Whose Streets?

PIX POLITICS: THE US

WHOSE STREETS? A NEW SOCIAL MOVEMENT

Whose Streets? depicts the revolts in Ferguson, a suburb of St. Louis in Missouri. On August 9th 2014, young, unarmed teenager Michael Brown from Ferguson is shot and killed by a police officer. The murder sets off a long-lasting frustration particularly within the local black community, and thousands take to the streets to protest in the weeks and months to follow. The demonstrations are met with curfews and armed police officers. Simultaneously the case gets attention across the country and helps to build up Black Lives Matter: a new social movement fighting for human rights and legal rights for black citizens, reaching all corners of the United States and reaches more than 30 million shares on social media.

Sabaah Folayan is herself an activist and anti-racist, and her film is no objective examination of the circumstances around the murder of Michael Brown – rather, it attempts to become part of what it depicts. It absorbs the rage, the mourning, the enthusiasm, and the diversity of social revolt while it actually plays out. The film follows several activists, and by using their own images, videos and testimonies, it becomes a portrait of their local community. Whose Streets? premiered in Sundance earlier this year and is one of the most important political documentaries of the year.

Whose Streets? is one of the most important documentaries from last year. Sabaah Folayan is visiting our festival to talk about her experience from the revolts in Ferguson, and the future for the Black Lives Matter-movement. Meet her for an Q&A after the screening of the film Tuesday 13th of June at 6 pm.

Sabaah Folayan is an activist and storyteller born and raised in South Central, LA. She has worked in several different media, and started exploring storytelling through theater. While she was studying medicine at Columbia University she performed with The Black Theater Ensemble. Whose Streets? is her first venture into filmmaking and is co-directed by the award-winning artist Damon Davis.