Athletes are often honored as heroes for their speed, agility or skill on the field. They become legends with each record they break or title they lead their team to win. But sometimes in history their actions off the field are more heroic than on it.

Such is the story of Jackie Robinson, as portrayed in the film 42. Americans know Robinson as the man who first broke Major League Baseball's color boundary by being the first African American to sign with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1946. Robinson's legacy is timeless as his story is told in children's books, history classrooms, and celebrated annually by Major League Baseball. Now he is being remembered in film.

Who we often fail to celebrate, however, are the heroes of the civil rights movement in Tacoma. Just like every other part of the country, and not nearly as long ago as we would like to believe, Tacoma was a city seen in black and white. It took both national and local civil rights pioneers to make Tacoma a city that embraces its own diversity.

Saturday April 27, The Grand Cinema will be hosting a post film discussion after the 2:45 p.m. showing of 42. Local leaders Harold Moss and Willie C. Stewart will lead a conversation on the intersection of civil rights, sports, education and the history of Tacoma.

Harold Moss may be best known as Tacoma's first African American mayor, but his civil rights background extends far beyond that. In the 1950s, Moss began working with the Tacoma chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). He served as the first African American Tacoma City Councilmember and Pierce County Councilmember. He served on Tacoma's first Human Relations Commission - now known as the Human Rights Commission - and also helped form the Tacoma Urban League.

Willie C. Stewart has made a similarly important impact on Tacoma while taking a very different path. Stewart is one of Tacoma's most celebrated educators, having served as a teacher, assistant principal, principal and school board director. He is currently involved in the Tacoma Athletic Commission.

Watching the story of Jackie Robinson as he blazed trails for civil rights in professional sports should be nothing short of moving. Combined with the special opportunity to discuss the film in perspective with two of our city's own heroes is sure to be inspirational.

Moss and Stewart each have their own stories to share about the movement for racial equality in Tacoma, transforming distant images on a big screen to a personal understanding of prejudice in our own neighborhoods. More importantly, these are the stories of local heroes who have changed Tacoma for the better. The opportunity to discuss these issues in this context is a rare learning experience, and I wouldn't suggest missing it.

Kelsey Hilmes is a marketing and media intern at The Grand Cinema.