Diamond in the Dunes

On Sunday, I was invited to preview a documentary film, Diamond in the Dunes, directed by Chris Rufo who is part of the Documentary Foundation here in Sacramento. The film is about Parhat Ablat, a young Muslim minority from the deserts of Western China, who leads the fight against racial segregation through baseball. The 10 minute preview had me wanting more of the story not only because I love baseball but because of the passion for which these people embrace the game and what their only game of the season against a team of Tibetans from the Qinghai Province means.

The story documents the struggles between two ethnic groups in the Xinjiang Province that band together to learn the game of baseball and for the chance to play in one game a year. The two groups live in almost total seperation speaking different languages, praciticing different religions, live and work in different neighborhoods and even set their watches two hours apart from on another.

It's a story about breaking the lines of segregation through baseball.... sound familiar?

Stop by the Foundation's site to get more information and buy a pre-sale copy of the film. You won't be sorry.