Refuge
**Seen at the 2022 Atlanta Film Festival.
One of the things you notice when you live in Georgia is that, though it has a reputation politically as an Old South conservative haven, when you go through the state, it’s anything but. Certainly, that reputation has been earned, but it doesn’t reflect its citizens at all. Not completely. That said, what I learned about Clarkston, a town just outside of Atlanta, startled me with how diverse it is. Over the years, it has become a place inviting of all creeds and nationalities when they’ve needed a place to live. It is very much the refuge of the title, and for one good ol’ boy from Lafayette, it’ll be a place he goes as he redeems himself of his past mistakes.
Chris Buckley is like a lot of Americans. After September 11, he was inspired to enlist to go protect his country from further attacks. He also internalized a fundamental hatred of Muslims, something that would be exasperated from his tours in the military before he was discharged. He also got addicted to opioids, threatening his family life. The internalized hatred also threatened his well-being when he joined the Ku Klux Klan, and became a leader in local chapters. His wife gave him an ultimatum- his family, or his hate- and she got him in touch with someone who works to de-radicalize white supremacists. The distrust for Muslims would remain, though. Until his de-programmer got him in touch with Heval.
Heval is a physician whose family came to Clarkston shortly after 9/11; they were Syrian refugees, and came to the United States after not finding a home in Germany. So quickly after the attacks, they could not imagine the warm welcome they received from the community. That they were embraced, when I remember so much xenophobia at the time, is extraordinary, but as we learn more about Clarkston, we’re not surprised. Heval is an example of the American Dream we espouse. He’s not quite sure what to expect when he meets Chris, though; to be fair, neither is Chris.
Of course, isolated situations do not equate to assurances that every white nationalist- or former white nationalist- would have a change of heart when faced with a person whom they’ve had internalized hate for. That’s not what “Refuge” is trying to say; it understands that the circumstances at play are unique to both Chris and Heval. The hope that they embody, though- and have tried to spread in their own efforts to de-program people from hating one another- is inspiring, and it makes watching “Refuge” a much-needed piece of uplift in this divisive times. One just has to open yourself to the experience it offers. I welcome it gladly.
