As some of you know, the seventh and eighth graders had a school trip to see the film based off of one the of many journeys of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.: Selma. A movie that shows the breath taking progress of black people in America. This movie stars David Oyelowo, Oprah Winfrey, Cuba Gooding Jr. and many more amazing actors portraying the strong leaders and warriors of the Civil Rights Movement.
Selma, directed by Ava DuVernay, is about how black people fought for their voting rights. Many blacks, such as Annie Lee Cooper (Oprah Winfrey) have been denied. Even though their laws allowing to blacks to vote, it’s not official yet. Later on, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (David Oyelowo) fights for their rights. He converses with Lyndon B. Johnson, the president, on ways to end segregation towards black voters. Once Johnson dismissed the problem for he had too many situations to deal with, Dr. King had another approach. This movie focuses on the fact that it wasn’t just one man who made the Civil Rights Movement. It was hundreds of strong people fighting for what’s rights. Black, white, and other races joined this movement. Dr. King was a very crucial part of the act. But this movie showed that it was a struggle that stretched across many souls. You could see that every person in this film was a fighter.
This movie isn’t focused on white-guilt. It doesn’t present the two races, black and white, as good and bad. It shows racism as a problem that all races have to solve. It’s not a one-way situation. I recommend this movie to families. I also recommended to classes who want to learn about American history. I specifically recommend this to those that want to be motivated. This is a movie that inspires people to do more, and to be more.
