The 1619 Project

The filming itself is high quality. The storytelling is clear and has good audio. There are several interviews with people who lived through the Civil Rights Movement. There are some clips in black and white from the 1950s and 1960s. There is also contemporary footage of voting suppression. I found it interesting to learn more about events during my own lifetime.

The lens that is shaping the story is that Black people forged the US democracy by continually fighting for full citizenship and voting rights. I had never heard this perspective and am interested to see it fleshed out in the other episodes.

I noticed this had a 1.8/10 in under two hours after its release: meaning that these ratings could not even possibly finish the episodes before reviewing.

Obviously, this series was polarizing before its release. The source material is banned in many schools, since it is one of the most prominent publications of modern critical race theory.

I have not read the book yet, but I like to listen to colored voices explain their issues with credible history.

So does the beginning deliver? Yes, in many ways.

This isn't some victim-complex montage of people screaming at you that all white people are bad; this is a calm yet focused presentation of American history trickling down into modern policies.

On the other hand, this isn't as organized as other documentaries advocating for black liberation such as 13th (2016) or LA 92 (2017). So far, this series seems to be a bit too personally led by Nikole Hannah-Jones and the people she chooses to survey.

So is this biased? Of course it is, it's a pro-black documentary in America. If you have strong reservations against black social progression, then get ready to be challenged. But bias aside, legitimate history is here, and I learned a lot of new material from all eras of black America such as modern voting laws, 1960s marching logistics, and brutal punishments of early activists.

Overall, it's a strong series that I would recommend anyone to watch. It's not a cesspool of liberal lies as the other reviews suggest, but it's also not the most impactful series on race ever made. Hopefully the direction of the series can flow better in the remaining four episodes, so I can't wait to finish it.

Watch 13th or LA 92 before watching this.

7/10.

I've read through a bunch of the 1-star reviews and noticed that none of them actually address anything that is IN the episodes. Many of them claim that the documentary traffics in false history but literally every single person interviewed falls into one of two camps: 1) they are discussing things that personally happened to them; or 2) they are academic experts citing primary sources.

As a documentary work, The 1619 Project is off to a very strong start. I'm not ready to give it a 10 yet because I want to see how the entire series plays out. It's fair to say that it has an agenda but I can't think of any documentary that does not. There are obviously people who will disagree with the premise but from what I've seen so far, it does an excellent job of backing up its stance with verifiable facts.

So far the reviews here are pathetic. I doubt some reviewers have even watched the series. As a public school teacher of 25 years, I will note the following: 1) The 1619 Project is not "critical race theory". That is ridiculous.

2) The original series, the book and the TV series all have the same gaol: to present a reframing of American history from the point of view of black Americans, the descendants of slaves. It is a work of journalism, not a Ph. D thesis in US history. It succeeds in this goal, which is why many schools have added it to their curriculum.

3)Many white Americans are still in denial that systemic racism even exists today. That is their misfortune. /Ignorance of reality does not change reality. The legacy of slavery and white supremacy infects every aspect of our society. People of color know this all too well.

4) Hopefully as more people watch the series, it will enlighten and provoke, and open some minds. Then again, maybe not.

Most of the low reviews for this series come from people who seem to not even have watched it. You can tell this, because instead of offering actual insight regarding its content, they fall back on played-out "arguments," pointing out that the first US slaves were sold by other Africans--as if those people had a hand in US policy for the next 400 years.

Or, the letter ostensibly signed by 4 historians, arguing inaccuracy with a claim the creator made regarding the Revolutionary War. Again, even if she was incorrect in that assertion--which she admittedly overstated and subsequently revised--it does not change the fact that slavery was, in fact, a major component to the US economy, and it doesnt necessarily discredit the claims of the rest of the series. This is a point that was made in a Politico article by Leslie M. Harris, who strenuously argued against the Revolutionary War statement and who noted that the letter was "just as misleading" in some of its own claims.

The actual series itself is informative, engaging, and entertaining; however, given its content, the knee-jerk opposition it faces from the racist, the oblivious, and the downright stupid is wholly unsurprising.