ACTIVISTS have released an unflinching short film urging people to “wake up” and fight racial inequality.
Wake Up features poetry from Brighton poets Aflo the poet and Priss Nash calling on viewers not to be complacent when it comes to anti-racism.
“Will you still post black squares while giving black women death stares?” says Priss, referencing a day of action on social media site Instagram when users posted black squares to show support for the Black Lives Matter movement.
Extreme close-ups of the artists are intercut with footage of protests and police brutality.
The poem ends: “Tomorrow, and the next day, and the next day, and the day after, show us Black Lives Matter every day you wake up.”
Speaking to The Argus, poets Aflo and Priss and director Sam Parish-Rookes said they want the film to motivate viewers to challenge racial inequality every day.
“I don’t have the privilege of walking away from my skin,” said Priss.
“Some people have the perception that they’ve done their bit online and that’s it.”
“I think some people call themselves ‘allies’ but I don’t think those are titles you can give yourself,” said Aflo.
“If you want to claim to be an anti-racist, it’s a process every day.
“I saw the term ‘ally fatigue’ and social media posts saying you should take a break because activism is tiring. We’re still being denied our humanity in so many ways.”
“What could be so tiring when it’s not happening to you?” asked Priss.
“The idea was you can’t look away, you’ve got two black women speaking to you and you’re going to bloody well listen,” said director Sam.
Both poets said the film was a cathartic way to talk about their pain by channelling their anger.
“Usually I don’t allow myself to get angry,” Priss said.
“ I was an angry teenager but as an adult I’ve tried to be more mellow.
“As a black woman you have to be calm and not risk the angry black woman trope.
“I dug into my trauma. I was feeling angry and hurt. Sam told me to channel that into the camera.”
Aflo said she hoped viewers will want to commit to challenging racial inequality every day.
“I want people to feel they have awoken something within them,” she said.
“We really appreciate support because we need it.
“One of the messages we want to get out is the UK is not innocent.
“This isn’t a movement that started here because we saw what happened in America. There is police brutality here.”
“It’s a way for people to engage,” said Priss.
“Before, so many people scrolled past my social media posts.
“After we released the film people were messaging me about it. That’s great, but how are you going to apply that to everyday life?”
Watch Wake Up at vimeo.com/444984125.
Follow those behind the project on Instagram at @aflo.thepoet, @prissnashpoetry, @officialbrightonblm and @samrookes.
Aflo the poet and Priss Nash are raising money for the Brighton Black and Minority Ethnic Young People Project. Find out more at givey.com/bmeypp.
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