The n-WORD
in America
DOCUMENTARY FILM
Journalism professor, news columnist and filmmaker Frank Harris III set out on a journey across America to get to the bottom of the n-word.
Combining interviews with diverse Americans, research through hundreds of newspaper archives, and surveys of present-day news media — this film takes viewers on an engaging, informative, provocative, unforgettable journey that fosters discussion about the word that persistently rattles the chain from our past to our present.
FILMMAKER'S STATEMENT
This film began with my research on the many racial names by which Americans of black African descent have been identified over the over the centuries living in America.
My focus soon shifted toward the n-word and my desire to track its origins, as well as the experiences that Americans of all backgrounds have had with this word.
Frankly, I wasn't sure what kind of response I would receive. After all, it's not every day that a man with a camera walks up and asks about the n-word and one's first or most memorable experience with it.
The stories told by the many people I interviewed, interspersed with the word's use in America's news media, past and present, provided a compelling story that I wanted to share.
Frank Harris III
