Why was theRest in Powerdocumentary on the life and death of Trayvon so frustratingly hopeful?
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Maybe I am not in a good place.
Maybe its mood or hormones.
Maybe its pandemic life.
Maybe Im too old, been Black in America for too long.
Maybe Im simply too tired of all of it.
Nonetheless, it remains the only legitimate documentary about Trayvon.
The six-part series ends audaciously hopeful.
There is also an irony to hope.
Hope is necessary to ward off despair, to foment resistance.
Yet it is remarkably useful for keeping intact the systems that caused the despair.
Hope tells you that were almost there if we just keep going.
It omits that if they wanted this to stop, it already would have.
If you believe Zimmerman innocent, youre probably not watching this doc in the first place.
If you believe him guilty, youll find Furst and Nason are competent with this form.
Trayvons story is treated with respect, his narrative straightforward and uncomplicated: A child was wrongly killed.
A system conspired to ensure there was no justice for his family.
The series has a 100 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes and was nominated for an Emmy.
Critics said it should be required viewing and called it a gut punch.
I guess after years of gut punching, I am left wondering,What is the point?
Sometimes the quest for full humanity in America feels like chasing a mirage.
It is something I occasionally have to talk myself into believing.
Its partly why projects likeRest in Powerget made.
They are an affirmation of hope, of which there has been an apparent deficit since Trayvons killing.
This cycle of hope and despair has become its own content industry.
Being angry at police is a content industry.
Being angry at people who are angry at police is a content industry.
Im also left wondering which audienceRest in Powerwants things to click for.
I figured it couldnt have been me.
I resisted the documentary.
I spent long sections of it looking at my phone, thinking about dinner, and texting with friends.
I hated watching it.
I loved his parents and his friends and his brother.
I wanted him to be here for all of that.
I loved him because he died when he did not deserve to die.
Like I said, I may not be in a good place.
This is what angered people most.
If theres anyone this documentary is truly for, it is Trayvons parents, co-producers on the series.
They needed to see his humanity dignified, his story truthfully told.
Furst and Nasons biggest directorial accomplishment was not to stand in the way of Tracy Martin andSybrina Fultons vision.
These days, we are the only power I can rest in.
It just may be that many of us need a project likeRest in Powerto remember that.
I can live with that.
I guess I have to.
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