No Excuses: Educate Yourself on The Importance of Black Liberation Through Film & TV
Black Panther Party co-founder Huey P. Newton, September of 1970. Credit: David Fenton
Black people in America are dying at the hands of the police every day- an extension of a system that is literally rooted in slavery and the degradation of black lives for personal gain. In the age of the internet, ignorance really is a choice, and neutrality does not exist. More importantly, complicity through silence is simply inexcusable.
Films & Documentaries
Slavery By Another Name
Based on the book Slavery by Another Name: The Re-Enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World War II written by Douglas A. Blackmon, this documentary seeks to criticize the notion that the end of slavery was signaled by the Emancipation Proclamation. Instead, it explores ways in which the system of slavery was transformed, and that black Americans were exploited in various other ways, which included but was not limited to mass incarceration and the criminilization of black bodies in America. Watch Slavery by Another name here.
The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution
In light of the criticism surrounding protest action and riots in the United States, this is a must-see documentary on the rise and roots of the Black Panther Party, who are notorious for their notions of fighting violence with violence. A project by black filmmaker Stanley Nelson, The Black Panthers: Vanguard of a Revolution is an essential exploration of black power, resistance and the desire not to reform the system, but to completely overthrow it to make way for one which recognizes the value of black life. Watch the full documentary here.
13th
If you’ve been scouring the internet on recommendations of what to watch to learn more about how Black Lives Matter relates to police brutality, the film 13th by Ava Duvernay undoubtedly would have been a recurring title-and rightfully so. Through a series of reflections and conversations with experts in their field, this Netflix documentary aims to analyze the prison industrial complex in relation to the criminalization of black bodies in America, and the ways in which this continues to reap political, economic and social benefits for white people in the United States. The full documentary has been made available for anyone to stream here.
TV Shows
Trial By Media: 41 Shots
The 41 Shots episode of Trial by Media is a very important look at the doomed duality of being both black as well as an immigrant in the United States. in February 1999, 23-year old Amadou Diallo lost his life at the hands of four plain-clothed police officers, who fired 41 shots in totality. Diallo made the journey from Guinea to the US to pursue his dreams of a better education, and instead was brutally gunned down on the unjustifiable basis that he appeared to be a threat to the four policemen who killed him. Amadou Diallo was unarmed, and his murderers still walk free to this day. The death of Amadou is a testament to the unwillingness of America to humanize immigrants and hold police officers accountable, often at the cost of innocent black lives.
Time: The Kalief Browder Story
This 6-part Netflix documentary follows the aftermath of the arrest of 16-year old Kalief Browder, who was mistakenly arrested for stealing a backpack and spent over 3 years in the notoriously brutal Rikers Island jail, without having been convicted of a single crime. Two of these years were spent in solitary confinement, which adversely affected his mental health. He devastatingly took his own life two years after being released from prison. The Khalief Browder Story is not one which speaks to a system that fails black children in America, but one which by design, never gave them a fair chance in the first place.
When They See Us
Often cited as painfully difficult to watch, When They See Us is a striking adaptation of the real-life events surrounding the Exonerated Five (formerly the Central Park 5)-5 teenage black boys who were wrongfully convicted of raping a woman in Central Park in 1989. The mini-series follows their journey as they become part of the prison system, as well as their quest to uncover the truth. When They See Us is essential viewing to illustrate the way the criminal justice system is rooted in racism, and the devastating effects of the adultification of black boys in the United States.
