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"They were barefoot but they were having such a good time!" This was the first thought that ran across Luma al Mufleh's mind when she saw a couple of Sudanese boys playing soccer in a parking lot of an old apartment complex in Clarkston, GA. She is the main character in the book I am reading, which is titled "Outcasts United" by Warren St. John. This is the story of Luma, a Lebanese immigrant who lives in Clarkston. She founded a soccer program for young boys living in Clarkston; they happened to be refugees from these war-torn countries: Sudan, Afghanistan, Congo, Liberia, and Iraq. Within the program, the boys made new friends with other boys who were congenial with them. I have enjoyed the seven chapters that I have read so far, primarily because I like soccer, and this book is about a soccer program. Since the characters in the story are immigrants, I like how the story doesn't focus as much on one single character, but rather different characters because even though they are all immigrants, they have different ethnic backgrounds and different reasons to come to the U.S. 

People come from different countries and ethnic backgrounds, and have different races and religions; nevertheless, they should come as one when doing something they all enjoy. When placing the boys in groups for practice drills, Luma would say, "I need a Liberian there, with a Congolese, an Afghan, and an Iraqi." This type of grouping allowed the boys to make new friends of other religions and races, and kept them from siding with people who just speak their language, or come from the same place as them. "We're all foreigners, and this is a team where everybody unites," said an Ethiopian player when interviewed by the book's author. The boys understood what Luma was trying to do, and they soon made new friends with people who were so different from them ethnically, yet so similar on the pitch (field).

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