*“There’s never a wrong time to empower young people to speak up and stand up, and because of technology, a lot of us experience these viral moments and deeply troubling moments on our cell phones,” says best-selling author, educator and recording artist MK Asante; creator and host of Snapchat’s new original docuseries, “While Black with MK Asante.”
The ten-episode series explores what it means to be young and Black in America though candid conversations with teens and young adults across the country.
“We see these things on our timelines on social media, so we wanted to have a conversation and really challenge a lot of this hypocrisy and challenge this injustice in the palm of your hand and have young people have that conversation and showing them examples of people who are doing things to fight that injustice,” MK added, noting his inspiration behind the series.
“There’s so much going on in our world, so the inspiration for me is to use the tools that I have to speak truth to power and also empower other people and inform other people about what’s going on. One of the things we show is young gifted people who are doing things to uplift the community, which speaks to my mission of helping other people find their voice and then amplifying that voice as much as possible.
Check out the rest of our conversation with the filmmaker below.
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While Black with @MKAsante S1:E1: Shopping While Black https://t.co/K71U1FfBms via @SnapOriginals pic.twitter.com/QjfZxBA2FE
— Mark Anthony Neal (@NewBlackMan) November 30, 2019
Tell us about some of the young activists that we meet over the course of the ten episodes. What are some of the topics explored?
One of the episodes is on gun violence and we talk to my nephew, who is 19-years-old and he’s been shot nine times. He grew up in Philadelphia like me and we talk to him because he’s a survivor of gun violence. He’s using his voice and his experience and his environment to stand up against that because gun violence affects us all. I lost my best friend to gun violence and I wrote about that in my memoir. I’ve lost a lot of people to gun violence but that happening to my nephew was really difficult. Talking to him about his story was helpful.
We also did an episode where we talk to a young lady out of California, Skye Holsey. You may have seen the video of her and the young Black man out of Hawthorne who was unarmed and he fit the description of a suspect so there were like… 20 cops with guns and this sista was filming and she was in the line of fire but she didn’t care. She essentially saved this dude’s life. The father of her children was murdered by the police. Ever since then, she makes sure to hold cops accountable by filming them. If Ida B. Wells had a smartphone, I feel like she would be doing what Skye Holsey is doing, holding police accountable and documenting things.
The first episode is called “While Black,” and we talk to Joel Stallworth and TaMiya Dickerson. They had taken their 18-month-old baby to the Nike store and got accused of stealing a ball that they didn’t steal and then got harassed, and it’s all on tape. His wife decided to start filming and that’s really why there was an apology and the manager was fired. That’s one of the things we talk about, the camera. Nobody would believe this shit if I told you, so I have to film it because no one is going to believe it. But it happens everyday, and we know that but everyone don’t know that.
The second episode deals with gun violence and we have an episode that deals with criminalizing kids. What we try to do in each episode is focus on a topic that needs to be addressed but also highlight individuals who are using their platform and using their voice to overcome those things and organize against those things and challenge those things. We’re telling these stories from the perspective of victory and how we can be victorious over injustice
The first five episodes are on SNAP now, the other half of the first season will be dropping in February. In that season we’re dealing with body positivity, LGBTQ issues and we feature a barber who gives haircuts homeless LGBTQ youth as a means to turn their feeling of worthlessness into a feeling of worthiness. There’s lots of topics we’re exploring and talking to young people across the country.
WHILE BLACK 11/4/19 only on Snapchat ? check it out. It’s free pic.twitter.com/BmV6T045hM
— Lev (@KLev87) November 1, 2019
What do you hope viewers are left thinking after watching this series?
What we’re doing is educating but we’re doing it in a way that is entertaining, engaging, informative and fresh. It’s also a call to action. A lot of us are tired of seeing these things and wanting to get involved and wanting to do something. So here’s a way that you can do it. For example, the episode about police brutality, Skye Holsey, make sure your phone is charged. When you see something happening, record it. Be part of the solution. That’s one of the things we want people to take away. You don’t have to be passive when racism is happening or when injustice is happening. And I also think we want to inspire people to be comfortable in their own skin and be true to who they are and live their purpose and be unapologetic about it.
Another thing that’s happening, I’ve been getting a ton of email since the show has gone live. Black kids are thanking me for bringing light to these issues, and white people are saying things like, ‘Thank you for educating me about this. I didn’t know about it.’ or ‘I didn’t know these things still existed.’ There’s been a tremendous positive response about the show tackling important issues and doing it in a way that is empowering and I think that’s important. We want people to feel like they have a call to action and feel more informed about the world they live in.
What does it mean to be young and Black in America today?
It means that there’s no limitation. I feel a sense of freedom and I want other people to feel a sense of freedom. A lot of young people are challenging a lot of ideas that are divisive and oppressive in America right now, and it’s a beautiful moment. Even though we’re in the midst of struggle, but when haven’t we been in struggle, I think to be Black in America right now is a liberating time and a hopeful time because there’s a new generation with new ideas and possibilities and new language and whenever you have new language and new definitions and new reality, you’re literally changing the world.
We’re talking to young people who don’t get publicity but are as committed to these issues and are deeply passionate and deeply informed and really on the pulse of something major and willing the take risks that older people may not be willing to take. So I’m inspired by them and that’s what inspired me to do the show. The young people we talk to around the country, their perspective gave me hope about what the future may hold. I’m thankful and honored to be a part of it.
You can stream the episodes on the Snapchat Discover page, to the right of the camera.
Who’s watching #WhileBlack this week? What’s your favorite episode so far? https://t.co/LdDAIHCXbO
— Snap Originals (@SnapOriginals) November 6, 2019
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