After the August 2014 Ferguson riots, which stemmed from the death of Michael Brown, I cannot think of a more relevant and vital time for a new production of Martin Luther King Jr.’s campaign of equality and justice.
Director Ava DuVernay’s Selma portrays the struggles of King while he tries to pass a federal bill for equal voting rights in the United States. As part of his 1965 campaign, he calls forth a powerful statement of marching from Selma to Montgomery to show the determination and strength of the people behind him.
David Oyelowo, who plays King in the film, provides such a hauntingly realistic portrayal of the civil rights leader—so much that you would be confused between the real and filmed footage.
He portrays King as strong and determined, yet also vulnerable and sensitive, who in the face of adversary, still remains tall and confident. Oyelowo shows the greatness of King not as only a human, but as a leader who transforms from a minister to a revolutionist and puts his ideals and dreams of this world before his own life.
The film goes to dramatic lengths to show the horror and brutality of the situation in the city of Selma. While only wanting the right to vote and to have a chance to choose what happens in their lives, the black citizens of Selma are faced with car irons, baseball bats, guns, and clubs wound with barbed wire.
One of the most unique aspects of King’s campaign was the non-violent stance he took to get the bills passed. With no violent threats against them, the white Americans couldn’t comprehend what King would do and couldn’t understand how to react to the black Americans passive rebellion.
Selma also reminds us that inequality, as barbaric as it is, is still very much alive in our world today. I am hoping this film will bring new light into the world of what our previous generations have fought for.
Almost 50 years after the march to Selma, the people that died in the riots and marches during King’s campaign shouldn’t go unremembered and the list of people who die for equality shouldn’t grow.
