One day hot and sunny; the next cloudy and rainy. And so it goes. Regardless of the weather, you can’t keep a good girl down. Cloudy days on Martha’s Vineyard are just as much fun as heading for the beach. Heaven forbid it actually gives you a chance to slow down, catch up on some reading or go visiting. For a die-hard beach comber like myself, a few clouds didn’t stop me from dragging the crew to the nearby Joseph Sylvia State Beach, where we all sat close and listened to the waves, and when it did begin to drizzle, we snuggled up under the umbrella to stay dry.
The AKA Sorority gathered at, or should I say took over, the Inkwell with a conclave of members from near and far. It was a beautiful sea of pink and green, and even if you were a male or non-member, you were welcomed. Music was provided by a DJ, the sun was shining and everyone had a blast. Among those present were LaVerne Flowers, Sylvia Sandrich, Doris Connors, Karen Selsey and others too AKA to mention.
An advance screening of award-winning documentary filmmaker Stanley Nelson’s “Tell Them We Are Rising: The Story of Black Colleges and Universities” was shown at the Strand Theatre, Oak Bluffs to a [sold-out crowd]. This film examines the impact historically Black colleges and universities have had on American history, culture and national identity. Although Nelson has become a household name, he continues to amaze with his in-depth insight and perspective on matters that define Black culture in America. True artists can convey messages through their media that educate on a whole and motivate individually to help one find a place in society.
The continuity in Nelson’s documentary filmmaking process is a testament to his dedication and commitment to truthfully detailing the Black American experience. His first noted film was “Two Dollars and a Dream,” the biography of Madame C.J. Walker, the first self-made African-American female millionaire, released in 1989. It would be another 10 years before the Emmy-nominated “The Black Press: Soldiers Without Swords,” a sweeping portrait of over a century of independent black journalism, was released in 1999.
Following his dream and his talent to make historical films that could advance contemporary social justice causes, the next year, 2000, Nelson, and his wife, Marcia A. Smith, founded the nonprofit production company Firelight Media. In 2001, Firelight Media produced “Marcus Garvey: Look for Me in the Whirlwind.” This moving account of the life of the controversial early 20th century Black nationalist was also written and directed by Nelson, as was the 2003 documentary, “The Murder of Emmett Till.” Here Nelson gives a pictorial account of the brutal killing of a 14-year-old African-American boy in Mississippi in 1955. As horrific as it was, the murder of Till was an event that had galvanized the Civil Rights Movement. The film, which uncovered new eyewitnesses to the crime, helped to prompt the U.S. Department of Justice to reopen the case.
Changing the tone just a little, in 2004, “A Place of Our Own,” the remarkable and revealing portrait of the upper-middle-class African-American resort community of Oak Bluffs on Martha’s Vineyard, was released. With merely a one-year hiatus, Nelson shifted his focus to give us “Jonestown: The Life and Death of People’s Temple” (2006). The account of how cult leader Jim Jones led more than 900 followers to commit mass suicide in a remote corner of northwestern Guyana in 1978 is as riveting as it is bone-chilling. Fresh on the heels of “Jonestown” came two films that took a fresh look at multiracial efforts to register Black voters and desegregate public transportation facilities in the Jim Crow South, along with critical events that depicted the civil rights struggles of the 1960s. They were, “Freedom Riders” (2010) and “Freedom Summer” (2014).
“The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution,” came on the scene in 2015. The comprehensive feature length documentary accomplished exactly what Nelson set out to do—paint the portrait of how the Black Panthers sought to use Black activism to combat the police violence in the late 1960s that still remains prevalent among African-American communities today. The film was recently nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award.
Among his accolades, Nelson, who is a MacArthur “Genius” Fellow, has received numerous honors over the course of his career. In 2013, he received the National Medal in the Humanities from President Barack Obama. Additionally, he has received an individual Peabody award, five Primetime Emmy Awards and the 2016 Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.
“Tell Them We Are Rising” is scheduled to make its New York City debut sometime in September. Stay tuned, I will let you know where and when.
Also scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 6, is Shirley Scott’s 75th birthday party, 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. at Gin Fizz, located above what was formerly Chez Lucienne. Invited are all of those who know and love Shirley. Be there or be square. Not square at all were the new inductees to the Riverton Alumni Ring of Gold, recently held at the Riverton 70th Reunion. Awards were given for Public Service—Judge Robert J. Mangum, Judge Livingston L. Wingate and Richard Toussaint; Education—Barbara DePasse and Batya Lewton; Art/Entertainment—Alma John, Sherman Edmiston and Suzanne de Passe; Law—Roger Wareham and Judge Fritz W. Alexander II; and Military Service—Clifford Alexander Jr., Glenn “Diesle” Hunter. And the Harlem Cultural Archives crew are at it again. Joining in on the fun is New York State Supreme Court Judge Franc Perry.
Taking a step backward is the planet Mercury, which is in retrograde. By now, you should be a believer, and realize a Mercury retrograde means cross your T’s and dot your I’s. Refrain from signing contracts and buying electronics. Use the time to relax, reminisce and connect with old friends. Should you want to learn more, just Google “Mercury in retrograde” and abide accordingly.
Until next week … kisses.
