Evangeline M. Mitchell, Esq., Ed.M.’s Post

Transcript

When we study laughing about justice, is it a lost cause? I really want to know. Is there justice? Is it just us? What about justice within these walls? Instead of seeking equity, equality, liberty, just maintain power, privilege and no racial hierarchy. Cortana. Laura. Amazing. I am completely floored by this movie. I'm completely floored by these women and men who showed up and told their stories. Um, I love the statistics. At the beginning, I had no idea the 8% of laws, less than 8% of law students are black. Didn't know that I I loved the interviews. Every single interview. The questions were clearly. Excellent, because the direction that these interviews went in were just fascinating and riveting and mind blowing. I love the music, that the music was great. I absolutely loved that it was completely shot in black and white and every photo was in black and white. I just thought it was perfect and completely fitting for this. Topic and this the premise of this film. Um, so yeah, I just, I I want everyone to see this. I think it's mesmerizing and mind blowing and I learned so much. So congratulations. It's beautifully done. Really beautifully done. I loved how it becoming black lawyers found the people to interview through social media. I love that they share their stories so well with. Images of their families and and other other things as they were talking and just kind of like what inspired them? What are the obstacles that they faced and how that's kind of changed or stayed the same over the decades. Really interesting, really. Less scary I would say, considering what they were talking about. A very inspiring and I think it's the kind of short film that more young people need to see because it is so inspiring and so honest about the challenges that black lawyers faced to become lawyers. Walmart and just doing everything in black and white. It's just it's really nice and almost put some more precedence on the story. I also love the subjects that you interviewed because they brought a different perspective compared to. What we normally see and what we normally know. And it was just so empowering. Like I even wrote one of the quotes from Alexey Thomas and she said think about how incredible your story is and think about how incredible your skill set it is and what an what an incredible lawyer you're going to be. And that really struck me because this actually goes just beyond black lawyers. It goes for almost like every black person, whatever industry is, is. It was really encouraging. Like, think about your skill set. Think about how incredible your story is and all that stuff. So yeah, that definitely struck me. So that was, yeah, I really enjoyed that. It made me want to be a lawyer. Yeah, like, like, I felt empowered. Like Like was hearing these stories and like the struggle and like seeing that they overcame. They seen it succeed. Maybe, like, I could do anything. Black Power, let's go. Which is always good this, you know, You know, there's a lot of like black stories that are just like struggle, that are just struggle and know like success. But I think. This story would have a different tone, where it was like struggle in pursuit of success and like we get to see the success like with the with the ending. Notes and stuff. You know, I always say the strength of a documentary writes on the subject matter. And this is subject matter that like when, when the when the film started, it asked me questions that I wanted to know the answer to. That's what made this argument. But I was like, oh, how hard is it to become a black lawyer? Like, I never really thought about that before. So that was dope. Awesome. I I I really, really liked it. I had no idea. Of like, you know, this, this conflict and and this story. I think that it's, you know and I mean like look at me like. Of course, but I think that that's exactly why this. Um. Like this documentary is necessary, and I think that it's. Really. You know, it's important that the, the filmmaker felt compelled to tell this story and it's important that, you know, people can hear it and and learn from it. And I think it's really well made. It's very powerful. It's very, you know, it takes itself very seriously and a lot of good ways. I think that the, you know, the subjects that are included are also, you know, very articulate and and compelling like every single one of them. And so I. I really liked it. I thought it's a super well made. Short I didn't know how difficult it was. I really did not. And this short film, this short documentary did a great job of highlighting that. You did a wonderful job of incorporating the infographics at the beginning and reintroducing them throughout the documentary to let the audience know what what these individuals have up against them when they go into this predominantly white dominant profession. And and education field as well, it's so educational. I think it'll be very, very. Beneficial to so many people to see this and to see all the individuals who came who who overcame these institutional barriers and were able to become lawyers and were able to fight for causes that they believe so strongly. And you found an amazing group of individuals to interview for this and I'm so fortunate to have watched this and I really want to thank you for for sharing their stories and sharing individuals who. Who are looking to go into the law profession and inspiring them to to continue after that and chase after their dreams. This was an amazing, very well done documentary so I commend you should think essential. Viewing. As a person who went to. A very prestigious. University as a black person, this made me feel so seen. It made me feel so seen. There were like, less than 50 black people in my graduating class of like. I don't know like 1500 students. And it's interesting because once you're in that space, there is a really complicated. There is a really complicated privilege that you experience, you know, because it's it. And I like that this this movie isn't, or this, you know, documentary isn't afraid to. To to show that yes, like by, you know, getting your law degree from a from an Ivy League college like you are, you know, becoming a part of a like a privileged group, but at the same time you're still having to fight for your spot there. So. Kudos. Kudos to this movie. You know, just. Just for that for. You know, this is this is what it is, this is what it feels like to be represented. And This is why it's important to make movies like this. So. The film itself. Is so smooth I thought it was such an interesting creative choice to do it in black and white. And I think that. The sort of pacing of the interviews intercut with the, you know, photos of different university classrooms was quite effective. You know, eventually I I I thought that maybe with most of the cutaways just being or like a lot of the cutaways being university classrooms, that it would get old. But. It doesn't. It doesn't it? It it really works. It's a very effective, very good documentary. I like that at the end there are, you know. Slides about each of the participants in the documentary and, you know, getting more details on them and like how they've, you know, move forward in life. It is so. Insane to me that only 5% of lawyers are. Identify as black that less than 8% of law students. Those figures are going to stay with me. I'm going to tell those to my friend.