Celebrating Black History and Black Excellence extends beyond the month of February. Here is our roundup of organizations and thought leaders to follow all year round.
Want to celebrate and learn more about Black Excellence, Black History, and Black Joy? Here are some of the best films and tv series that will help you do just that.
10 Films and TV Shows to Stream for Black History Month
(In)VisiblePortraits (2020)
Where to watch: Fubo TV (free trial)
(In)Visible Portraits shatters the too-often invisible otherizing of Black women in America and reclaims the true narrative as told in their own words.
Amend: The Fight for America
Where to watch: Netflix
An exploration of the Fourteenth Amendment as the most enduring hallmark of democracy in the United States; with Mahershala Ali, Diane Lane, Samuel L. Jackson, Pedro Pascal, Yara Shahidi, and others.
One Night in Miami (2021)
Where to watch: Amazon Prime
On the night of Feb. 25, 1964, in Miami, Cassius Clay joins Jim Brown, Sam Cooke and Malcom X, and they discuss the responsibility of being successful black men during the civil rights movement.
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (2020)
Where to watch: Netflix
Tensions rise when trailblazing blues singer Ma Rainey and her band gather at a recording studio in Chicago in 1927.
Summer of Soul (2021)
Where to watch: Hulu
Over the course of six weeks during the summer of 1969, thousands of people attend the Harlem Cultural Festival to celebrate Black history, culture, music, and fashion.
If Beale Street Could Talk (2018)
Where to watch: Hulu
In early 1970s Harlem, daughter and wife-to-be Tish vividly recalls the passion, respect and trust that have connected her and her artist fiancé Alonzo Hunt, who goes by the nickname Fonny. Friends since childhood, the devoted couple dream of a future together, but their plans are derailed when Fonny is arrested for a crime he did not commit.
Rest in Power: The Trayvon Martin Story (2018)
Where to watch: Paramount
Across six episodes, this unscripted documentary recounts the life and legacy of Trayvon and includes interviews combined with home videos, family photos, and news footage. It also addresses cultural and societal issues surrounding the tragedy, and it presents an in-depth examination into the investigation, trial, and the not-guilty verdict.
Music. Money. Madness…. Jimi Hendrix Experience: Live in Maui
Where to watch: Feb 20 and 21st at The Cabot
Music. Money. Madness…Jimi Hendrix Experience: Live In Maui chronicles Jimi Hendrix’s storied 1970 visit to Maui, his performance on the dormant lower crater of the Haleakala volcano on the island and how the band became ensnared with the ill-fated Rainbow Bridge movie produced by their controversial manager Michael Jeffery. This critically acclaimed documentary incorporates never before released original performance footage and new interviews with firsthand participants and key players such as Billy Cox, Eddie Kramer, and Warner Bros. executives.
Waiting to Exhale (1995)
Where to watch: YouTube (Rent)
Navigating through careers, family and romance, four friends bond over the shortcomings in their love lives — namely, the scarcity of good men. Both as the “other woman,” Savannah (Whitney Houston) and Robin (Lela Rochon) carry on relationships with married men, each believing their lovers will leave their wives for them. On the flip side, Bernadine (Angela Bassett) ends up alone when her husband divorces her for his mistress. Meanwhile, Gloria (Loretta Devine) finds love with a new neighbor.
13th (2016)
Where to watch: Netflix
Filmmaker Ava DuVernay explores the history of racial inequality in the United States, focusing on the fact that the nation’s prisons are disproportionately filled with African-Americans.
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