Grabbing Back
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When we set out to document the campaigns of a handful of the Black women running for Congress in the wake of the 2016 election, we knew there was a tale to be told. A tale of fortitude and perseverance. A tale of idealism and optimism. A tale that would bare witness to those who sought to “grab back” their government so that it would truly be for the people and by the people.
It has been an amazing opportunity to meet Lauren Underwood, Jahana Hayes, Tamara Harris, Tanzie Youngblood, Pam Keith, Stephany Rose Spaulding and Ayanna Pressley and tell their stories. Through the course of filming we recognized some recurring trends not just between many of their campaigns but throughout the history of Black women seeking elected office beginning in 1968 when Shirely Chislom was elected the first Black woman to serve in Congress.
Drawing parallels between 1968 and 2018 has taken this film from being a run of the mill candidate documentary to an evergreen study of the unique challenges and opportunities facing Black women candidates.
To help craft the final narrative of the film, we have expanded our team to include Kimberly Peeler-Allen, Co-Founder of Higher Heights, a national organization focused on harnessing Black women’s political power. Kimberly is featured in the film and also introduced us to several of the candidates we followed. Kimberly is helping to provide the historical context and cultural nuance that will set this film apart from others that profiled some of the women who ran for office in 2018.
We’ve made a lot of progress and are now in the editing phase and we need help getting this film done! Telling the story of these women is more important than ever as we see the attempted erasure of Black women from the political landscape.
Help fund our important documentary film Grabbing Back and give a little something here!
It has been an amazing opportunity to meet Lauren Underwood, Jahana Hayes, Tamara Harris, Tanzie Youngblood, Pam Keith, Stephany Rose Spaulding and Ayanna Pressley and tell their stories. Through the course of filming we recognized some recurring trends not just between many of their campaigns but throughout the history of Black women seeking elected office beginning in 1968 when Shirely Chislom was elected the first Black woman to serve in Congress.
Drawing parallels between 1968 and 2018 has taken this film from being a run of the mill candidate documentary to an evergreen study of the unique challenges and opportunities facing Black women candidates.
To help craft the final narrative of the film, we have expanded our team to include Kimberly Peeler-Allen, Co-Founder of Higher Heights, a national organization focused on harnessing Black women’s political power. Kimberly is featured in the film and also introduced us to several of the candidates we followed. Kimberly is helping to provide the historical context and cultural nuance that will set this film apart from others that profiled some of the women who ran for office in 2018.
We’ve made a lot of progress and are now in the editing phase and we need help getting this film done! Telling the story of these women is more important than ever as we see the attempted erasure of Black women from the political landscape.
Help fund our important documentary film Grabbing Back and give a little something here!
Organisator
Pamela French
Organisator
New York, NY