-Avier Wanjou-Brass-
Cousins!
Legendary singer and songwriter Lauryn Hill is tapping in on her talents outside of music. The singer is in the works, to produce a new documentary that will explore the legacy of the Baraka family of Newark. NJ!
According to Ebony, Hill has partnered with screenwriter Oren Moverman to produce the doc. Why We Are Americans? The project is directed by Udi Aloni and will take a deep dive into Newark’s ongoing, “struggle with oppression through the lens of the Baraka family’s decades-long involvement within social activism, poetry, music, and politics.”
Being one of the leading figures of the Black Arts Movement, Amiri Baraka was a poet and playwright. The Black Arts Movement was a combination of arts and activism. It was a revolutionary movement that left a mark on Black culture, and inspired others for the next generations to come.
The wife of Amiri, Amina Baraka, is an acclaimed writer, dancer, and community organizer, who is also another primary component of the movement. Their son, Ras Baraka, is currently the mayor of the city of Newark.
In an interview with NJ.com, Hill expressed the importance of the Baraka family, and their fight for activism in the Black community.
“Amiri Baraka was a space maker, Ras Baraka is making space. … I consider myself a space maker, Hill said.
“We’re creating space, we’re creating dimension … to help the world get along in such a way and see connections beyond how we’ve been told to divide ourselves and how to specialize and separate. And yet remain true to ourselves.”
The documentary will debut at the IFC Center in New York City on Jan. 14. Also, it will screen at the Pan African Film Festival in February in Los Angeles.