Time and other conflicts prevented me from doing so until now. It's a shame, too, because this was a long-overdue, very powerful documentary, even for a Bougie Chick like me. If it were up to me, it would be included in every Blockbuster. And there are those who talk and without knowledge or forethought, reveal a truth which they themselves do not understand. And there are those who have the truth within them, but they tell it not in words.
Yesterday is but today's memory, and tomorrow's dream.
The rap scene was a mere backdrop to the picture of L.A. from the eyes of 'hood residents, from the 1992 riots to 1995's Million Man March. O'Derek takes us on a journey through the 'hood by way of interviews with the famous and infamous. Though the majority of time is spent highlighting Black neighborhoods and residents, the issue of coalitions and separatism between Blacks and Latinos was also explored. I found my normal knee-jerk reactions to the knuckleheads and bangers, fading into the background, replaced by a willingness to truly listen to what they were saying. I'm not born-again Hard, but I can certainly appreciate a different viewpoint than I did before.