Who We Are: A Chronicle of Racism in America is a documentary directed and produced by Emily and Sarah Kunstler written and produced by Jeffery Robinson showing at SXSW Film Festival. Who We Are: A Chronicle of Racism in America is a 118-minute documentary that is centered on Robinson’s Town Hall performance, the film interweaves historical and present-day archival footage, Robinson’s personal story, and interview footage capturing his meetings with Black change-makers and eyewitnesses to history.
The shocking murders of George Floyd, Eric Garner, Breonna Taylor, countless other victims and the ensuing swell of protests across this country have forced a reckoning, not just with police brutality against Black Americans, but with the painful history of slavery and anti-Black racism in America. Who We Are: A Chronicle of Racism in America is a documentary feature film that confronts this history head on.
I had the pleasure of speaking to creators of the documentary ahead of the films debut. In this in-depth audio discussion the filmmakers detail the process of making this film, how each of them were got into racial and social justice, the goals they set out for the film and much more.
The documentary follows ACLU Deputy Legal Director Jeffery Robinson’s groundbreaking talk on the history of U.S. anti-Black Racism is interwoven with archival footage, interviews, and Robinson’s story, exploring the enduring legacy of white supremacy and our collective responsibility to overcome it.
In Who We Are: A Chronicle of Racism in America, Robinson shows us how legalized discrimination and state-sanctioned brutality, murder, dispossession, and disenfranchisement continued long after slavery ended, profoundly impeding Black Americans’ ability to create and accumulate wealth as well as to gain access to jobs, housing, education, and health care. Weaving heartbreak, humor, passion, and rage, Robinson’s words lay bare an all-but-forgotten past, as well as our shared responsibility to create a better country in our lifetimes.
To learn more about The Who We Are Project, click here.
Who We Are: A Chronicle of Racism in America premieres Wednesday, March 17 at the SXSW Film Festival.
