Racial tensions in the St. Louis suburb of Ferguson were already high before officer Darren Wilson shot and killed Michael Brown in August, 2014. But Brown’s death and a grand jury’s subsequent decision not to indict Wilson led to protests and rioting, which turned violent. Whose Streets? documents the uprising in Ferguson and profiles a new generation of activists in the civil rights movement.
Co-directors Sabaah Folayan and Damon Davis tell host Robert Scheer that they made the film for black people who have lived through similar experiences. They believe that the Ferguson protests were allowed to get out of control, and those in power did not do enough to keep the peace. Davis hopes the film is challenging for people and makes white audiences uncomfortable, in the hopes that could lead to change.