On Youtube for Free: "What Killed Michael Brown?"
Hi all,
I hope your week has been going well. We’re still having a heat wave in LA — it’s been about 85 degrees all week. I hear it is snowing in Chicago. And, yes, I did say we are releasing the film for free on Youtube.
Here’s why:
It has been three years since we released “What Killed Michael Brown?” At that time, many Americans had not joined the culture wars of today. I remember how many people told my father and me that we were brave for going to Ferguson and telling the truth about what happened to Michael Brown. For us, it wasn’t about bravery — it was about setting the record straight and offering perspective. If we hadn’t made our film, then what record would stand against the five or six other Ferguson films that push the lies? What price does society pay for a false narrative?
In the film we stated several taboos that have become common sense today. The one I’m most proud of is how we flipped the left’s systemic racism narrative on its head. Back in 2020, you could not challenge that narrative without being smeared as a racist or a moron.
We devoted nearly 40 minutes of the film to showing how it was the policies of post-60s liberalism that destroyed many black families, created the black underclass, and the culture of dependency. There was no dependency under segregation — whites could have cared less about blacks and we had nobody to fall back on during those times.
Post-60s liberalism is the one and only form of systemic racism that still endures to this day. For example, in the name of achieving racial equity, the Oregon Department of Education recently decided that basic reading, writing and math skills are not required for students to graduate with a high school diploma. Yep, in the name of racial equity, an entire department of education will not do its job.
It has been gratifying for us to hear from so many, including those on the left, who said they never understood the full impact of post-60s liberalism until they saw our film. We see more and more people using terms like “white guilt,” “poetic justice,” “post-60s liberalism” and on. That is why the arts is the most influential tool at our disposal.
This brings me back to Youtube, free, and “What Killed Michael Brown?” One of my biggest disappointments has been on how the film was distributed. From the beginning, it was my goal to take this film to Netflix, Hulu, and other mainstream streamers. The film equals or surpasses the quality of many films on those platforms and I would argue that it contributes more to the America narrative than most. If our film was rejected by these mainstream platforms, my aim was to question why in a public way in order to force a conversation.
However, our distributor balked. They had other films and they did not wish to hurt their relationships with these streamers. I understood, but I wasn’t sympathetic to their fears because it meant that “What Killed Michael Brown?” was not being given its full and equal shot — all for the crime of telling the truth.
Our number one goal in making this film was to get as many people to watch it. We have had countless students, former BLM-allies, social justice warriors, and others tell us that the film changed their minds. Even journalists have been influenced by our film and many had to pay a price to write on us like Megan Basham who recently tweeted about her experience. (For her post on X, click here.)
That is why we recently partnered up with Leo Mercado of Vogoma to release the film for free on Youtube. What he brings is the ability to work with the Youtube algorithm to allow the film to bypass most restrictions. For example, “Killed” in the title would have flagged the film which is why we put the original title in the thumbnail and used this title for Youtube: “The Ferguson Unrest | Full Michael Brown Incident Documentary.”
As the original supporters of our film, we would be appreciative if you could help spread word of the film (as well as the film’s link) far and wide. The more traffic we generate, the more Youtube promotes it. If your smart TV has a Youtube app, you can watch it there as well.
There is an upside to this for us. This effort will increase our subscriber base on various fronts and give us more distribution power going into the future.
In the emails that follow this one, I will make sure to include at least one clip so that you may share.
We truly appreciate your support. The film has many more young minds to reach and we cannot do it without your help.
All my best,
Eli
I saw the film when you first released it. It made a huge impact on me that has lasted, because it's so measured, clear and comprehensive.
In order to watch it, I had to purchase it from Vimeo because Amazon was refusing to sell or show it at the time. Thankfully that shameful bit of censorship was challenged by Jason Riley, who exposed Amazon's censorship in the Wall Street Journal if memory serves me.
I told everyone I knew about the film, but nobody was interested. My theory is that since they were all progressives, they feared they would see something they didn't agree with or that would make them feel bad because they might have to confront the truth about what actually killed Michael Brown.
I'm thrilled that you've found a way to give the film new life, because its message is as relevant today as it was in 2020 and it needs to be seen. I intend to poke all the people who ignored it last time and see if the incentive of ABSOLUTELY FREE! can inspire them to watch it and learn something.
By the way, this blew my mind: "...the Oregon Department of Education recently decided that basic reading, writing and math skills are not required for students to graduate with a high school diploma." Which begs the question, if students can't read or write, or do math either, why bother to show up at all? What are they going to do all day in school, play dodge ball? What a cynical, diabolical way to treat young people. The so-called Oregon Dept. of Education needs to be overhauled from the ground up.
Thank you for making this film. I’m excited that it will be offered for free on YouTube. You and your Dad are truth seekers and truth tellers and I am grateful you. I’ve told so many of my friends about you and your Dad. I will continue to do so!