We have a new generation taking over the leadership of the street protests in America. We also have a large segment of the white population whose eyes have been opened to the reality of day-to-day life in America.
It seems likely from here that we will continue the protests at some point in the summer as the GOP-controlled Senate is preventing future relief for many of the working people of this country. Between now and then we need to find a way to get everyone up to speed on how we got here.
I had this idea that we need to educate. More than just ourselves. That’s why I want to enlist the Public Broadcasting System (PBS) to schedule Eyes on the Prize for broadcast again this summer.
Step over the police barricade and we can discuss.
The murder of George Floyd, along with the exponential proliferation of grassroots video of police brutality and civilian racism has now created a window for change.
Eyes on the Prize
Eyes on the Prize recounts the fight to end decades of discrimination and segregation. It is the story of the people — young and old, male and female, northern and southern — who, compelled by a meeting of conscience and circumstance, worked to eradicate a world where whites and blacks could not go to the same school, ride the same bus, vote in the same election, or participate equally in society. It was a world in which peaceful demonstrators were met with resistance and brutality — in short, a reality that is now nearly incomprehensible to many young Americans.
Through contemporary interviews and historical footage, Eyes on the Prize traces the civil rights movement from the Montgomery bus boycott to the Voting Rights Act; from early acts of individual courage through the flowering of a mass movement and its eventual split into factions. Julian Bond, political leader and civil rights activist, narrates.
The series consists of fourteen episodes and first aired in 1987 (the first six) and 1990 (the final eight).
The title and the theme song are from an old spiritual. I love the Sweet Honey in the Rock version, but the one used in the series was that of Mavis Staples.
Preaching to the Choir
I am not suggesting this because I think the members of Daily KOS need it. There are plenty of people on the site who were active participants in the events recounted in the documentary. Instead, I am hoping that somehow, if PBS shows it over a series of evenings this summer, it will help educate the greater population of Americans who seem to have forgotten how we got here.
March on Washington August 28th, 2020
August 28th is the fifty-seventh anniversary of the 1963 event, and a large event is planned, organized by Rev. Al Sharpton and others.
There is a Twitter account @MarchOnWash2020 and of course, a hashtag: #MarchOnWashington2020.
I think the Aug 28th March is something the country needs and I also think PBS can do their part and help us all get there.