Unveiling a name change for the limited series, Netflix has dropped the first teaser for When They See Us, Ava
DuVernay’s scripted, four-part project on The Central Park Five.
The release coincides with the 30th anniversary of the incident.
In
a statement, Netflix says in part: “The media dubbed the men The
Central Park Five and they were forever linked to that name. The new
title aims to break them free from that moniker. This is a story told
from the perspective of the five men. It is important to everyone
involved in the project to give these men an opportunity to tell their
story and the series should have a title that represents their story.”
“In
1989, five Black and brown teen boys were wrongly accused of a crime
they did not commit and branded The Central Park Five, a moniker that
has followed them since that time. In 2019, our series gives the five
men a platform to finally raise their voices and tell their full
stories. In doing so, Korey, Antron, Raymond, Kevin and Yusef also tell
the story of many young people of color unjustly ensnared in the
criminal justice system. We wanted to reflect this perspective in our
title, embracing the humanity of the men and not their politicized
moniker,” says DuVernay.
The official description of the series: Based on a true story that gripped the country, When They See Us
will chronicle the notorious case of five teenagers of color, labeled
the Central Park Five, who were convicted of a rape they did not commit.
The four-part limited series will focus on the five teenagers from
Harlem — Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson, Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana
and Korey Wise. Beginning in the spring of 1989, when the teenagers
were first questioned about the incident, the series will span 25 years,
highlighting their exoneration in 2002 and the settlement reached with
the city of New York in 2014.
Portraying the young versions
of the five are Jharrel Jerome, Ethan Herisse, Caleel Harris, Asante
Blackk and Marquis Rodriguez. Jerome will also play the adult version
of his character, alongside Chris Chalk, Freddy Miyares, Jovan Adepo and
Justin Cunningham as the others.
Felicity Huffman and Vera
Farmiga will play members of the prosecution team, while Michael K.
Williams, John Leguizamo, Niecy Nash, Aunjanue Ellis, Kylie Bunbury,
Storm Reid and Marsha Stephanie Blake play family members of the
accused. Famke Janssen, Aurora Perrineau, Omar J. Dorsey and Adepero
Oduye also have roles.
The series was created by Ava DuVernay, who
also co-wrote and directed the four parts. Jeff Skoll and Jonathan King
from Participant Media, Oprah Winfrey from Harpo Films and Jane
Rosenthal, Berry Welsh and Robert De Niro from Tribeca Productions will
executive produce the limited series alongside DuVernay through her
banner, Forward Movement. DuVernay, Attica Locke, Robin Swicord and
Michael Starrburry also serve as writers on the limited series.
A brief conversation with Muni Transit Car Cleaner Lead Person, Valerie Taybron, led to spewing an emotional colloquy on why she has been unable to retire from SFMTA. She stated that she and others are victims of the mismanagement of their retirement funds, and of years of service. When digging deeper into what was seemingly an obvious error in paperwork, or maybe a simple accounting mistake has opened up Pandora’s box of gross internal mismanagement on surprising levels. Sexual harassment allegations and retaliation has hit transportation giant, San Francisco MUNI. Court documents show that Key management officials at Muni have been under investigation for not only blatant harassment, but also the mismanagement that has plagued SFMTA that has led to endless litigation.
Richmond Resident Valerie Taybron is preparing her case with
authorities to address not only the sexual harassment allegations, but also
retaliation and racial discrimination actions.
Most recently Muni Chief, John Haley stepped down from Sexual Harassment
charges towards his assistant, Sabrina Suzuki, who filed a suit, which led to
his early retirement. In an SF Examiner article released on October 31, 2018,
the problem runs deep with approximately 60 women giving written testimony to
the SFMTA on October 22 addressing sexual harassment allegations. In 2016
Sherri Anderson, a SFMTA employee was another victim of sexual harassment and
retaliation by management that recently settled her case based on court
documents. (Case #: CGC-16-555748)
Although Ms. Taybron has her own separate complaints against Muni, it
is well documented that her case is not an isolated incident. She has reported her allegations to Ed
Reiskin, General Manager Public Transportation, John Haley Deputy Director,
Donald Ellison, Deputy Director of HR, and Hector Cardenas Local of 1021 with
no resolution, or an attempted investigation. Employees suggest that not only
are a good number of sexual harassment issues ignored by management, but also
accusers have been continually retaliated against for their complaints.
In the case of Joycelyn Lampkin, a Muni
car cleaner, who alleged sexual harassment by her supervisor, Darryl Person,
she filed an official grievance with the HR EEO supervisor Maria Valdez with no
resolve. After Mrs. Lampkin took some
time off, she returned to work and inquired about the results of the
investigation and Mrs. Valdez responded to the alleged incident by stating, and
I quote, “You will rot in hell before I will do anything,” per Mrs.
Lampkin. Much like in the recent
February 12th Examiner article that spotlighted change, women who
formed SFMTA change see the first change in the stepping down of Mr. Donald
Ellison.
In a complaint written on October 17, to Mr. Ed Reiskin by Ms.
Taybron, she alleged that her complaints were intentionally ignored because she
was an African-American Female who had previously won a judgment for similar
complaints in the past. Lee Summerlot, the Acting Deputy Director at the time,
supplied Taybron with surveillance footage of the theft of her personal
property along with tracking for her case. (Continued)…
Ms. Valerie Taybron, Muni Car Cleaner
Lead Person, alleges that not only has the harassment continued, but it has
also taken on the form of retaliation. “MUNI management, John Catanach, Acting
Deputy Director, and Berry Gehret, supervisor, have allowed me to be violated
by being sexually harassed, exposed to continued death threats on the job, the
stealing of my personal belongings, denied opportunity on promotions, and
maliciously stealing from my 40 years of service so that I cannot retire.” stated
Ms. Taybron. Mr. Taybron also alleged
that after she took a fall on the job and that Mr. Gehret refused to call an
ambulance for assistance. This continued effort to retaliate against her
compounds the mismanagement and harassment abuse.
Ms. Taybron has mentioned that she has
gone to the retirement board and Michael Guess, Asst. Manager of Retirement for
11 years to date in hopes of retiring with her full benefits. She was
repeatedly denied because of suspiciously missing files that substantiate her
retirement. On October 28, she submitted
a request for documents to Kate McClure, Senior benefits analyst, which Taybron
stated should have only taken three days based on advisement from her union.
She has yet to receive the documents.
The HR department is currently under
investigation among other issues, for pressuring the closure of pending cases
without investigations. As of 11-28-18 Ms. Taybron has yet to receive proper
paperwork for her retirement and her complete years of service. Per Ms. Taybron, Management called her on
11/8/18 to set up a meeting involving a separate issue, however Ms. Taybron
would not agree to meet in person without her representatives. Hector Cardenas, the Union Senior Operations
Manager surprisingly informed Ms. Taybron that he did not get involved with
retirement issues. Mr. Cardenas also represents the Parking Controllers within
the same union who most recently came out in their harassment allegations and
blasted him for not supporting them on allegations of sexual harassment with no
response.
Muni Execs have their hands full as a
result of mismanagement. They are currently also in a racial discrimination
case with a Muni employee, Mr. Sampson Asrot who was denied a promotion as a
Mechanic supervisor who he contends was purposely overlooked. This court case is still pending with a
continuance in January of 2019. Per
court documents, it appears that a number of issues surfaced in this case
within the discovery process have caught the attention of Government
officials. They are currently
investigating other serious issues as they have their eyes set on further
sanctions. (Case #: CGC16-552737)
Muni is not alone. Sexual harassment is
currently going strong in San Francisco, which is even affecting the tech
giant, Google. They most recently ousted close to 50 people in the last two
years for sexual harassment in the workplace. None of those fired individuals
received exit packages. Muni’s systemic
management problems are running deeper than their ongoing discrimination,
retaliation and sexual harassment issues.
In a September 2018 Examiner article, even Sarita Britt, the former
highest-ranking SFMTA female official stated, “They don’t do thorough investigations.”
Muni is just another SF City and County
Department that is suffering from sexual harassment and discrimination
issues. After numerous attempts to
contact Muni management, Ed Reiskin and Mr. Canatch as well as Mr. Paul Rose in
the media division for a statement, they have not responded, or
commented to date.
Accusers say that its time SFMTA
management to step up and resolve their internal management issues so the
company can run more efficiently. Ms. Taybron apparently has to stand in line
and wait her day in court. “My lawyer is currently preparing my complaint,” she
stated. Mayor London Breed has gotten
involved because these cases and judgments are undoubtedly costing the city
significant resources that trickle down to a single bus fare of MUNI customers
citywide.
The soul singer Gladys Knight, who will be singing the national anthem at this year’s Super Bowl in Atlanta, seemed to criticize Colin Kaepernick in a statement published by Variety on Friday.
Kaepernick
is the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback whose refusal to stand
during “The Star-Spangled Banner” — and decision to kneel instead — to
protest police brutality has made him a divisive figure nationwide,
earning him praise from civil rights groups, but scorn from many
conservatives, including President Trump.
“I understand that Mr. Kaepernick is protesting two things, and they are police violence and injustice,” Knight wrote to Variety. “It is unfortunate that our national anthem has been dragged into this debate when the distinctive senses of the national anthem and fighting for justice should each stand alone.”
The statement continued: “I am here today and on Sunday, Feb. 3, to give the anthem back its voice, to stand for that historic choice of words, the way it unites us when we hear it and to free it from the same prejudices and struggles I have fought long and hard for all my life.”
This is the
latest twist at the intersection of politics, sports and music that has
surrounded this year’s Super Bowl. Kaepernick is still in the middle of
an ongoing arbitration
case regarding a grievance he filed against the N.F.L. He has accused
the league’s owners of colluding to keep him out of the league after not
being signed last season.
His
protests during the anthems became a cultural flash point, even though
he wasn’t in the league. Other N.F.L. players began kneeling to support
Kaepernick, as did celebrities off the field. Last fall, Nike made
Kaepernick the face of a prominent advertising campaign.
This
year’s Super Bowl became particularly fraught because of the halftime
show. Some high-profile artists, including the rapper Cardi B, said they
would not be willing to perform, in a show of solidarity with
Kaepernick. Last year, Jay-Z rapped in one of his songs: “I said no to the Super Bowl, you need me, I don’t need you.”
Earlier this week, the N.F.L. announced the halftime acts
would be Maroon 5 and the rappers Travis Scott and Big Boi. Scott’s
decision to participate, in particular, received backlash, including
from prominent African-Americans like Al Sharpton. Variety reported that
Kaepernick and Scott spoke before the announcement and described the
conversation as “cordial and respectful.” But on Wednesday, several
posts critical of Scott appeared on Kaepernick’s Twitter account.
Perhaps
anticipating the criticism, Scott announced on Sunday, in conjunction
with the halftime billing, that he and the league were teaming up on a
$500,000 donation to Dream Corps, a social justice group.
More than 100 years ago, black domestic workers in Georgia organized for better pay. Now they’re getting out the vote for Stacey Abrams.
All across Atlanta, hundreds of domestic workers have been knocking on doors for Stacey Abrams, the Democratic candidate for Georgia governor, hoping to turn her into first black woman in that role.
These domestic workers, mostly black women affiliated with Care in Action, the political arm of the National Domestic Workers Alliance, are using new technologies, like a smartphone app to identify the homes of voters of color.
But they’re also carrying on an 140-year-old tradition of domestic workers fighting for economic empowerment. Despite their marginalized positions and the many obstacles in their way, they insist on making their voices heard.
In July 1881, washerwomen in Atlanta, toiling outside in the hot summer as they lugged buckets of well water and scrubbed their white patrons’ laundry, finally had enough. They decided to go on strike to demand increased wages and respect for their work.
They and a few male allies mobilized supporters by going door to door in black neighborhoods, despite threats of being arrested for “disorderly conduct.” The women held meetings in churches, hundreds packing the pews. They formed the Washing Society, a cross between a labor union and a mutual aid organization, with subsidiaries in the city’s five wards.
And in the beginning of the Jim Crow era, domestic work was more than a system of labor. It also symbolized an ordering of society by race in which black people were always considered subservient.
When the strike broke out in July, the women faced a chorus of boos and laughs from employers, city officials, businessmen and reporters from the The Atlanta Constitution newspaper. The women were called “Washing Amazons.”
But the nickname soon proved to be apt. “I tell you, this strike is a big thing,” the police chief admitted after the first week when it was clear that there was no end in sight. Unlike other domestic workers, who labored in isolation in their employers’ homes, the laundresses shared work sites and were thus able to build solidarity.
In Southern cities, black domestic workers, including maids, nurses, cooks and laundresses, performed the most intimate and the most undesirable jobs for white families. They were paid substandard wages, expected to work long hours and were subjected to insults and sometimes even physical assaults.
Ballet dancers of color have long painted, dyed or covered point shoes in makeup to match their skin. Could this small barrier to inclusion finally be disappearing?
For nearly her whole career, Cira Robinson has — like many ballet dancers of color — performed a ritual: Painting her point shoes to match her skin.
She did it first in 2001, when she was 15, at a summer program with Dance Theater of Harlem. The company said her shoes needed to be brown, not the traditional pink, but she couldn’t find any in stores, so she used spray paint. “It made them crunchy and just … ew,” she said in a telephone interview.
When she joined Dance Theater a few years later, she started using makeup instead. “I’d go to the cheapest stores and get foundation,” she said, the kind “you’d never put on your face as it’d break you out. Like, $2.95 cheap.”
She’d go through five tubes a week, sponging it onto 12 to 15 pairs of shoes — a process known in ballet circles as pancaking. It took 45 minutes to an hour to do a pair, she said, because she wanted to make sure the foundation got into every crevice and covered every bit of ribbon.
Did she find these steps annoying? “I didn’t know any different,” Ms. Robinson, 32, said.
But now, Ms. Robinson — a senior artist at Ballet Black, a British dance company — is no longer obliged to do so. In October, Freed of London, which supplies her shoes, started selling two point shoes specifically for dancers of color: One brown, the other bronze.
Freed is not the first firm to make point shoes for dancers of color — the American company Gaynor Minden has been producing some more than a year — but the new shoes from Freed, a large supplier in the ballet world, highlight one of the stranger rituals that dancers of color have to perform.
It’s also a reminder that black dancers — especially female ones — are still a rarity in ballet. They remain barely represented at the top of the field, despite some signs of change and an increased awareness of the need for diversity at the schools feeding professional companies.
Shoes aren’t the only costuming reminders of the lack of diversity in ballet. In September, Precious Adams, a first artist at English National Ballet raised the issue of pink tights. “In ballet people have very strong ideas about tradition,” she told London’s Evening Standard newspaper. “They think me wearing brown tights in a tutu is somehow ‘incorrect.’”
