Watch Cheer during quarantine

In traditional American culture, cheerleading has always been seen as the classic white Valley girl counterpart to jocks and popular kids who peaked in high school. However, Cheer offers an interesting antithesis to this by following the stories of five cheerleaders who have found solace and hope in the sport. The docuseries, complete with technically on-point camera shots and a soundtrack that slowly builds up to the apex at the National Cheerleading Championships, show cheerleaders who are multi-faceted and complex in their struggles and their aspirations. All the characters are likable, not because they are the cool and perfect kids that cheerleaders are stereotyped to be, but because they are the hopeful and incredibly human college students that the docuseries managed to encapsulate perfectly. Jerry Harris, a black man who grew up in Chicago without ever having a stable family, uses cheer to cope with the loss of his mother. Lexi Brumback, the star tumbler who was kept out of jail because of her passion for cheer. Their coach, Monica Aldama, who used her experience and love for cheer to build a team from a small college from the ground up.^[1] In quarantine, the message of this docuseries is at once inspiring but also comforting. We get to see an activity that society has always whitewashed and romanticized under the microscope and understand the stories behind the beautiful tumbles, jumps, and routines. In a time where humans have gotten increasingly isolated, we get an opportunity to be reminded of the world from before and connect to each other on a meaningful and deep level. We get to understand that humans aren’t perfect and that behind every winning two-and-a-half-minute routine, there’s years and years of hardship and struggle that goes into the practice and the teamwork behind it.

[P1] Cheer is an inspiring story of people who used their passion to overcome their struggles. [P2] People in quarantine need to connect with other struggles and see people empowering themselves.