One day in 1979, James Baldwin wrote to his literary agent about a revolutionary new project. The idea: a book — later named

Remember This House —

about the lives, campaigns, and assassinations of three people. These men were Martin Luther King Jr., Malcom X, and Medgar Evers, all at the forefront of the Civil Rights Movement, and each one of Baldwin’s closest friends. After his passing in 1987, Baldwin left an unfinished, 30-page manuscript of

Remember This House

that went untouched until renowned filmmaker Raoul Peck decided that Baldwin’s narrative was a voice that needed to be heard once again.

I Am Not Your Negro

is a chilling introduction to the works and insights of the author and civil rights activist. It is aimed at “Telling the story of America through [his] life and death,” and is based on Baldwin’s unfinished manuscript. Baldwin is known for his books and essays, one of his more notable ones being

The Fire Next Door.

Written in 1963, the collection of essays aims at educating white Americans on what it means to be black in the United States. While always writing about brutally realistic conditions, Baldwin states in one clip how he is forced to remain an optimist, which is something Peck wanted to portray in his film.

The Hamilton community was lucky enough to be given the opportunity to host a screening of

I Am Not Your Negro

with a special Q&A with Raoul Peck himself this past Sunday. When choosing which film to screen, F.I.L.M. coordinator Scott MacDonald states that “At F.I.L.M., I like whenever possible to try to attract an audience from several academic areas…not only ‘film people,’ but people from across the humanities and social sciences,” which reigned true as the Kennedy Auditorium quickly became packed with viewers.

The film opens with a clip of Baldwin himself as a guest on the Dick Cavett Show, being asked about if he sees the advancement of specific people of color in pop culture and the media as being simultaneously progressive and hopeless for the Civil Rights Movement. Baldwin smiles, and states realistically that he sees little hope because it is not about what happens to the individual, but the group, and that the real question lies in the future of the country, not the future of the individual. The film is narrated by Samuel L. Jackson as the voice of Baldwin. Each sentence taken from his unfinished manuscript,

Remember This House

, was made as a conscious choice to stay as close to Baldwin’s text as possible. The film is made entirely of clips of Baldwin, King, Malcom X, and Evers as well as many added clips of movies, TV shows, and media photos dating from the early 20th century to the present day. One interesting aspect as a viewer was to see the contrast of modern day footage from protests such as Ferguson in August of 2014, next to clips of 1960’s civil rights leaders preaching about love, and hope for the future.

When asked about why he decided to make the film, Peck responded by talking about the constant coverage needed in order to keep a movement like this alive. “You can’t just sugar coat it with Black History Month and Martin Luther King Day,” he states.

As MacDonald says, “The United States continues to struggle with the idea of ‘race’ and its historical ramifications, and as Peck himself has said, ‘If you take any books of Baldwin and start reading, you’re not reading about the past, you’re reading about today,” an idea that Peck has done well in portrayal. When discussing

I Am Not Your Negro

with people, I found that everyone managed to take something different from the movie, and I applaud Peck’s ability to impact the viewer in so many different ways, and motivate them to keep such issues at the forefront of their conscience. Because, as Baldwin states confidently in one clip, “Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing is changed before it is faced.”

Raoul Peck’s

I Am Not Your Negro

was nominated this past winter for the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature, and is currently available on Amazon. Baldwin’s unfinished manuscript of

Remember This House

was published by Vintage international in February of 2017 in order to accompany the film, and is currently available for purchase.