A couple of years ago, a friend, whose opinion I deeply respect, recommended I watch the show Friday Night Lights. The recommendation surprised me. On the surface, the show seemed nothing I would relate to. It was a show about high school football in Texas. Not that there’s anything wrong with either, but I’d rather spend my Friday nights with friends and, well, I have the feeling that Texas wouldn’t like me. I did attend some of my high school football games, but after graduation day, the Cougars were part of my past.

Then I began to watch it and within the first couple of episodes, I was hooked. Yes, it was about Texans who loved their football and trucks but it was also about racism, poverty, equality of opportunity, gender roles, sexuality, identity and the idea that money is far from everything. It addressed many, if not most of the issues that ignite passion among progressives and are generally dismissed by conservatives. One of the characters even had an abortion and her world was not destroyed.