Education helped me make a dent in film criticism, where Black perspectives are rare

At the age of 18, I was simultaneously headed to college and to jail. I had ambitions of becoming a filmmaker and was days away from attending Morehouse College in Atlanta on an academic and athletic scholarship to play football.

Like most hip-hop junkies, which I was, I was out that night with friends at a party. It was the only way we could hear the latest songs by Run DMC, L.L. Cool J, Slick Rick and others. Radio stations didn’t play rap music in the late ‘80s — not even Hot 103 Jamz, and don’t even get me started on MTV.

Let’s just call the events of that night a slight misunderstanding with the Kansas City Police Department. The party was raided by police who burst in with shotguns in the air and an attitude more aggressive than N.W.A. Somehow, we were able to leave without incident but then were pulled over by the police about a block away from the venue. All four of us had our feet spread apart and hands on the hood of the car. You’ve seen the scene in more than a few movies.

A case of mistaken identity got me handcuffed and tossed into the back of a squad car and hauled off to a jail cell. Several hours later, after getting fingerprinted and yelled at by a few gleefully sadistic cops, I safely returned home. They seemed to get a lot of pleasure out of verbally terrorizing a teenager.

Thankfully, my parents had prepared me for that situation with a series of lectures, Ted Talks and sermons about how to conduct myself in this situation that was more likely than not to happen to me at some point in life. And yes, it has happened to me since, a few times actually. The latest came two years ago in front of Kansas City International Airport.

I made it to Morehouse. Thanks to my grandparents who lived in Princeton, New Jersey, I made the best decision of my life. They constantly preached the importance of historically Black colleges and universities, despite residing in a house that was only blocks away from Princeton University.

My experience at Morehouse was priceless. The ideology wasn’t centered on grades but was a mindset of leadership. This philosophy stuck. I majored in communications with an emphasis on film and minored in journalism and immediately found my passion.

Hello, real world and welcome to the social and professional battlefield. As a film critic I have fought to elevate my career on my own terms every step of the way. There were no Black role models or mentors. I had never seen or met a Black film critic. Those voices had died years ago as Black newspapers gradually faded away after the end of segregation.

Cinema has an impact far greater than most can imagine. Images matter, and they stick. They can influence culture, politics, laws, and more importantly, they can change the course of history. If you are constantly told that “Citizen Kane” is the greatest movie ever made, you begin to believe it. Then you watch it and realize that it really isn’t that good. You begin to wonder, just who is pushing this narrative?

I’ve always been fueled by this noninclusive validation of history. The American Film Institute has continually released a list ranking the best movies, movie quotes and all things cinema. But Black-themed movies and Black filmmakers have always been woefully absent. That’s why I created my own list and produced my own documentaries about the history of Black film.

It was the same reason I left the Kansas City Film Critics Circle and created my own film critics group — the African American Film Critics Association. Being the only Black person in the room can be suffocating and is often an experience that only leads to your voice being drowned out.

I’ve been reviewing movies for 20 years on Fox 4 News. The station has supported me and provided a platform that has allowed me to exist as a film critic who happens to be Black. However, the opportunity has allowed me to interject my perspective and add my unique viewpoint.

Crazy to think back to when I was 18 on that wild summer night of partying with my high school buddies before all of us ventured off to various colleges and universities. Thankfully, the night eventually ended on a positive note. For many who look like us, it often doesn’t end well. Legacies ended before they even began.

Shawn Edwards is film critic for Fox 4 News. He is cofounder of the African American Film Critics Association and the creator of iloveblackmovies.com.

This story was originally published July 17, 2020 at 5:00 AM.