Screening of Generation Hope: Black Lives Matter

    Last summer 2020, millions of people across the globe rose to the streets, chanting "Black Lives Matter!" in protest of police brutality following the murder of George Floyd.  

On April 15, 2021, Global Scholar, Thibeaux '21 presented his capstone project, a film called Generation Hope. 

During the course of the pandemic and the BLM protests, Thibeaux recorded and documented a film that spotlights on the young activists' voices of social justice and the BLM movement. The documentary puts together unique points of views and narratives to compile an empowering story told by young people. 

Each person talked about how the pandemic has impacted their communities in various ways and the pandemic being so politicized is one of the main reasons why it impacted large cities in the US so hard. The difficult times of the pandemic only intensified with the Black Lives Matter protests. The protests brought many people together, but also divided the nation so much in politics, beliefs, and unity. 

One of the roots of the racism problem in America begins with the education system, which has always been whitewashed. Bianca 21' brought up a great point about how social media has brought more complete perspectives to the teaching narrative. Social media allows you to see different experiences and connect those experience to show similar patterns. In the past, we have textbooks and history articles to learn about history objectively in a white-washed perspective. Social media allows for interconnections and builds more empathy as you share similar experiences with people you can relate to. 

One important part of the film talked about the role that our current government leaders have during the Black Lives Matter movement. The response to the BLM movement was even more violent even though the protests distinctly rose because of violence. 

And lastly, one of the biggest takeaways and the overall message of the film was the impact of the young voices in social justice. When the government leaders that we are supposed to look up to refuse to do the right thing and show that black lives need to be protected, the young generation stepped up and used their most powerful tools to advocate for justice: their voices. 

Reflecting on the film, I was amazed by the time and effort Thibeuax spent on amplifying these young voices in the generation that will spark social change for the future. I recommend that everybody that comes across this reflection can watch the film here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GzC2kobfd3Q