BLACK HISTORY MONTH: WHAT TO WATCH

Black History Month: What to Watch

Black History Month is under way, and we know that everyone is looking for ways that they can explore and celebrate it. We also know that it’s winter and everyone wants to stay inside bundled up under a warm blanket. So, what better way to explore black history than binging movies and TV shows about remarkable black figures and important issues black people have faced for centuries. Don’t know where to start? We have you covered. Below you’ll read our list of some of the best movies and TV shows that explore and teach us about black history and where to watch them during Black History Month 2022.

Hidden Figures (2016)

Three brilliant African-American women at NASA — Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson — serve 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.

Genre: Biography / Drama / History

Runtime: 2 hours 7 minutes

Where to Watch: Disney+, Amazon Prime Video/Apple TV/YouTube ($3.99)


Selma (2014)

Although the Civil Rights Act of 1964 legally desegregated the South, discrimination was still rampant in certain areas, making it very difficult for Blacks to register to vote. In 1965, an Alabama city became the battleground in the fight for suffrage. Despite violent opposition, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his followers pressed forward on an epic march from Selma to Montgomery, and their efforts culminated with President Lyndon Johnson signing the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Genre: Biography / Drama / History

Runtime: 2 hours 8 minutes

Where to Watch: Amazon Prime Video/YouTube ($2.99), Apple TV ($3.99)


Freedom Summer (2014)

A look back at the summer of 1964, when more than 700 student activists took segregated Mississippi by storm, registering voters, creating freedom schools and establishing the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party.

Genre: Documentary / History

Runtime: 1 hour 53 minutes

Where to Watch: PBS (https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/freedomsummer/), Amazon Prime Video ($4.99)


Nine from Little Rock (1964)

The Arkansas school integration crisis and the changes wrought in subsequent years. This film profiles the lives of the nine African-American students who integrated Central High in Little Rock, Arkansas, during the fall of 1957. The film documents the perspective of Jefferson Thomas and his fellow students seven years after their historic achievement.

Genre: Documentary / Short

Runtime: 20 minutes

Where to Watch: YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPVOO5sugMY), C-SPAN (https://www.c-span.org/video/?323645-1/reel-america-nine-rock-1964)


12 Years a Slave (2013)

In the years before the Civil War, Solomon Northup, a free black man from upstate New York, is kidnapped and sold into slavery in the South. Subjected to the cruelty of one malevolent owner, he also finds unexpected kindness from another, as he struggles continually to survive and maintain some of his dignity. Then in the 12th year of the disheartening ordeal, a chance meeting with an abolitionist from Canada changes Solomon’s life forever.

Genre: Biography / Drama / History

Runtime: 2 hours 14 minutes

Where to Watch: HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video/Apple TV/YouTube ($3.99)


Malcolm X (1992)

A tribute to the controversial black activist and leader of the struggle for black liberation. He hit bottom during his imprisonment in the ’50s, he became a Black Muslim and then a leader in the Nation of Islam. His assassination in 1965 left a legacy of self-determination and racial pride.

Genre: Biography / Drama / History

Runtime: 3 hours 22 minutes

Where to Watch: YouTube ($3.99)


Loving (2016)

Interracial couple Richard and Mildred Loving fell in love and were married in 1958. They grew up in Central Point, a small town in Virginia that was more integrated than surrounding areas in the American South. Yet it was the state of Virginia, where they were making their home and starting a family, that first jailed and then banished them. Richard and Mildred relocated with their children to the inner city of Washington, D.C., but the family ultimately tries to find a way back to Virginia.

Genre: Biography / Drama / Romance

Runtime: 2 hours 3 minutes

Where to Watch: Netflix, Amazon Prime Video/Apple TV/YouTube ($3.99)


Race (2016)

Young Jesse Owens becomes a track and field sensation while attending the Ohio State University in the early 1930s. With guidance from coach Larry Snyder, Owens gains national recognition for breaking numerous records. After heated debates, the United States decides not to boycott the Olympics in Nazi Germany. Overcoming racism at home and abroad, Owens seizes the opportunity to show Berlin and the the world that he’s the fastest man alive.

Genre: Biography / Drama / Sport

Runtime: 2 hours 14 minutes

Where to Watch: Amazon Prime Video/Apple TV/YouTube ($3.99)


42 (2013)

In 1946, Branch Rickey, legendary manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers, defies major league baseball’s notorious color barrier by signing Jackie Robinson to the team. The heroic act puts both Rickey and Robinson in the firing line of the public, the press and other players. Facing open racism from all sides, Robinson demonstrates true courage and admirable restraint by not reacting in kind and lets his undeniable talent silence the critics for him.

Genre: Biography / Drama / Sport

Runtime: 2 hours 8 minutes

Where to Watch: HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video/Apple TV/YouTube ($3.99)


The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)

Life is a struggle for single father Chris Gardner. Evicted from their apartment, he and his young son find themselves alone with no place to go. Even though Chris eventually lands a job as an intern at a prestigious brokerage firm, the position pays no money. The pair must live in shelters and endure many hardships, but Chris refuses to give in to despair as he struggles to create a better life for himself and his son.

Genre: Biography / Drama

Runtime: 1 hour 57 minutes

Where to Watch: Amazon Prime Video/Apple TV/YouTube ($3.99)


When They See Us (2019)

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.

Genre: Biography / Crime / Drama / History

Runtime: 4 hours 56 minutes (4 parts)

Where to Watch: Netflix


The Death & Life of Marsha P. Johnson (2017)

Filmmakers re-examine the 1992 death of transgender legend Marsha P. Johnson, who was found floating in the Hudson River. Originally ruled a suicide, many in the community believe she was murdered.

Genre: Documentary / LGBTQ+

Runtime: 1 hour 45 minutes

Where to Watch: Netflix

This is just a small list of hundreds of movies and TV shows that you should watch during Black History Month to help you understand black history. Hopefully they will give you a better understanding of our past and help you see a path toward a brighter future for all of us.

Did you know that nearly 30% of the Littles we serve are black? They are wonderful kids who often don’t have the same opportunities as other children. We help them out by inserting a caring adult mentor into their life so they can reach their full potential. Interested in helping a child out? Follow this link.

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