The National Institute for Restorative Justice
"Educating for Advocacy"
Education - Film Discussion Series
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"I feel like I'm part of a legacy.
I want to be a true American filmmaker,
in the sense that my films tell stories that can only really happen in America.
They aim to speak to the universality of the human experience,
but they're quintessentially American films."
John Singleton.
15226 Lakeshore Blvd
Cleveland, Ohio 44110

rjusticeinc@aol.com



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www.restorativejusticeinstitute.org
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Since 2004, The National Institute, beginning with it's predecessor The Restorative Justice Initiative of
Deuteronomy 8:3 Café Books & Music, has hosted screenings and discussions of film subject directly
related to the history, current events, victories and struggles of African American people, and other
disenfranchised people. A partial listing is included on our Education Page.  
We will continue to screen film independently and as companions to text in our Book Discussion Series.
Visit again soon for information about upcoming films.
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Renewing Inalienable Rights, Rebuilding Communal Confidence, Re-energizing Sustainable Economy, Reviving Unbridled Spirit
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Boycott: Montgomery Alabama 1955
Thursday, December 5 and 16, 2019 ~ 7 p.m.
Kumbaya on the Shore Café
15226 Lakeshore Boulevard
HBO Drama starring Jeffrey Wright,
Carmen Ejego & Terrence Howard
"Turning our Collective Dollars into Sense!"

    On Thursday, December 5, 2019 at 7 p.m., Kumbaya on the Shore will open a holiday
    film series with Boycott, which may not be considered “holiday,” yet is a heartwarming,
    challenging and stirring story for all ages. It is a dramatic depiction of the historic Montgomery Bus
    Boycott which began sixty-four years ago on December 5, 1955 after the arrest of Rosa Parks,
    and held firm through Christmas into a New Year, Valentine’s Day, Easter, Mother’s Day,
    Father’s Day, Fourth of July, Labor Day, Memorial Day and Thanksgiving 1956!  Vigilante
    through every holiday!  Folk held the line!  Men, women and children walked for the right to
    sit with dignity! They did not back down!  They turned our collective dollars into
    sense!  

    After loosing too much money, the  Montgomery bus company and the all white Montgomery Citizen’s
    Council (KKK in office) finally said, “Uncle,” and fairly negotiated with the newly formed Montgomery
    Improvement Association led by young Martin Luther King, Jr., which subsequently ended the boycott
    on December 20, 1956

    One of the discs currently in our five-CD exchanger at Kumbaya is Greatest Hits by Nat King Cole.  Oh,
    could that brother-man croon!  Perhaps my favorite song on the collection is “Walking my Baby Back
    Home,”  a smooth ballad of a man strolling while hopelessly in love with his walking companion. I dare
    say that twenty years ago it would not have held the same significance for me as it does today.  Then I
    saw Boycott with one of its opening scenes of a 26-year-old Martin Luther King, Jr. dancing and wooing
    his young and beautiful wife, Coretta, with Nat crooning that song in the background.  Then reality sets
    in: a baby and a community demands their attention.  Youthful passions and pleasures are put on hold.

    I love this film and have traditionally screened it on or around Martin Luther King, Jr. Day over the
    past 17 years, so we will screen it again on Thursday, January 16.

    I love it for the message, I love the music ,and I love it for the reminder of what a community holding
    together can accomplish.  It is especially encouraging as a testimonial for the leadership capabilities of
    our young men and women – they were merely in their mid-twenties, not just organizing a local
    boycott, but building a movement that would galvanize a nation.  

    Staring the amazing husband and wife team of Jeffrey Wright as Martin, and Carmen Ejogo as a “dead
    ringer” for the young Coretta, Iris Little Thomas as Rosa Parks, Reg E. Cathey as E. D. Nixon, CCH
    Pounder as Jo Ann Robinson, and our own Terrence Howard as Ralph Abernathy, Boycott will inspire
    you, stimulate your senses for resistance, and give you hope for overdue justice during this season of
    light.  The screening is free and open to the public.  Please pass this information, on.

    Start Walkin’!

    ~ Mittie Imani