MOWFF 2021!
March on Washington Film Festival 2021 to Focus on Intersection of Environmental Justice and Civil Rights
Rep. James E. Clyburn to Receive John Robert Lewis Lifetime Legacy Award; Nikole Hannah-Jones Named Vivian Malone Courage Award Honoree
(Washington, D.C.) - August 5, 2021 –– The March on Washington Film Festival is pleased to announce its 9th annual event, to be held September 30 - October 4, 2021. This year’s festival comprises virtual and in-person events based primarily at Union Market and Eaton Workshop in Northeast Washington, D.C.
MOWFF uses film screenings as a platform for panel discussions featuring filmmakers, academics, and activists, and also features performances by artists and workshops to bring together an audience diverse in age, socioeconomic status, and ethnicity. These events are leveraged to increase awareness of the icons and foot soldiers of the Civil Rights Movement, and to share stories as yet untold. All of the festival’s programs promote thoughtful discussion of present-day social justice and equity issues that are shaped by our collective history of civil rights. Last year’s virtual festival attracted thousands of participants from 49 states and 11 international countries.
While maintaining its emphasis on celebrating the icons and foot soldiers of the Civil Rights Movement, this year’s festival spotlights “Civil Rights and Environmental Justice for All.” According to Artistic Director Isisara Bey, “Climate change has had consequences that disproportionately impact communities of color. MOWFF 2021 will explore the effects of climate change on these communities, the imperative for environmental justice, and the necessity for concerted climate action by the Earth’s citizens, lawmakers and especially its young people.”
Dr. King recognized that social justice could not be achieved without environmental justice – including healthier living environments for underprivileged communities, and universal access to clean air, water, and soil. As he said in his 1967 Christmas sermon:
“It really boils down to this: that all life is interrelated. We are all caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied into a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. … Did you ever stop to think that you can’t leave for your job in the morning without being dependent on most of the world? … This is the way our universe is structured; this is its interrelated quality. We aren’t going to have peace on Earth until we recognize this basic fact of the interrelated structure of all reality.”
In keeping with its mission to advance the next generation of storyteller activists, the festival also reprises its Emerging and Student Filmmaker competition, with winning films screened during the festival.
This year, the festival further aims to foster the growth of the rising generation of activists by turning over a portion of the programming to be curated by four crusaders under the age of 25.
This year, MOWFF is honored to present the John Robert Lewis Lifetime Legacy Award to Rep James E. Clyburn for his leadership in advancing justice, environmental protection, and equity in his career as a representative and House Majority Whip. This year’s Vivian Malone Courage Award recipient will be investigative journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones, who recently accepted the position of Howard University’s inaugural Knight Chair in Race and Journalism.
Over the course of four days, MOWFF 2021 programming will feature:
A roster of approximately 30 feature and short films centered around the theme of environmental justice, and other films that speak truth to power
A special evening with Civil Rights Attorney and former Alabama legislator Fred Gray, whose vital role in defending Rosa Parks and Claudette Colvin during the Montgomery bus boycott led to the desegregation of public transportation
Invited panelists and keynote speakers, including activists such as "Father of Environmental Justice" Dr. Robert Bullard, Environmental and Human Rights Activist Diane Dillon Ridgely, White House Environmental Advisory board member Jerome Foster II, Standing Rock Native American Youth Council, and more
A Closing Night event honoring The Importance of Pauli Murray featuring a performance by award-winning playwright/actor Nikkole Salter and an original composition by musical artist Damien Sneed.
Several workshops targeting educators and students at the secondary and collegiate levels.
“The film festival serves as a platform to tell the stories of historically excluded communities, while drawing forth the salience of intersectional issues to this day. Social justice and equity are inextricably wrapped up in environmental issues,” says Festival Founder and Chairman, Robert Raben. “While environmental injustice inevitably affects all of humanity, we aim to show a spotlight on the ways underrepresented communities are impacted by this global crisis.”
###
About the March on Washington Film Festival
The March on Washington Film Festival increases awareness of the untold events and unsung heroes of the Civil Rights Era and inspires renewed passion for activism. The Film Festival leverages the power of film, first person accounts, scholarship, and the arts to share these important stories. It was founded in 2013, on the 50th anniversary of the original March on Washington.
The 2021 March on Washington Film Festival is supported by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Reginald and Tiffeny Sanchez, EDENS, Bank of America, Eaton Workshop, David Frederick and Sophia Lynn, InterDigital, Mastercard, Karen Raben and Robert Vigman, San Francisco Foundation, Walmart, Emerson Collective, General Motors, National Beer Wholesalers Association, Southern Poverty Law Center, AARP, College Board, Heyday Foundation, DC Office of Cable Television, Film, Music and Entertainment, Don Verilli, Donors of Color, and Discovery, Starz, Variety, and ServiceNow.
Media Contacts:
BA Snyder Emily Seeley
Veritas Group Sunshine Sachs
512.630.6337 415.517.7507