainly understand why young people want to leave the island. Many of them also go into the military. There is nothing there for them, and little prospect of new industry.

Eli Saslow: Thanks for sharing. When I was on the island, this wage issue was a major point of contention. Even workers at the tuna canneries seemed half opposed to an increase in the minimum wage. They're afraid a big increase will force out the canneries, and they'll move to another island. So, in the end, the tuna workers seem to hope for sort of an odd balance: They want a salary increase, but a small enough bump that it doesn't scare away their employer.

_______________________

Sacramento, Calif.: Thank you for another excellent installment in your series. Given the fact that the island is an American territory and the fact that there is such a big grass roots football movement, is the NFL involved in anyway in providing resources to these kids? If not, should they be?

Eli Saslow: Good question. I was surprised, actually, that the football resources in American Samoa remain so poor despite the island's NFL connections. Joe Salavea comes back many summers to run a camp, and a lot of other Samoan players go back to help coach also. But in terms of equipment, American Samoa coaches said that very little has been donated.

This year, three kids who graduated from HS in American Samoa were drafted. That's the kind of trend you can't help but notice, so chance might be on the way...

_______________________

Alexandria, Va.: Really enjoyed your article yesterday. Hearkened back to my time in American Samoa from 2003 until 2005.

While I was in American Samoa, I taught school for a year at South Pacific Academy. One of my students--then a ninth grader--was getting ready to transfer to Leone High School the following year (2004 I guess would have been his transfer year). South Pacific Academy is a private school on the island, known more for its academics than for anything else (it only recently got its own soccer team). I wonder if many other students forgo the opportunity to attend private schools on island in order to play football for one of the other high schools there.

Eli Saslow: Of the six teams on the island, two are compiled mainly of students from private schools. There are the four big public schools and then two teams made up of private school students. Those teams are traditionally the weakest, and they battle for fifth place on the island. But they provide an opportunity for private school kids to play.

I think the best football players do prefer to go to public schools, because those teams work hardest and win more often. But everybody and anybody can play.

_______________________

Leesburg, Va.: Great story! The island sounds pretty remote. How were your accommodations -- hotel, eating, etc.? I'm curious about the ambitions and prospects for the young females (athletes). Your writing continues to impress!

Eli Saslow: Thanks so much. I'm thrilled you liked it.

Well, in terms of accomodations, I had to forgo my trusty Marriott points for five or six nights. The hotel I stayed at, called Sadies by the Sea, was nice but not luxurious. There are no big hotels on the island, but the island attracts very few tourists. The other guests at my hotel seemed to be mainly businessmen spending a few days at the canneries.

And the food...well, let's just say I don't recommend the island as a mega-destination for culinary tourists. American Samoans eat, generally, like Americans. Everything is fried and heavily battered. Beef is king, even though there are no cows on the island and meat is imported from the U.S. and Australia. I went there anticipating great seafood -- since, you know, it is a speck of land in the middle of an ocean -- but discovered that sushi in American Samoa is made from canned tuna and shrimp is served out of the can.

In high school, at least, the girls sports are not followed wtih the same enthusiasm as football. Volleyball and soccer are beginning to pick up popularity, but the trend is not even as advanced as it is for female sports in the U.S. The island has a ways to go in that respect.

_______________________

New York, N.Y.: Thanks for a really interesting article -- you captured very well the domestic work load (which is true for girls and boys) and how it's part of thinking about "escape" from the island. I'm curious though -- how did you choose the player you were going to profile?

Eli Saslow: Travis and I spent a few days at football practices on the island looking for a player to spend time with. We visited several of the high schools, and settled on Ne'emia because he was a thoughtful kid who happily invited us into his home. He has a nice command of conversational English, which helped. And he loves football. He just seemed like a natural fit, because his situations and his story was representative of a lot of Samoan kids.

_______________________

Paradise Lost: Eli,

Great article and a great series -- thanks. I have been to AS. When I was stationed in Hawaii from '92-'95, our area of responsibility included the island and my duties took me there. Sounds like little has changed, which I am not sure is good or bad. Did you, in preparation for your visit and story, view a 1968 documentary video entitled, "American Samoa - Paradise Lost"? If not, even though I am sure you are working on your next story, you should view a copy. It is a honest portrayal of what can negatively happen to a culture when it becomes a US territory. Seems that AS became, mostly, a U.S. welfare state and adopted some of the worst practices of western culture (beer, junk/fast food, and throwing the containers/wrappers from both anywhere) as a result. Sad, in many ways. As many of your commenters stated, the military, in addition to football, was the main avenue of escape from the island for young American Samoans. Probably still is. And you nailed the weekly entertainment phenomena of hanging out at the airport watching the couple of weekly flights from Oahu come and go. Amazing. So, what's the next topic in your series? Couldn't help think about your "dog show" story in light of the Vick dogfighting scandal. What a contrast in terms of dog treatment.

Eli Saslow: Thanks for the thoughtful input. I will absolutely check out that documentary. It sounds fascinating.

Even after traveling to Samoa, talking to the non-voting congressman and writing the story, I'm still not sure: Has the island benefitted from becoming a U.S. territory? The residents have more money than the neighboring island -- formerly known as Western Samoa -- but they also have a sort of diluted culture and a lot of the problems of mainland America. I'm really not sure who is benefitting, and how.

_______________________

Philadelphia: I was fascinated by your article, but couldn't help but wonder after reading it -- are there any similar opportunities for girls who might want something "more"?

Eli Saslow: As many chatters and commentors have mentioned, the military is a major, major option for both boys and girls. The island also provides some academic scholarships for its top performers, but even those scholarships can usually be cashed in only at the community college on the island.

One of the assistant football coaches at Leone, Levi, is a military recruiter, and he said that he easily fills his quotas while his buddies in other states struggle to fill theirs. I guess, when you're 18 and deciding between a future at the tuna cannery or a signing bonus and world travel, the military becomes pretty appealing.

_______________________

Goshen, N.Y.: I wonder if there is a clear connection between the level of economic competitiveness in a society and the intensity of feeling of sports fans and players in that society. For example I know English fans have a (reputation) for rowdiness and that is a country that had some socialist minded ideals. But I wonder if overall in more homogenous or cooperative societies are sports experienced more pleasurably even if you lose the game?

Eli Saslow: Honestly, I'm just glad my article could inspire a question as educated as this one, so I wanted to post it. But I'm not sure I have an elegant or clear answer.

Anybody else have thoughts?

_______________________

Alexandria, Va.: Goodness! Are you saying most Samoans -- especially young people in school -- don't have a good command of conversational English! Aren't the schools conducted entirely in English?

Eli Saslow: Yes, the schools are conducted entirely in English, but nobody speaks English. Kids speak to each other in Samoan. Parents sometimes speak only Samoan. So the result is that every teenager on the island CAN speak and understand English, but doesn't necessarily feel comfortable or confident doing so, especially with a reporter from some far-away newspaper in some strange land.

_______________________

Chicago: How's the coaching in Samoa? This guy, Pati, does he seem to know anything about the game? I know you said he played in the U.S., but that doesn't mean he can be a good coach. Maybe these players would be even better if their coaches were better.

Eli Saslow: I've been to a lot of high school football practices as a sports writer, and Pati's practices seemed as good as any. Remember, he played college football for five years. I think that alone qualifies him to be a reasonably well-versed football coach. Plus, he cares about his job tremendously. He works hard to get these kids into shape, to win championships, and to place players at colleges off the island.

That said, some of the ideas from mainland American football have not quite penetrated the island. There, it's like watching football in the 1960s. Run, run, run, run, fake pass, run, run. So they've had some coaches from the U.S. go over and give coaching clinics, which maybe will help diversify the play calling this upcoming season.

_______________________

New Brunswick, N.J.: Is there really no other way for young people to leave American Samoa? I find it terribly destructive that this -- well, call it unproductive -- game is valued so much more than academics. And what about the girls?

The coach sounds like an exact counterpart of 19th century missionaries. Does he have any self-awareness of this?

And, vis. some of the comments, American Samoa does have some sort of sordid arrangement to contract work to labor in virtually peonage situations. Could you do a follow up to look at that?

Eli Saslow: The military is the other way kids leave. But for boys, football has become one of the more plausible paths out.

And a paragraph here to defend Pati: He cares passionately about football, and even more passionately about American Samoa. One of the other reasons we decided to follow Ne'emia is because Pati was overwhelming generous is giving us access to his team and his players. We ate almost every meal with Pati during our time in Samoa, and he was a great ambassador for football on the island. It's coaches like him, with his work ethic, that have turned the island into a furtile breeding ground for football players.

_______________________

Illinois: This was a wonderful story, but I found it depressing. Even if Ne'emia makes it to a big college and fulfills his dreams over in America, I still think the ending is going to be sad. His adjustment is going to be rough to college and to the mainland. Does he realize this? Is he prepared?

I'll be rooting for him, no matter how bad I think it looks.

Eli Saslow: Yes, you're right. It's difficult to imagine Ne'emia sleeping in a dorm room. He's used to sleeping on the floor with his family, waking up at 4 a.m. for church, and in a year he could be sleeping next to some drunk kid from New Jersey who stumbles into bed at 3 a.m. and cranks punk music.

But still, Ne'emia would be willing to adjust to anything to have a chance at playing here.

_______________________

Washington, D.C.: Eli Saslow...

You lost me at the top of second graf, when you cited the "size 13 flip-flops." In every Pacific island nation this Washington journalist has visited (including American Samoa), they're called zorries. Where did you go?

Eli Saslow: Thanks for pointing that out. Good to know. I'm afraid, though, if I'd refered to his "size 13 zorries" in the second graph, I might have lost people there, too...

_______________________

Alexandria, Va.: Will you be writing any other stories about American Samoa in the future? As a former resident, I'd like to read more about the territory that seems to have been forgotten by the U.S. One person posted an idea for an article about walking "in the shoes of a cannery worker." As a former teacher in American Samoa, I'd also like to read about the educational system there, and how few dollars go into education. Perhaps an article on American Samoa as a whole would be a good idea... You didn't touch on how much money goes to support families' fa'alavelaves.

The person who wrote about how much the governor makes is probably correct, but there are few funds to begin with in that territory, and with the grant money that is provided by the U.S., there's little oversight for it.

Anyway, as I said, I'd mainly like to know if you plan on writing any other articles about American Samoa in the future.

Thanks for the great article.

Eli Saslow: We will certainly try. I know this paper wants to cover everything and anything, as evidenced by the fact that they sent me to American Samoa to write about football in the first place.

The travel there -- and the expense of it -- makes Samoa a difficult place to cover. But we'll try to do it often.

_______________________

Seattle: A couple things -- wouldn't it make sense for NFL/CFL whoever to set up acadamies on the island, as baseball has done in the Dominican? Secondly, as citizens of Samoa are ethnically the same as the folks on AmSam, and only 30 miles east, has US football begun to catch on there, too?

Eli Saslow: Not many signs of American football catching on in Samoa yet. Samoa and American Samoa are very similar in the traditions of their cultures, but mainland America has really not penetrated (formerly Western) Samoa. Not many folks there speak English, etc. It's 30 miles away, but American Samoans say it feels traveling back in time.

_______________________

Why Do We Compete?: Hi Eli,

So, any universal conclusions you can draw about why we compete at this point in your series? What can we look forward to next?

Eli Saslow: Hmmm, this is a hard question. I hope there are a lot of things we can draw so far, but nothing absolutely conclusive. Maybe I'm just a procastinator, but...let's save that question for a few stories down the road. We're going to stay with high school athletes for the next two stories, which will come in late September and early October.

Until then, thanks to everybody for stopping by and for reading the series. Take care.

_______________________

Editor's Note: washingtonpost.com moderators retain editorial control over Discussions and choose the most relevant questions for guests and hosts; guests and hosts can decline to answer questions. washingtonpost.com is not responsible for any content posted by third parties.