In This Issue
You may have noticed that since my return from sabbatical, I have been obsessed with the lives of young Black men and boys. And why not, somebody has got to care about them. I've been asking the same question in different ways: Do the lives of young Black males matter?
The murders of Trayvon Martin, Oscar Grant, Jordan Davis -- and now let's add Jonathan Ferrell, the unarmed Black male college student who was shot 10 times by a Charlotte police officer, not to mention what's happening on the southside of Chicago– have made me feel, as I said a few weeks ago, as though it's open season on Black males. I was so upset after I saw Fruitvale Station that I literally took to my bed.
Last week I challenged the way in which Georgia Southern University demonized all Black men by issuing a campus-wide alert for an alleged HIV-positive sexual predator who fit the description of darn near every Black man between the ages of 20 and 40 in the United States -- but who the Georgia Health Department knew nothing about. You see, if you demonize and dehumanize young black men, it is easier to justify killing them.
I need to experience a different point of view. So this week I'm eagerly awaiting this Friday's Los Angeles premiere of the award-winning documentary American Promise, a coming-of-age story of two Black boys from Brooklyn that raises issues of race, class, gender, and privilege and portrays Black males in ways that we rarely see in the media. (See the schedule of theatrical openings, below.)
The filmmakers, Joe Brewster and Michele Stephenson, turned the camera on themselves, their oldest son, Idris, and his best friend, Seun Summers to document the boys' educational journeys from kindergarten through 12th grade. Idris and Seun grow up on screen. Along the way not only do their lives defy stereotypes, so do the lives of fathers. It is a breath of fresh air to see the truthful depictions of Black males and Black families and to see why it is important to allow our sons to discover and become whoever they are.
Indeed young Black men and boys don't just feel a lack of acceptance and isolation from White America, which many have, in fact, given up on being embraced by. Many Black males feel isolated from Black adults, leaders, institutions, and the community that they should be able to turn to for sanctuary from a larger society that seems to be trying to destroy them. White women, they tell us, aren't the only ones clutching their pearls and crossing to the other side of the street.
The truth of the matter is, a lot of adults of all backgrounds think of young Black men only as the problem, not as part of the solution. Yet this film reminds us that young Black men want to participate in our community and that they have far more to offer than many may want to believe. Black people may not be able to control the world's racism, but we can control the way we love, support, educate and raise the boys and young men in our homes and neighborhoods. We are only fooling ourselves if we think that our community can survive while leaving our sons behind.
American Promise is a must-see film. If you live in Los Angeles, please join me on Friday, October 25th at the Pasadena Playhouse 7, located at 673 East Colorado Blvd. (It's also showing at the Music Hall 3 at 9036 Wilshire Blvd in Beverly Hills.) But no matter where you live, please check out the list below, find the screening nearest to you, call up all of your friends and be there.
If whales, snails, dogs, cats, Chrysler, and Nixon can be saved, the lives of Black men are priceless and can be saved.
Essex Hemphill, from "For My Own Protection"
In this issue we profile AAHU Fellow Leroy Stephens, a Miami-area minister. We get an update on the activities that the partners in the Act Against AIDS Leadership Initiative are engaging in to fight HIV/AIDS among Black MSM. New research shows that MSM who took Tenofovir PrEP did not engage in riskier sexual activity. And Kaiser Health News reports that HealthCare.gov has updated its site to allow visitors to compare health insurance premiums without creating an account first and that how much a person's health insurance actually costs varies significantly from state to state.
Yours in the struggle,
Phill
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American Promise Theatrical Openings
New York, NY
October 18, 2013
IFC Center (323 Sixth Avenue at West Third Street)
Lincoln Center, Elinor Bunim Monroe Theater (144 W 65th St)
Los Angeles & Pasadena
October 25, 2013
Pasadena Playhouse 7 (673 East Colorado Blvd.)
Music Hall 3 (9036 Wilshire Blvd. Beverly Hills, CA)
Washington, DC
November 1, 2013
E Street Theater (555 11th Street NW)
Philadelphia, PA
November 1, 2013
Ritz at the Bourse (400 Ranstead Street)
Omaha, NE
November 5, 2013
Film Streams (1340 Mike Fahey Street)
Atlanta, GA
November 8, 2013
Midtown Art (931 Monroe Drive)
San Francisco, Oakland & Berkeley
November 15, 2013
Roxie (3117 16th Street)
Elmwood (2966 College Avenue)
Regal Jack London (1405 Pacific Avenue)
Chicago, IL
November 22, 2013
Gene Siskel Film Center (164 N. State Street)
Detroit, MI
November 28, 2013
Detroit FIlm Center (5200 Woodward Avenue)
Providence, RI
December 6, 2013
Cable Car Cinema (204 South Main Street)
Columbus, OH
December 6, 2013
Gateway Film Center (1550 North High Street)
Santa Fe, NM
December 13, 2013
Center for Contemporary Arts (1050 Old Pecos Trail)