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Allen’s film highlights the life story of NBA player turned activist Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf
by Tyler Epps
In the highly anticipated documentary “Stand,” viewers get an inside look into the life story of American basketball player, Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, whose career changed in the blink of an eye when he took a particular stance against the national anthem. Following his Muslim beliefs and views of the American flag, he would suffer years of backlash, which would overshadow his talents and love for the basketball sport.
Years in the making, this documentary is brought to life by steadfast advocate and storyteller, Sarah Allen. In an open conversation, we learn about her resilience in breaking barriers in the sports and entertainment industry, balancing that with being a mother and what she hopes viewers will take away from this important story.
“My mentor, Davey D Cook, was the first person to tell me about Mahmoud’s story. In late 2016, he had interviewed Mahmoud for his radio show, Hard Knock Radio. At the time, I was working on producing an independent documentary with my colleague and good friend, the late Kali O’Ray of the San Francisco Black Film Festival, regarding the discourse between the Black community and law enforcement.
“I was intrigued by the new wave of athlete activism spawned by the Black Lives Matter movement, and Davey D felt that Mahmoud’s story was relevant to the narrative I was exploring. After a year of trying to get in touch with Mahmoud, I finally met him in person at a journalism convention in New Orleans hosted by the National Association of Black Journalists. He graciously accepted my request to interview him for a feature story that appeared in The Sports Fan Journal.
“Mahmoud’s journey and the person he is today, despite all of the adversity he has faced in his life, is what inspired me to want to tell his story. There is a younger generation who doesn’t know that there was a Steph Curry before the Steph Curry they see today. The younger generation also doesn’t know what athlete activism looked like prior to the age of social media.
“Mahmoud’s pathway to basketball started with his desire to be great while overcoming the obstacles of having Tourette Syndrome. This story must be told now because all of the different layers we explore are meant to inspire and help others. Mahmoud was always ahead of his time, but now the current social and political climate we are living in is more welcoming and willing to receive his message.
“My first job in sports and entertainment came about three years after I graduated from San Francisco State University. I responded to a job posting I found in the Hollywood Reporter.com site for a start-up network called, The Tennis Channel. They were looking for an executive assistant. They were so brand new that they didn’t have any employees yet, and there were four executives working to get venture capital funding so they could launch a 24-hour-a-day tennis network. I didn’t know anything about tennis, but I was looking for my big break. Thankfully, they hired me, and a year and a half later they acquired the funding they needed and were able to launch an entire network that has been on the air for 20 years.
“Fast forward to the present day, there are still so many challenges that I face as a Black woman working in sports and entertainment. Most of those challenges are attributed to it being a white male-dominated industry. The opportunities for women and women of color to work in film and sports media at the executive level, as producers and directors, are few and far between.
“It only takes one person to believe in you and to give you a chance. Fortunately, I had two people who advocated for me, Mahmoud and Stephen Espinoza, the president of Showtime Sports. As a result, I was able to advocate for more women to work on this film. We hired Joslyn Rose Lyons, who is also a Bay Area native and is making her feature-length directorial debut, and Colleen Dominguez as our producer, who brings with her decades of experience as a sports reporter and a producer.
“Initially, it was difficult finding a home for this story. I would notice that there were meetings taking place that didn’t include me. I had been told that although I had initiated the conversations between Mahmoud and one of the networks, I would never be hired as a producer because they felt I wasn’t qualified or didn’t have enough experience. I was also told that the most I could aspire to was an associate producer credit. I was always the only woman and the only woman of color, so I often felt that I had to be intentional about making sure my voice was heard. Once we partnered with Showtime Sports, I saw a lane open up for me where I could openly voice my ideas and opinions and was given the authority to make decisions.
There’s this misperception that becoming a mother limits a woman from pursuing their dreams.
“Something that we don’t talk a lot about are the roles women play in everyday lives. We are expected to wear a lot of hats in business, family life, relationships, etc. There’s this misperception that becoming a mother limits a woman from pursuing their dreams. I never stopped being an individual independent of the responsibilities I maintain as a parent. The reason is because I want my son to see me working hard and believing in myself. I’m the first and last example he will see as someone who has had to persevere.
“I chose a career path that I feel passionately about and I want him to know what it means to pursue something you love while also earning a living. I hope that my experiences will inspire other women of color and mothers to see that you can have balance and your own identity without having to compromise on the things that mean the most to you.
“I was born and raised in San Francisco and I have lived in Oakland most of my adult life so I’m ‘sucka free and townbizness!’ I’m so proud to represent both sides of the Bay Area and I know I get my conviction and social awareness from the culture here. The support I have received over the years from my friends, mentors and colleagues here has inspired me to be a creative thinker. I hope that the work I am producing makes my community feel proud to claim me as their own.
“Mahmoud’s story is very special. He embodies what it means to face adversity with a determination to strive for excellence while coming out on the other side of pain and trauma still resilient. I’ve been inspired by him to keep going even when it’s uncomfortable. So I hope that people watching this story will also feel like anything is possible as long as you keep God first and believe in yourself.
“I really hope that more women and women of color will pursue careers in journalism, entertainment and sports media. It’s baffling to me that we still have to fight so hard to prove that we deserve to have these opportunities. When we do get into the decision making positions, we need to be intentional about pulling others up with us. We can’t do it alone and we need each other to support one another.
“I’m really looking forward to seeing the fruits of our labor come to life on screen. It was a culmination of four years since the journey started. I’m also excited for my colleagues who have worked so hard on this film. I’m currently pursuing other projects as I want to continue my lifelong dream as a producer, filmmaker and storyteller.”
You can now watch “Stand”on SHOWTIME.
Tyler is a talent ambassador and storyteller originally from San Francisco, Calif., and recently relocated to Dallas, Texas. She has a bachelor’s in Communications Studies and an MA in Health Communication. Email: tyepps19@gmail.com
