This Week in White Supremacy #81 | “When They See Us”

Ava DuVernay’s “When They See Us” is a four-part film chronicling the case of The Central Park Five. The story transports you to New York City in 1989 and follows five Black and Latino teenagers who are falsely accused, convicted and imprisoned for a rape that they did not commit.

“When They See Us” is a love letter to these men, whose childhoods were stolen by this harrowing case. It is also a love letter to the millions of boys and girls of color who are presumed guilty on sight. Ava’s goal is to shed light on the inequities and the bias that makes a case like this possible. The film explores a travesty of justice laid bare and documents a broken system fueled by politics, profit and inaction.

Ava is partnering with Color Of Change and their “Winning Justice” campaign is rallying Black communities to come together and set the agenda for a new wave of prosecutors.

Please watch “When They See Us​” and learn more about Color Of Change’s “Winning Justice” campaign here https://www.winningjustice.org/about/wtsu​.

And read articles on Colorlines​ and The Atlantic​ about the film.


  1. ‘When They See Us’ Is a Punch to the Gut | Colorlines http://bit.ly/2HZnD9i​​​
  2. ‘When They See Us’ Shows a Case’s Impact on U.S. Policy – The Atlantic http://bit.ly/2HYKDVH​​
  3. Segregation now: #LivingWhileBlack experiences are the new version of ‘whites only’ signs https://nbcnews.to/2HZtbAA​
  4. Over 200 Allegations of Abuse of Migrant Children; 1 Case of Homeland Security Disciplining Someone — ProPublica http://bit.ly/2HZsFm8​
  5. Judith Browne Dianis on Twitter: “Migration of Black and Brown people is criminalized. The police state is rounding them up and caging them. … ” http://bit.ly/2HZlRVG​
  6. US border: Watchdog finds detainees ‘standing on toilets’ for room at packed border facility – CNNPolitics https://cnn.it/2I1gllu​
  7. Jake Tapper on Twitter: “Just a reminder that Paul Nehlen is a racist and if you’re defending him that’s what you’re defending. Cc ⁦@FoxNews⁩… ” http://bit.ly/2HZv4xa​
  8. Republican Official Who Called Michelle Obama An ‘Ape In Heels,’ Sentenced To Prison For FEMA Fraud http://bit.ly/2HZvmnK​
  9. Only4RM on Twitter: “I’m sorry but this scene is political cliché! A prepared, thoughtful Black woman who has earned her position on the dais has to fight off an attempt from an uncouth, likely unwashed bro who thinks what he has to say is more important. My big idea: #STFU!” http://bit.ly/2HZwzeD​
  10. NC budget cuts to new black Supreme Court chief justice criticized | Raleigh News & Observer http://bit.ly/2HZw6t2​
  11. AirBnB host caught on tape asking black guests ‘which monkey is going to stay on the couch?’ – Raw Story http://bit.ly/2I0sU0c​
  12. David J. Lewis on Twitter: “Wow @Airbnb! @mcisero24 this is terrible bro and I’m sorry y’all had to experience this in NYC!… ” http://bit.ly/2HZHlSd​
  13. Police Post Racist And Violent Messages On Facebook, A Review Shows http://bit.ly/2I0tw60​
  14. New York Times Opinion on Twitter: “Scott Warren is facing 20 years in prison. His crime? Providing food and water to migrants in Arizona’s deadliest desert corridor.” http://bit.ly/2HXW6ox​
  15. The suspect told police ‘give me a lawyer dog.’ The court says he wasn’t asking for a lawyer. – The Washington Post https://wapo.st/2HZH15X​
  16. Congressman Hunter Says He Probably Killed ‘Hundreds’ Of Civilians While In Combat | KPBS http://bit.ly/2I0Or9c​
  17. CBP buying 2.2 million diapers for tent city — Quartz http://bit.ly/2I0cFAf​
  18. ‘I was so heartbroken’: African American student stripped of salutatorian honor lost Ole Miss scholarship opportunity, lawyer says | Mississippi Today http://bit.ly/2HYWdQP​
  19. Chef Leah Chase, civil rights activist and legendary ‘Queen of Creole Cuisine,’ dies at age 96 – CNN https://cnn.it/2HZy50s​
  20. Hundreds of minors held at U.S. border facilities are there beyond legal time limits – The Washington Post https://wapo.st/2HZRuye​
  21. Canadian government inquiry assails ‘genocide’ of indigenous women, girls – The Washington Post https://wapo.st/2HZT4QG​
  22. How school segregation affects whether a black student gets labeled as having a disability http://bit.ly/2HZTV3Q​
  23. Report: Racial Segregation, Bias Deny Living Wages to Bay Area Restaurant Workers | KQED News http://bit.ly/2I3aUm5​
  24. ‘Last Black Man in S.F.’: Film reflects a disappearing city https://bayareane.ws/2HXwojT​
  25. Ex-governor Rick Snyder’s phone seized in Flint water probe | WWMT http://bit.ly/2HYWrr9​
  26. Navajo Code Talker William Tully Brown dies at 96 http://bit.ly/2I0OKAS​
  27. Botched family reunifications left migrant children waiting in vans overnight https://nbcnews.to/2HZaywo​
  28. 2020 Census Could Lead To Worst Undercount Of Black, Latinx People In 30 Years | WBUR News https://wbur.fm/2HZnrqA​
  29. Trump administration cancels English classes, soccer, legal aid for unaccompanied child migrants in U.S. shelters – The Washington Post https://wapo.st/2HZyz6z​
  30. Harvard Law Review on Twitter: “While the Trump Administration’s “Remain in Mexico” policy continues, Professor Sabrineh Ardalan explains why the policy is legally problematic:” http://bit.ly/2HXXBmF​
  31. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter: “This hearing was wild. First the FBI witness tried to say I was wrong. I tried to be generous + give benefit of doubt, but then we checked. I wasn’t. Violence by Muslims is routinely treated as “terrorism,” White Supremacist violence isn’t. Neo-Nazis are getting off the hook.” http://bit.ly/2HZg8Po​
  32. Trump team wants to punish people who don’t speak English well http://bit.ly/2HXtYlo​
  33. Chris Hayes on Twitter: “This is an author who wrote a history of concentration camps… ” http://bit.ly/2HZtn2T​ [THREAD]
  34. Border Patrol is confiscating migrant kids’ medicine, U.S. doctors say https://yhoo.it/2I3c0yd​
  35. Transgender Asylum-Seeker Dies After Pleading for Medical Attention | Colorlines http://bit.ly/2I0dmtl​
  36. Where Does Your State Rank When It Comes to Black Homicide? | Colorlines http://bit.ly/2HXuhwy​
  37. Hunting down runaway slaves: The cruel ads of Andrew Jackson and ‘the master class’ – The Washington Post https://wapo.st/2ImHyxL​

AND NOW FOR SOME GOOD NEWS

  • An Antiracist Reading List – The New York Times https://nyti.ms/2HXrALs​
  • Tall, Dark & Sad on Twitter: [VIDEO] “This Guy 2020 https://t.co/NTK9W49PfQ” http://bit.ly/2HYImK9​
  • Rep. Joe Neguse on Twitter: “That I am able to stand in this chamber today, as the son of African refugees, is proof that the American dream is real. That is why we must pass #HR6 and give every young immigrant this same opportunity to achieve in America.” http://bit.ly/2I3bKiJ​
  • Lonnie G. Bunch III Named New Secretary of Smithsonian Institution | Colorlines http://bit.ly/2I0Nei7​
  • Maria Sosyan on Twitter: “”She wants casting directors to find that sweet spot ‘where your ethnicity is your asset, not your identity.'” @priyankachopra on embracing your identity and changing perceptions in global entertainment. @InStyle https://t.co/HqpnInkEYY” http://bit.ly/2IoEukG​
  • NowThis on Twitter: “This stamp puts Harriet Tubman on the $20 as an act of nonviolent ‘resistance’ to the Trump admin… ” http://bit.ly/2IneWo1​

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