Juneteenth is a day of celebration. It marks the anniversary of when all the slaves in America were freed. When most people think of the end of slavery, they think of the Emancipation Proclamation. On January 1, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation declaring “that all persons held as slaves are, and henceforward shall be free”. This was an amazing day in history, but not everyone got to reap the benefits of this. It wasn’t until two and a half years later on June 19, 1865 , that the remaining slaves in Texas were finally freed. That’s two and a half years of abuse that the slaves in Texas should not have gone through. June 19 is my people’s true freedom day because that was the day all of us were freed. The fact that Juneteenth has recently been recognized as a federal holiday is a big deal. It opens a door for us to share our history with everyone, even the parts that people try to erase. Juneteenth is also a day to celebrate how far we’ve come as a people. Here are 10 movies you can watch on Disney Plus to celebrate black excellence.
If you’re looking for Juneteenth movies to watch Hidden Figures is the way to go. This movie is about three brilliant black women at NASA during a time when black women were viewed as inferior, proved to be the smartest people in the room. They faced segregation and discrimination, but that didn’t stop their success. Katherine Johnson, Dorthy Vaughan, and Mary Jackson were the brains behind one of NASA’s greatest operations in history. This was the launch of astronaut John Glenn into orbit. Thanks to these three women, the operation was a success. It turned around the Space Race and restored our nation’s confidence. This historical moment took place in 1962, segregation didn’t end until 1964. My dad was born in 1964 and he is only 58. Let that sink in. Segregation wasn’t that long ago and we need to remember that and remember how far we’ve come since then.
Here’s a good choice for Juneteenth movies to watch. Based on a true story, Remember The Titans was set in 1971, seven years after segregation had legally ended. When two high schools, one all white and one all black, are forced to integrate everyone doesn’t accept it. The movie focuses on the merger of both schools’ football teams as a representation of integration in society. The white parents of the football players try to make the merge as difficult as possible. They tried to get everyone to boycott the games and called in favors to have the referees call unjust penalties against their own team. The school board even told one of the coaches, who is black, that if his team loses one game, he’ll be dismissed. Even some of the white football players would work against their own teammates in a game because they didn’t want the black football players on the team. With the guidance of their coach, we can see the team start to work together and become more unified. They even formed friendships despite their initial reactions to each other.
Black Panther should be on everyone’s Juneteenth movies watchlist. This movie is black excellence at its finest. Black Panther is Marvel’s first black superhero. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, we first see Black Panther in July of 1966 in Marvel’s Fantastic Four issue 52. We later got the Black Panther movie in February of 2018. With a predominantly black cast and a black director, Black Panther made waves and changed the way people viewed those of African descent. When I went to see Black Panther in theaters, I saw so many people in their indigenous African clothing and they looked so happy to see themselves being positively represented on the big screen. The theaters were full of black families, including mine, that were excited to have a movie that represented us as royalty.
Add this to your Juneteenth movies watchlist for encouragement to follow your dreams. This movie is based on the true story of a young girl named Phiona who becomes a great chess champion sends a wonderful message that great talent can come from anywhere. Your race, gender, or socioeconomic status doesn’t define your success. Phiona is from Katwe in Kampala, Uganda. The story follows her daily struggles in poverty and how she rose to success with the help of her mentor and community. This movie teaches the willingness to never give up on your dreams no matter how unattainable they may seem to other people.
When I was 9 years old, Disney released their first black princess original movie called The Princess and the Frog. I had the Princess Tiana doll, poster, socks, and stationery. The Princess Tiana doll was the first black doll I had ever owned. I was obsessed and when my parents got me the movie on DVD, I made them watch all the time. This movie meant a lot to me and other little girls who had never seen themselves as a Princess on the big screen.
This movie means a lot to me because it was the first time I’ve ever seen a black Cinderella. In this 1997 adaptation of Cinderella, the princess was played by Brandy Norwood. What I love about her character in this movie is that they didn’t try to whitewash her. The directors didn’t make Brandy straighten out her hair for this role, she played Cinderella in box braids and it was iconic. I have this movie on VHS, and when watching it as a little girl, I could see myself in Cinderella because for the first time, she looked like me.
Here is another great choice for Juneteenth movies to watch. Jump In has a predominately black cast and is set in a black neighborhood. This movie is about a boy named Izzy and his passion for double dutch. In the movie, jump roping is considered a girls game. Despite how hard Izzy works at double dutch and how dedicated he is to the sport, he still tries to keep it a secret from his friends and family because he is afraid of what they will think of him. This movie teaches kids to follow their heart, no matter what other people may think.
This is a great choice for Juneteenth movies to watch if you have little kids, or if you’re just feeling nostalgic. The Proud Family Movie has great representation for black people. My family loves it because we can see ourselves or someone we know in the characters. The movie follows a regular suburban black family and their silly adventures. This is the perfect goofy movie for families to watch together this Juneteenth to celebrate black excellence.
Add this to your Juneteenth movies watchlist for a history lesson on Ruby Bridges. Based on a true story, this movie follows the story of young Ruby Bridges as one of the first black children to attend an integrated school in the Deep South. At 6 years old, Ruby was selected to attend an all white school in New Orleans. The amount of hatred that grown adults were showing to this little girl was ridiculous. For an entire year, Ruby had to come face-to-face with crowds of people screaming at her saying she doesn’t belong and calling her names when all she wanted to do was go to school. Ruby knew that if she gave those people the reaction they wanted, it could ruin her chances of staying at the school. We learn more about Ruby in this movie than a textbook because the movie follows her entire year at the school and how it affected her and her family. I highly recommend watching this movie.
This is definitely one of the Juneteenth movies you should watch. The Color Of Friendship is about two girls who learn to look past their race and the assumptions they had about each other to form a beautiful friendship. Mahree Bok is a white girl from apartheid South Africa and Piper Dellums is from Washington D.C. When Mahree’s family sends her to go study abroad, she is shocked to find that her host family is black, and Piper and her family are shocked to find that the South African student they are supposed to host is white. In the beginning of the movie, Mahree says some offensive things to the Dellum family, but only because of the way she was raised. After living with the Dellums, we can see that her thoughts about black people change. Piper and Mahree eventually work through their differences and become best friends.
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