The late Connie Donley's family and friends in Paducah continue her passionate interest in race unity with a roll-out of many events in coming weeks, all intended to get black and white people talking about race together. They found a project for a perfect opener. Brian Grimm, director of the film Racial Taboo, visits Paducah, dines with the Race Unity Group tonight, speaks with the Paducah Sun and helps with the first four showings of his creation set for this weekend at Maiden Alley Cinema. Kate Lochte speaks with Grimm on Sounds Good.
Brian Grimm describes the film as a cookbook that helps people have a conversation about race, with "a dash of history, a pinch of psychology and an element of humor that puts people at ease to have a conversation." People find the experience surprisingly enjoyable and enjoy talking about the subject, he says. In previous showings, the continuing conversation comes in phases: first, people feel a little bit apprehensive until they realize there's nothing to be apprehensive about, then they'll go out and eat together or see movies together, then the rest of the community sees black and white people in public together and over time the culture starts to change.
Several years ago, Grimm sought a person of another color in his own community of friends and realized he had non, which led him to ask questions about his own prejudice. He recalls hearing that black people were historically unemployed at the rate twice that of white people and that black people live in poverty 700% more than white people. As a white Republican, he wondered "Why don't black people pull themselves up by their bootstraps?" or "Why is it that slavery is still an issue over 150 years?" He wanted to learn more about where these questions came from. He went to speak with liberal friends to see if they could introduce him to some black people and discovered they didn't know any either.
So Grimm went out and put together 10 questions about common issues, for example, being stopped by police, issues in school, renting an apartment, getting a loan at a bank. He spoke with 150 people in seven states and learned that black people generally had the same responses while white people had varying responses. He believes this an American issue, citing a drop in global competitiveness from one to three to five. America is the 'land of the free' but incarcerates more people per capita than any other country in the world and not only has a higher percentage but holds them longer, he says.
Communities who have discussions about race, like the ones organized by the Paducah Race Unity Group, they become a political force in the community. One where they get the attention of the mayor, chief of police, the schools, etc. People who may have not had a voice in the past now have a voice in the community, which raises the strength of people who want to see things changed, Grimm says.
In previous showings of the film, the first time he showed it to all-white audience, they laughed and groaned. The first time he showed it to an all-black audience, they laughed and groaned. But the first time he showed it to a mixed audience it was silent. He realized that no one had been given prior permission to talk about the subject, so they were trying to be respectful because they cared. In the second showing with a mixed audience, he made it clear that they were allowed to laugh, because there are humorous elements in the film.
Grimm has three requirements to bring a film to a community: a diverse audience, at least an hour for discussion and a contribution to the Racial Taboo Initiative, because the film changes over time and he wants the community to be invested in the experience. Paducah is unique, he says, because it's not a common thing to have both the sheriff and the president of the local NAACP branch both endorse the same thing. He expects Paducah to set the standard for community relationships going forward.
Brian Grimm directed the film Racial Taboo showing at 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. both Saturday and Sunday at Maiden Alley Cinema in Paducah, through the efforts of Paducah's Race Unity Group. For more information, call 270-442-7723 or visit maidenalleycinema.org. The Race Unity Group has also scheduled a series of six Thursday evening "Continuing the Conversation" gatherings starting April 30 at Washington Street First Baptist Church, each a viewing of the Henry Lewis Gates PBS Series The African Americans - Many Rivers to Cross.
