Review of Once Upon a Time... When We Were Colored

I am very fond of this film, and I have had the opportunity to hear Clifton Taulbert speak in person. I think the point of the film is that while black people who had to endure much during the 100 years that followed the civil war they still managed to create many supportive communities. In addition there were good role models for young people like Clifton Taulbert. As a response to the undeniable oppression, the black community of Glen Allen, Mississippi, bonded and supported one another. It did, in fact, mean that their lives were made less miserable. They experienced joy and fellowship as well as oppression. They refused to take on victim-hood as an identity. At the same time, there was a vigorous challenge to the status quo. I don't think the movie is too sentimental, or inaccurate.

I have shown this movie to students many times and it has never failed to move them to a real concern for the condition of minorities. It reaches these students on an emotional level, and it gets them interested in learning more about the issue of human rights. That is no small feat.