Smashing Expectations
To our 18 Day-1 Backers: THANK YOU.
We are 64% of the way to our first goal, "pay the crew," and the crew will be thrilled to hear it.
When you join our project, it means so much more to us than the financial investment you made in our success. It is deeply heartening to know that you're right beside us, Pushing The Rock.
Sometimes the work feels like tossing a pebble into the ocean. Last night’s launch party felt like moving mountains.
If we hit the first goal, we have stretch goals:
Film the story of Hezekiah Watkins: widely known as "the youngest freedom rider," who—at age 13—was locked in a Mississippi State Prison ON DEATH ROW for horsing around at a bus terminal and falling over the so-called color line.
Answer the question of when systemic racism disappeared using the National Museum of African American History and Culture as a visual timeline and our primary scholars, Dr. Sinha, Dr. DeCaro, and Dr. Bullock as our tour guides.
Market the heck out of the film! This includes film festival entry fees, printed materials, creating a trailer, social media advertising—but most important, hiring a PR company to help plan and coordinate a national campaign.
Friday night was a fabulous party. It laid a solid foundation for the work ahead. We have 28 more days to meet these goals, and the day-one backers have done a considerable part of the heavy lifting. Now we need to widen the tent and bring in our allies.
Please share the campaign link with ANYONE you think who may view racism as a bad thing.
Beyond our campaign, please speak up and say out loud that people are people; we all deserve dignity and respect simply because we exist. If you are a white man like me, please be especially willing to stand up and say it because, frankly, white men are a larger part of the problem than most others.
