MOVIES & DOCUMENTARIES
recommended viewing
These 26 New York Times mini-films for students
Teaching Tolerance, a project of the Southern Poverty Law Center, has videos and teaching kits to help educators talk about diversity, equity, and justice. (Educators of young children may want to try Starting Small: Teaching Tolerance in Preschool and the Early Grades.)
When They See Us, a Netflix miniseries from Ava DuVernay. In 1989 a jogger was assaulted and raped in New York's Central Park, and five young people were subsequently charged with the crime. The quintet, labeled the Central Park Five, maintained its innocence and spent years fighting the convictions, hoping to be exonerated. This limited series spans a quarter of a century, from when the teens are first questioned about the incident in the spring of 1989, going through their exoneration in 2002 and ultimately the settlement reached with the city of New York in 2014.
13th, a Netflix documentary exposing racial inequality within the criminal justice system. The film explores the "intersection of race, justice, and mass incarceration in the United States" and is titled after the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which in 1865 abolished slavery throughout the United States and ended involuntary servitude — except as a punishment for conviction.
America to Me — A 10-episode limited series that tells the story of one year at Chicago's Oak Park and River Forest High School and lays bare the overwhelming issues that people of color face in the American school system.
Teach Us All (Netflix)— Through case studies in Little Rock, New York City, and Los Angeles, Teach Us All seeks to bring the critical lessons of history to bear on the current state of U.S. education and investigate: 60 years later, how far have we come — or not come — and how do we catalyze action from here?
Time: The Kalief Browder Story — A Netflix series that documents how the criminal justice system tragically failed 16-year-old Kalief Browder, who spent three years in Rikers Island jail awaiting trial — two of those years in solitary confinement — after being arrested for allegedly stealing a backpack.
Moonlight (Netflix) — In this acclaimed coming-of-age drama, a young man who grows up poor, Black and gay in a rough Miami neighborhood tries to find his place in the world.
The Hate U Give — a film based on the YA novel, offering an intimate portrait of race in America through the eyes of a girl between two worlds: the poor, mostly black, neighborhood where she lives and the rich, mostly white, prep school she attends.
SUPPLEMENTARY VIEWING
If Beale Street Could Talk — Set in early-1970s Harlem, If Beale Street Could Talk is a timeless and moving love story of both a couple's unbreakable bond and the African-American family's empowering embrace, as told through the eyes of 19-year-old Tish River.
Seven Seconds (Netflix) — The death of a 15-year-old African American boy in Jersey City sets off a police cover-up and a search for the truth.
Little Fires Everywhere — Based on Celeste Ng's 2017 bestseller, Little Fires Everywhere follows the intertwined fates of the picture-perfect Richardson family and an enigmatic mother and daughter who upend their lives. The story explores the weight of secrets, the nature of art and identity, the ferocious pull of motherhood -- and the danger in believing that following the rules can avert disaster.
Hidden Figures — the incredible untold story of Katherine G. Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan, and Mary Jackson, three brilliant African-American women working at NASA who served as the brains behind one of the greatest operations in history: the launch of astronaut John Glenn into orbit, a stunning achievement that restored the nation's confidence, turned around the Space Race, and galvanized the world.
Strong Island (Netflix) — In April 1992, a 24 year-old Black teacher, William Ford, was killed a white man. Although Ford was unarmed, he became the prime suspect in his own murder. Strong Island chronicles the arc of his family across history, geography and tragedy — from the racial segregation of the Jim Crow South to the promise of New York City; from the presumed safety of middle class suburbs, to the maelstrom of an unexpected, violent death.
Miss Virginia (Netflix) — the true story of education advocate Virginia Walden Ford, a single mother who fought against the systems threatening to destroy her son and thousands of young black men just like him.
Self-Made: The Enduring Legacy of Madam C.J. Walker — a Netflix miniseries that tells story of Madam C.J. Walker, the trailblazing African American haircare entrepreneur and cultural icon who was America's first female self-made millionaire.
White Like Me: Race, Racism, & White Privilege in America, a documentary by Tim Wise
The Innocence Files (Netflix) — The untold personal stories behind eight cases of wrongful conviction that the Innocence Project and organizations within the Innocence Network have uncovered and worked to overturn.
Explained: The Racial Wealth Gap — Cory Booker and others discuss how slavery, housing discrimination and centuries of inequality have compounded to create a racial wealth gap.
Becoming — Join former first lady Michelle Obama in an intimate documentary looking at her life, hopes and connection with others as she tours with "Becoming."
3 ½ Minutes, Ten Bullets — Filmed over a period of 18 months, 3 ½ Minutes, Ten Bullets tells the story of Jordan Davis, a black 17-year-old who was murdered by a white man at a gas station who took issue with the volume of the teenager’s music. It details the journey of Jordan Davis’ parents from grief to activism, and explores public opinion on Florida’s “Stand Your Ground Law.”
Hidden Figures, a film about the brilliant African American women of NASA
Traffic Stop (short) — Traffic Stop tells the story of Breaion King, a 26 year-old African-American school teacher from Austin, Texas who is stopped for a routine traffic violation that escalates into a dramatic arrest.
The House I Live In, a 2012 documentary film about the War on Drugs in the United States.
Dark Girls takes a hard look at the biases and attitudes that dark-skinned women face all over the world. Through skin lightening, countless women actively try to make their skin lighter in the hope that it will lead them to a better life. Filmmakers Bill Duke and D. Channsin Berry then examine how white women go to tanning beds, get Botox, and undergo plastic surgeries to make them look "more ethic."
