February is a great month because it celebrates the importance of Black history. I figured it would be best to watch two movies that focused on black history to learn some more and celebrate this month as well. Lucky for me, and everyone else, there are two stellar documentaries up on NFB.ca to talk about Black history and spread awareness. It saddens me that there is still no end to racism, even amongst these somewhat difficult times.
Stateless
A lesson in black history, back in the year 1937. Many Haitians and Dominicans who were descendants of Haitians got killed off by the Dominican army. Why? Anti-Black racism, that’s why. Years later in 2013, when the Dominican Republic’s Supreme Court takes away anyone’s citizenship if they have Haitian parents. Attorney Rosa Iris decides to take a stand against this herself and fight for everyone to have a citizenship and prove that the Haitians are not stateless, as they count too. While Rosa continues to fight this cause and run for congress, she meets friends, cousins, and other people as she investigates their citizenship situations. Throughout the doc, we meet other people who are trying to solve this issue as well, people who talk about the problems throughout the Dominican Republic (such as theft and murders), how they were raised, and explain some more hardships as well. We’re also treated to an old story about a young Haitian girl named Moraine who escaped from the authorities and tried to find a new home elsewhere on the island.
This doc teaches so much about what life is like over there, and what they’re doing so that everyone gets treated like citizens. But this also shows both sides of the story, how people feel about Haitians and how Haitians feel about the government. It saddens me to see that the racism among everyone is much worse than it is here, but it gives me hope to see Haitians aren’t going down without a fight and will get equality soon. Hopefully. But hey, there’s a lot more than just equality in this doc. See for yourself.
John Ware Reclaimed
Saddle up, Cowboy. It’s time for a history lesson, about someone in Alberta. John Ware, considered one of the best cowboys of all time. And who better to tell the story of Mr. Ware? Why, none other than Cheryl Foggo, a descendent of immigrants who made their way to Canada, but during a time when people weren’t as inclusive. She and her brother Richard went through quite some hardships until one day they heard about a black cowboy. John Ware himself, and from there, Cheryl began to do research on him, and even went to make a play out of a presentation she wrote. The documentary goes deep into her findings talking about John, his personal life, his adventures, and facts I’ll bet not even people in Alberta knew. Cheryl also talks to some other people on her journey learning not only about John Ware but black history in the area, and what that had in common with John Ware himself. But it wasn’t as cool as one would think, if at all. Even if he was a cool cowboy, John and his family experienced racism even to the point of people using the n-word when referring to him. In her journey, Cheryl also comes across the location where John Ware settled, where she and surveyors go to look for a buried box which supposedly is full of John’s letters or even some ancient artifacts of his origins. Who knows what they’re going to find?
There’s plenty discovered throughout this doc, and makes for another great worthwhile watch. Great facts, great shots, and so much to learn about regarding someone I never knew about. Check it out and learn some cool stuff about the coolest man in Alberta, John Ware.
