7 DOCS ON RACIAL INJUSTICE
Stream 13th, Whose Streets?, Emmett Till +
As people crowd streets to march in cities for Black Lives Matter, some are finding other ways to educate and activate. The COVID-19 pandemic means not everyone is comfortable going outside to march with the masses. But there are different ways to advocate. One of them is to support filmmakers trying to educate people about racial injustices in America:
13TH
Ava DuVernay‘s Oscar-winning documentary is a cleverly crafted grab bag of the history of mass incarceration in the U.S. It uses startling statistics, interviews experts and takes a deep-dive into the policy of policing. 13th provides viewers with valuable insight into a loophole in The 13th Amendment.
13th is available for free on YouTube.
I AM NOT YOUR NEGRO
In an unfinished manuscript, the late James Baldwin describes the racial divide in modern America in Remember the House. With just 30 pages completed, director Raoul Peck envisions Baldwin’s completed novel about the assassinations of Medgar Evers, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr. Samuel L. Jackson narrates the 2016 film.
I Am Not Your Negro is available for free with Amazon Prime.
THE BLACK POWER MIXTAPE 1967-1975
Now streaming on Amazon, The Black Power Mixtape takes archival footage of the Black Power Movement and creates a stunning compilation. It is directed by a Swedish journalist who naturally approaches the project from an outside perspective. The film’s poster uses activist and scholar Angela Davis’ iconic image.
The Black Power Mixtape 1967-1975 is available for free on Amazon.
WHOSE STREETS?
The murder of Mike Brown is just one that sparked the current Black Lives Matter movement. Whose Streets? shows the unrest in Ferguson, Missouri, after Brown died at the hands of a white police officer. With all the protests and riots, Whose Streets? provides perspective for the turmoil now erupting around the world.
Whose Streets? is available on Hulu.
REST IN POWER: THE TRAYVON MARTIN STORY
The death of Trayvon Martin forced people to examine ongoing racism in the U.S. It is the story of Martin’s death caused by George Zimmerman and the uproar it caused, especially regarding state policies.
Rest In Power: The Trayvon Martin Story is available on Paramount.
4 LITTLE GIRLS
Spike Lee tells the story of Birmingham’s 16th Street Church bombing that killed four little girls. Americans were stunned by the domestic terrorist attack. That horrific incident garnered more support for the Civil Rights Movement. Unfortunately, it took the murder of four children to underscore continuing racial disparities.
4 Little Girls is available on HBO.
THE UNTOLD STORY OF EMMETT LOUIS TILL
In 13th, Ava DuVernay sheds light on Emmett Louis Till; he was a boy lynched in Mississippi for whistling at a white woman. The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till brings it into focus. It also shows the effects the lynching had on the civil rights movement and the bravery of Till’s family.
The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till is available on Tubi.
