The Central Park Five
Without giving too much away. When they See Us is based on the Central Park jogger case of five African American and Latino boys, Yusef Salaam, Antron McCray, Raymond Santana, Kevin Richardson, and Korey Wise.
Ranging from the ages of 14 to 16 years old they were accused of the violent assault, rape, and sodomy of Trisha Meili, a 28-year-old white female investment banker while jogging, leaving her for dead in New York’ City’s Central Park.
This four-part mini-series is beyond amazing, it will leave you completely speechless. I cried my eyes out throughout the entire ordeal, and can only imagine how these boys felt and continue to feel like men!
Director, Ava Duvernay did an amazing job capturing the rawness and emotions in such an unjust scenario.
“What do you see when you see black boys”?
– Ava Duvernay
We are supposed to trust the system and these boys should have never been in this situation. These kids knowing their truth, forced to play the deceptive narrative in part of a corrupt system with no apologies
It was hard to watch, especially being a woman of color, but needs to be seen. I have a brother and this case is part of the hypothetical instruction manual that mothers and fathers teach their young men of color. Directions on what not to do, and say, so they don’t end up in situations like this.
This happened in 1989, and the current political ties noted in this case still plague us today.
Being a person of color in America can be traumatic. If you haven’t experienced racism, hate, sexism or culture shock then you are one of the few.
This movie is a learning tool not only for our children but also for other cultures! It’s painful to watch, but a story of this magnitude must continue to be told in order for things to change and enlighten those who “think” they have things figured out.
My prayers go out to the Central Park Five and their families. click HERE to support the Innocence Project.
Photo and Video Credits Via: Netflix, The Innocence Project, Getty Images, and Court on Crime
I thought about watching this, but haven’t yet. I’ve seen many people post about it. May be time to watch it!!!
It’s really good. You should watch, have tissue handy.
Noted! I am definitely going to check it out either tonight or tomorrow!!
I felt so bad — especially for Korey. When I was watching I was just wondering how I can help! It’s very heartbreaking to see what they went through and I couldn’t even imagine being in their shoes.
I agree with you when you say it needs to be seen. It shows you so much about the struggles we face, the system, and how trauma can carry on. In the Oprah interview you can tell how broken Korey and Antron still are. It’s heartbreaking.
I felt so bad — especially for Korey. The entire time watching, I was wishing there was something I could do. It’s very heartbreaking to see what they went through and I couldn’t even imagine being in their shoes.
I agree with you when you say it needs to be seen. It shows you so much about the struggles we face, the system, and how trauma can carry on. In the Oprah interview you can tell how broken Korey and Antron still are. It’s heartbreaking.
Every one needs to watch this. I didn’t pause when I decided to watch it and binged all 4 episodes in one go. I hadn’t heard about the Central Park Five until this show and Ava did an excellent job telling their stories.
I waited a while to watch this. It was hard to watch. I felt every emotion someone could feel, and it really did leave me emotionally drained. It is definitely a must watch especially with the current state of the world. Thanks for sharing
My boyfriend and I watched this together, and it broke our hearts. I’m not a parent, but I couldn’t imagine watching my children be accused of such a heinous crime and spending years locked away for a crime they didn’t commit. Those men have been traumatized in such a way, that they will never be the same. So yes, it was a tough watch, but completely necessary.
I thought it was difficult to watch but the story also had to be told. Ava is so amazing.
I am still blown away by When They See Us! Of course, there was a lot of backlash suggesting that parts of the film and depictions of people were inaccurate. With a film of this magnitude, it was to be expected. Regardless, this film shined light on one of many cases that has plagued people of color in America. I recapped this series in my recent blog post as well. Great read!
My husband wants me to watch the series and I just can’t bring myself to do do yet. Their story is heart breaking. The very sad fact is that they are not the only ones that have suffered through it. Great post!