MIDDLEBURY — Middlebury Showing Up for Racial Justice is presenting the fourth film in this year’s racial justice film series: “Blindspotting,” on Wednesday, March 13, at 4 and 7 p.m. at the Marquis Theatre. Starring Daveed Diggs, who played both the Marquis de Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson in the original Broadway cast of Hamilton, “Blindspotting” tells the story of an interracial friendship in the rapidly gentrifying city of Oakland, California.
The SURJ 2018-2019 series, which chooses films that address issues of race, shows films on the second Wednesday of each month. A suggested donation of $10 raises funds for a variety of racial justice efforts. Some of the proceeds from this month’s film are going to fund various initiatives that pay Black women for their labor in educating white folks about racism and white supremacy. The remainder of the money raised will be spent on direct reparations to Black women.
“The Case For Reparations,” a 2014 article by Ta-Nehesi Coates, published in “The Atlantic,” brought the issue of reparations for African Americans to the forefront of discussions of race in America. In the piece, Coates argues that the economic distress of Black Americans today can be directly traced to racist policies and actions within living memory.
While Coates is one of numerous voices calling for the United States to study the issue of reparations, a growing movement within the sphere of anti-racism work favors immediate direct cash reparations to women of color. While not a substitute for political and economic change, this movement is a small attempt at redistributing resources within a flawed and broken system. Middlebury Showing Up for Racial Justice supports several Black community organizers who, in addition to fighting for justice in their communities, also provide emergency support to families who are in danger of eviction.