The tragic death of George Floyd in America on Monday 25th of May, 2020 due to police brutality and racism, has not only woken up the Black community, but also send shockwaves to the rest of the world. The Black Lives Matter movement has extended the shores of America to the UK, Europe, Canada, and others. Through it there have been various activities such as protesting, donating, signing petitions, and many more.
You would think 400 years after slavery and over 60 years after the civil rights movement ended the world will be a fairer place. But it seems more still needs to be done, The Black Lives Matter movement urges everyone to educate or re-educate themselves on what racial discrimination based on skin colour is in their day to day lives. Rightly so, as many people are fed up of racial oppression against black people worldwide.
Here are 5 Black Lives Matters movies recommended to learn more about systemic racism below:
When They See Us (2019)
The gripping four (4) part drama series by African-American female writer-director extraordinaire Ava DuVernay is based on the true story of five black teenagers Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson, Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana and Korey Wise popularly known as “Central Park 5” who was wrongly convicted of a brutal crime in 1989. The case was against a white woman who was raped while jogging. It was able to highlight the weaknesses in the US justice system.
Dear White People
This drama series brings us a witty commentary on serious race-related issues that occur in Ivy-League college in America to a group of African-America students. Some of the topics that were explored by writer and director Justin Simien include political correctness, cultural bias, police brutality, microaggressions and cultural bias. These incredibly smart millennials were often times fearless in addressing challenges they had just because they were “black” in a predominantly white and elitist school.
Seven Seconds (2018)
The ten (10) part drama series starring Regina King was centred on the death of a 15 years old boy of African-America heritage in Jersey city. He was accidentally knocked over by a white police officer whose colleague tried to help him cover it up. However, racial tensions aroused in the community and his family were relentless in finding the truth.
The Hate U Give (2018)
The movie starring Reginal Hall was adapted from 2017 young adult novel of the same name by Angie Thomas. 16 years old high school student Starr Carter witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood friend by a trigger-happy cop and must decide whether to testify or not.” It relates well with the current Black Lives Matter movement as she galvanised to protest to fight for justice.
American Son
Kerry Washington stars as the emotional mother of a biracial child waiting in the waiting room of a police station for her missing son. She experienced various forms of racial bias not just against herself but her son too while patiently waiting. This serves as a perfect example of race dynamics and systemic oppression in America.
We hope these black lives matters movies above have been able to inspire you and dedicated to treating people equally regardless of the colour of their skin. In reality, we all experience similar struggles in or everyday lives. So, please be kind.
Please let us know what you think about this post and also feel free to comment recommending other movies we need to check.
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