Brian Freeman
Jewelle: A Just Vision traces the nodes of social movements from Civil Rights to Marriage Equality. It reveals radical Black and Indigenous feminist networks and thought that could shape what is to come. It drinks deeply from the art and activism of the incomparable Jewelle Gomez, Ioway & African American, Wampanoag, and Cape Verdean lesbian elder. Her life and work replenish humanity with fierce hope as her power swells into the world, from histories of Massasoit and her great-grandmother’s buckskin dress, queer Black ancestors, and slavery-era vampires to starry regenerative futures.
Marlon Riggs, with assistance from other gay Black men, especially poet Essex Hemphill, celebrates Black men loving Black men as a revolutionary act. The film intercuts footage of Hemphill reciting his poetry, Riggs telling the story of his growing up, scenes of men in social intercourse and dance, and various comic riffs, including a visit to the "Institute of Snap!thology," where men take lessons in how to snap their fingers: the sling snap, the point snap, the diva snap.
