Please join Hope Rises Up for an exciting Fit the Descriptionevent with the filmmakers on Wednesday, Novemeber 1st at the 1867 Sanctuary at Ewing.

Fit the Description (FTD) is a series which explores and exposes uncommon narratives through film, as well as interactive events. Our pilot series delves into the perspectives of Black male officers and Black male civilians, sharing personal stories around their experiences with law enforcement.

You can watch one of the Fit The Description videos here.

The event will be hosted by Hope Rises Up and the 1867 Sanctuary at Ewing, with the support of the Ewing Presbyterian Church. Doors will open at 6:00pm, and the event will begin at 6:30pm. The event will be followed by light refreshments.

More about Fit the Description:

Immediately following the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, both Black men killed by police, we were heartbroken, angry, and outraged by the lack of accountability. We felt an urgency to impact this issue and shift the biased media portrayal, knowing that these racially influenced killings didn’t start or end with these men.

We wanted to see how individuals now, are still impacted by this national institution of policing with roots from the slave patrols of the Antebellum South. What is the impact of this on Black men who interact within this system? Who are the small group of Black male officers who care, and are dedicated to changing this system from the inside out? We invited six officers (active and/or retired) and six civilians to share their experiences with law enforcement. In filming, we saw that none of the participants “fit the description,” and that their views on policing were complicated, and sometimes contradictory.

These conversations are a reminder that we all embody multiple identities, often at odds with one another. Fit the Description is a project which aims to explore and expose uncommon narratives as a pathway to expanding our perspectives.