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}[Shatira] I'm gonna tell you this story.
}And this is why I came, so, like,
}one with myself.
}So I really honestly do feel
}like one with the universe, like, I feel like
}I'm more than just
}a brain that's functioning
}with all these organs, and, like...
}You know, it's really crazy,
}sometimes I feel like I'm...
}[laughs] I can hear my blood, like, rushing through my body.
}It's really, like, if you really sit there
}and, like, silent, you can like...
}you can hear it sometimes.
}[school bell]
}[indistinct conversations]
}[Karen] Hey guys, how's it going?
}Uh, I am Ms. Karen.
}I'm going to be taking over for Mr. Vernon.
}Um, and obviously this is my first day.
}It's not yours, you've been in school
}with each other for a long time.
}So, yeah, we're not gonna be very formal.
}You just call me Ms. Karen.
}Um... so that's... that's cool, I hope, with everybody.
}And I have no idea who you are, and you have no idea who I am.
}So I'm gonna pass out some little cards right now
}and if you could pull out, like a pencil,
}or a pen or something...
}So just take like five minutes and fill out for me
}just a little brief synopsis of who you think you are.
}Anybody seen The Breakfast Club?
}Anybody? Anybody?
}[Shatira] I don't know.
}I don't really wanna know who I am.
}I just wanna be... be.
}[laughs] I just wanna be.
}Can I just be? Do I have to define myself?
}[electronic music]
}I do say I'm a photographer.
}I mean, I don't know.
}[stutters] I say I like taking photos.
}[laughs] I will say I love photography.
}So, like, I can't... I haven't found my...
}I haven't found my thing yet, but...
}I will.
}Eventually.
}[Mitch] What is it
}that you wanna say with photography?
}Like, why is that interesting to you?
}I don't know. I just...
}[sighs] I don't know.
}Man, I don't know.
}I just... [laughs]
}[Mitch] "You gonna stop with the fucking questions?"
}No, it's 'cause, like, everybody always asks me that.
}And I'm just, like, I really wish I could tell you.
}But sometimes I just like to fucking pick up a camera
}and just take a picture.
}Is that not enough? Like...
}[tapping on keyboard]
}And then I just started to say,
}"This year we will be documenting
}our school's environment and the process we undergo
}as we open our arms to new students
}from across the district.
}While it's important not to feel
}that you are acting for the camera,
}they are interested in your authentic selves.
}I know that you will do your best
}to make a good impression
}and represent our school...
}faithfully."
}'Cause the goal is not to...
}turn everyone's attention to the new students,
}um, and understand that they are all
}here because they're diverse.
}[Mitch] How do you think it's gonna go?
}I think it's gonna go great.
}[electronic music]
}[guard] I think everybody kinda sees a security guard
}uh, in whatever capacity,
}in an office building, in a school,
}as somebody who's just doing a job.
}Oh, they're probably, you know,
}"They didn't make it in law enforcement,"
}or, "They just need to make a few bucks
}and they don't take it seriously."
}But what if you're a person
}who does take it extremely seriously?
}Whoa, whoa, whoa.
}We don't do that here.
}Put them away.
}[upbeat electronic music]
}We're getting filmed.
}[rap beat]
}♪ Imma pull up in this swoop ♪
}♪ Then you're gonna dive In my pool, yeah ♪
}♪ I just been working on you ♪
}♪ You just been working On me, yeah ♪
}[music ends abruptly]
}You wasn't supposed to cut off, 'cause I still gotta sing it.
}Gotta sing it through.
}-You sound hesitated. -[Marquel] Just doing it.
}You sound hesitated as hell.
}'Cause I am hesitating as hell,
}there's a big-ass camera in my face. [chuckles]
}You supposed to act like it's not there.
}[muffled rap music]
}[friend] I wanna hear the [unintelligible].
}[rap song playback]
}-Hold up. -[music ends abruptly]
}-Huh? -[woman] There will be lessons.
}And they hear everything.
}All right, we'll turn it down.
}-[woman] How can they hear? -Oh my God.
}-[mumbles] -Yes, ma'am, we got it.
}[background chatter]
}[Marquel] So when I don't have my keys,
}this is what I do, this is, like,
}we came up with this plan.
}[rap music]
}She up there?
}Hey Gram.
}[keys clink]
}Easiest way to get in.
}This floor full of old people.
}That floor full of potheads and my grandma.
}[Marquel indistinct]
}This is Mitch, he's filming me.
}-This is my grandma. -How are you?
}-Good, how're you doing? -[Mitch] I'm fine.
}So what you been doing?
}Uh, working, school.
}[grandma] So what you all got, a class project?
}Uh, no. He's actually making a movie,
}like a legit movie, you know how that goes, so...
}[grandma] Are you?
}[Mitch] Describe your relationship with Shatira.
}Uh, why did you hit me with that question?
}I don't know.
}It's just, like, we've liked each other
}back and forth, like,
}sixth, seventh and eighth grade and stuff.
}And every time I would ask her out as a girlfriend,
}she'd play me and be like, "Oh yeah, we can date."
}And then she would say no, and it would irritate me,
}and then she's played me multiple times, but...
}Honestly, like, that's somebody, like, you can trust.
}Like, for sure, I'll say that,
}like, I know for a fact that I can trust her.
}If I, like, needed advice or to go to her for something,
}like, that's like, she's a...
}She's a good person, she has a good, like, soul.
}-[Mitch] Yeah. -For sure.
}[Mitch] Like, how else would you describe her?
}Awesome.
}Like, uh...
}intriguing...
}I don’t know.
}There's a lot of beautiful people
}that are, like, really honest, and she's one of them.
}So I'd say that...
}All right, Grandma, I'll see you later.
}[grandma indistinct]
}...peppermint from the dollar store.
}-Want me to grab you some? -Okay. Huh?
}-Want me to grab you something? -No.
}-I like the puffs. -[sighs]
}They're called puffs.
}-Thanks, I'll see you later. -[grandma] Okay sweetie.
}-I'll catch up with you. -[Marquel] We will.
}[grandma] All right.
}[Robert] Can we get two chais and a hookah?
}-Two chai? -[Robert] Yeah.
}-What size? -[Robert] Medium.
}-And a hookah?. -[Shatira] Yes please.
}[Shatira] She was like, "Don't let them take pictures
}of you smoking hookah.
}You'll get us in trouble." [chuckles]
}She's tripping.
}[Robert] Why don't you sip your coffee?
}-It's not coffee. -[Robert] Mind your business.
}It's not coffee.
}Don't say it's coffee, it's not coffee.
}[Mitch] Who's Robert?
}[Shatira] Robert is my boyfriend,
}um, and we've been together for three years.
}I love him, and I care about him.
}And I don't understand
}why it's so hard to be with somebody like yourself.
}So, we're both complicated in our own ways.
}[Shatira chuckles] Today was my day.
}-Yes. -Yeah.
}Uh, yeah, it was a little bit rough.
}[chuckles]
}It started with Marquel.
}He drives me nuts.
}No, no. I...
}Just Marquel in general, like, relationships, friendships,
}people in general have been irritating me a lot lately.
}I'll be honest,
}[stutters] in the beginning of the relationship,
}I used to be super, really, really jealous
}and now I just kinda, just, like, let it go,
}'cause I just know she's gonna be with me
}at the end of the day, so...
}it's nothing, really, to worry about.
}[Shatira] I don't think I've necessarily lied to Robert.
}But I've... I don't feel like
}I've always been...
}like, myself...
}Like, hon... like, not honest,
}but like myself, I guess? So, like...
}hiding what I feel, if that counts as lying,
}but, like...
}[sighs]
}Tired of...
}feeling. [laughs]
}So, you know the alley
}that all the kids walk down?
}Somebody wrote that one time, and I was like,
}"Oh yep, mood."
}So... [chuckles]
}Kinda just took a picture of it.
}[Karen] All right, guys.
}If you need a couple more minutes, that's okay,
}you can go ahead and take it. For those of you that are done,
}can you come and turn in your papers?
}And also, you may grab your phones.
}I'm sorry for taking them away.
}I'm a little grumpy today.
}To make up for it, why don't you guys just, uh...
}have some free time to yourselves. Cool?
}[students] Yeah. Yeah.
}Cool.
}So how many weeks can I expect
}testing to be?
}It changes on a yearly basis for us.
}I don't know if we could give a finite amount of time.
}[teacher] We couldn't do any test preparation
}for the tests last year, 'cause nobody knew
}what was on the tests, we had no idea.
}When he said it took six weeks of instructional time
}he's talking about it actually, literally,
}took six weeks of instructional time,
}six weeks of classroom time
}for the kids just to take the tests.
}It's been, for me, the big disappointment
}of the Obama administration,
}has been what a disaster education's been.
}And I don't know any teachers,
}or really anybody who feel differently than that,
}-and it pisses me off. -[Shatira] Hi.
}-I'm sorry. -[teacher] That's okay.
}Go ahead. No, no, come on in.
}-[teacher 2] It's totally fine. -[Karen] How are you?
}-[Shatira] Good, how are you? -I'm doing good.
}-[Shatira] I'm tired today. -You're tired?
}-[Shatira] Yes. -It's Friday.
}-[Shatira] I know. -[Karen] That helps.
}How are your grades?
}-My grades are good. -Yeah?
}Yeah.
}-Okay. -They're fine.
}-It's fine. -And are you...
}How are you feeling about this school?
}I'm ready to go.
}-You're ready to go? -I'm ready to leave.
}[Shatira] I just feel like
}there's this thing on Facebook where it's
}look back at all your memories.
}And I made this status where...
}um, I was like... What did I say?
}I was like...
}I just walked up to a group
}of predominantly white kids,
}and I asked them if they knew who Trayvon Martin was,
}and, um...
}They said no.
}I asked them if they knew anything
}about police brutality, and they said no.
}And so I just...
}-I don't know. -Huh.
}[Shatira] It's becoming harder to talk about.
}Not much has changed.
}[Shatira] Not much has evolved, at all.
}Yeah. What if...
}what if I were to give you and Marquel
}an opportunity
}to lead, in the classroom together, around race?
}-[Shatira] I think it would be-- -Race relations.
}[Shatira] It would be powerful, especially because we did start
}the walkout together last year...
}-Right. That's right. -...when Trayvon was shot.
}[Karen] Do you think Marquel would be interested, too?
}-[Shatira] He would love it. -Getting together, and...
}-[Shatira] He would love it. -...come up with a lesson plan.
}[Shatira] He would literally be in love this.
}And I'm gonna need you
}to speak up and lead the class, too.
}-All the time. -[Marquel] I don't think this...
}I mean, yeah, it's worth it, but...
}For why? Why even start it now, because...
}What, in ten years we'll be having
}the same conversation. Shit won't change.
}But we could change it in this community.
}I don't want my whole high school experience to be like...
}I was appropriated the whole time,
}just squished, just condensed
}into this tiny little box of stereotypes
}and being this one person
}that all these white people know me to be.
}I want people to know, 'cause if we give
}this small amount of people knowledge,
}we could do that everywhere.
}Like, imagine that, like, literally imagine that.
}That'd be amazing. That'd be so great.
}All these people know that we are all the same inside.
}I hear so many people of color beg to be seen
}and beg to be known, and beg to be heard.
}But it took him so much convincing
}even though he wanted that.
}You know, I was down for it.
}I was ready, especially, like, the whole election going on.
}I was ready to talk about it
}with people, and, um...
}He was just really hesitant, because he didn't...
}I guess he maybe felt like
}he didn't have to explain himself to people.
}And you don't.
}[Mitch] Is there much censorship on the computers here?
}There's like... yeah.
}Yeah. Like, if I wanna do something like this,
}I could go, uh...
}Maybe you like cooking, maybe I wanna find
}a nice duck breast recipe, right?
}Maybe I got some duck breast, I wanna cook that.
}Oh, look, pan-roasted duck breast at Food Network.
}Oh, no. It's blocked.
}"Pan-roasted duck breast" is blocked
}because keyword "breast", you know?
}'Cause that makes sense.
}But if I go to, like, a different website, like...
}World War One guns,
}sometimes it's blocked "guns," sometimes it isn't, you know?
}[scoffs]
}The majority of the teachers are liberal
}and the majority of the students are liberal,
}but we have teachers that are openly conservative
}and students that are openly conservative,
}so I feel like, ratio-wise, it's right.
}They also sort of feel attacked
}by being surrounded by so many liberal people,
}so they get sort of aggressive with their conservativeness,
}and sort of alt-right with it,
}which then makes the liberals get even more mad at them,
}if that makes sense.
}Oh my God!
}She emailed me,
}and was like, "I think you'll like this,"
}and I was like, "Oh God..."
}[man] Because kids have always been miscreants
}and juvenile delinquents, and they've been truant,
}and there's been fights in schools,
}and other problems, we've had violence in schools
}throughout... as far back as we've had schools.
}I'd read a story many years ago,
}I can't remember the magazine,
}but they're interviewing a young school teacher
}up in a part of Alaska that had Kodiak bears.
}Biggest bear, mammal, on the planet.
}I mean, monsters.
}And she had this little one room schoolhouse.
}And she said
}we're in bear country, we know it, they're vicious.
}So when they go out... They said to go on recess,
}every day there are four students
}that are assigned a task:
}one faces north, one faces south,
}one faces east, one faces west.
}They don't participate in recess,
}they simply watch the trees and the surrounding area.
}If they see a bear, they say there's a bear,
}they get the kids inside the school.
}And, uh, the comment was, well, what if the bear gets in?
}And she had this closet
}with a large caliber rifle in it,
}and she said, "If the bear gets in,
}-that's what I do." -That's the solution.
}[man] What we need to think about in our society
}and in America overall
}is what do you do when the bear gets in?
}[guard] Right.
}[Diego] Take a shot.
}[chanting]
}I kinda have to pee.
}-Let's go. -Dammit.
}You always gotta pee.
}He always gotta pee.
}-He's like, I have to pee. -No, you don't.
}-Hold it. -Hold it.
}Yo, I thought you were gnarly.
}Yeah, but I'm not about to piss on myself.
}Just hold it.
}So, apparently my parents don't like it
}when I go out...
}-So... -...of the house at night...
}-Free Bateman. -...and get back in the morning.
}-This is like the symbol for it. -I hate it.
}So, like, "free Bateman," it's like that.
}Now I'm in trouble.
}I'm on house arrest, I can't go anywhere.
}[Marquel] Quesadilla.
}[Diego] Cooking in the kitchen.
}-That's so much better. -[Diego] Is it?
}That's so much better.
}Yo, it's just the way it hits, it's so much better.
}But I, like, wasn't laughing.
}That's how you know it was serious.
}-[Diego] Yeah, you were. -Not when Shatira's crying.
}I was like, shit, what should I do?
}You probably should have stayed away
}just a little bit longer
}till she fucking broke up with that dude.
}Because you know there'll be some fucking beef there.
}-[Marquel] I don't-- -Now it's like,
}I think that you should fucking go up to her
}which, I think you already have, it's just...
}Tell her, like, "Oh, you know,
}let's just be on good terms."
}Like, it's not worth, like, you guys having this little beef
}where we're in the same room.
}-Not even-- -[Diego] Literally don't even
}let her talk, just tell her, just be like, okay...
}-You can't do that. -[Diego] "We are good."
}[Diego] Yes, you can.
}Just fucking say, "We are good.
}There's no beef.
}I just don't wanna fucking fight you anymore.
}You're right, I'm wrong, who fucking cares?
}-Let's just be done." -But...
}I'm not arguing, I'm probably gonna do that.
}Okay?
}-[Diego] You should do that. -You don't know.
}Like, there's history more than just, like, this year.
}[Diego] You like her?
}-Yeah, you do like her. -Yeah, I have, I have.
}-And she likes you, too. -[Mitch] Why not be together?
}[Diego] Because she has a boyfriend.
}She has a crazy-ass fucking boyfriend.
}You guys like each other. I don't know why
}she doesn't just drop Robert
}and you guys just fucking be together.
}I don't get that.
}[smooth electronic music]
}[Shatira] There's a bunny.
}[Shatira] I did contemplate a lot
}that we were not gonna end up
}being together after senior year.
}[Mitch] What's up with you and Robert?
}Just still friends.
}I mean, we still hang out a lot,
}'cause it's kinda, like, hard to break up
}after three years, and be like, "Okay, bye!
}Adios. You were never part of my life."
}So...
}yeah, we still hang out a lot, but not as much anymore.
}-[Marquel] What's up, Shatira? -Hello.
}You interrupted my interview.
}[unintelligible]
}[Shatira chuckles] Yeah, you do.
}You tend to do that a lot.
}-[Marquel] Are you mic'd? -Uh-huh.
}[Marquel] Are we gonna talk?
}Talk about what? [chuckles]
}-[Marquel] Are we gonna talk? -No.
}I was in the middle of an interview
}-and you just kinda rolled up. -[Marquel indistinct]
}-What? -You know what I mean, though.
}Oh, got you. Yeah, I guess.
}Oh, God, Jesus.
}He's more stressful than Robert is.
}[Mitch] Are you attracted to him at all?
}Oh God. [laughs]
}I was not expecting that question!
}I mean, I find him attractive,
}and I was going to pursue him in a relationship
}but he done fucked that up.
}So... [laughs]
}[Mitch] Are you nervous about today at all?
}Yes, because I'm scared I'm, like...
}I don't know. I don't keep up to date
}on current events, 'cause I don't have cable,
}so, like, I don't watch news or anything,
}and I only see, like, news on Facebook and stuff like that,
}and then half the time it's, like, fake. So...
}Uh...
}Current events...
}Let's ask Siri.
}What are some racial current events
}going on in the United States right now?
}'Cause we're not... [laughs]
}Let me think about that.
}American Civil Liberties Union
}American crime event analysis,
}racial profiling. Oh, I got this.
}Let's go.
}[background chatter]
}[Karen] All right, welcome, welcome, everybody.
}[Marquel] Yo.
}[Karen] How's it goin'?
}-[Marquel] What up? -[Shatira] Good.
}-[Karen] Public speaking. -[Marquel] I know.
}-Um, Marquel, Shatira. -[Marquel] Yeah?
}[Karen] Class is yours.
}[Marquel] All right, y'all.
}[Shatira indistinct]
}[Marquel] Obviously I'm the only black student in this class,
}so we about to do something today.
}-Okay, well, let's not start... -Um...
}...the conversation like that.
}We're gonna talk about race.
}And I know a lot of y'all are uncomfortable about it,
}so, let's conversate.
}What's going on in this school right now?
}Nobody?
}Nobody.
}Don't raise your hands, just talk.
}Conversate.
}[student] Um...
}I think that's a pretty hard question to ask.
}-Why? -[student] Just 'cause, I mean,
}It's not like we're not gonna say anything
}if we see a racist act,
}or, like, if the conversation comes up,
}but I think why most people didn't raise their hand
}was because maybe it's not, like,
}it's not something we're just talking about,
}which it should be, but it's just, it's--
}-[Marquel] Right. -Yeah.
}[Shatira] Um...
}How do you guys feel about one specific teacher,
}you might know who I'm talking about,
}who isn't supposed to share their political views with us,
}but she is Republican and she is voting for Donald Trump.
}I feel like you can't really get mad at her
}when there's another teacher who's got a poster of Obama
}on his wall, it's like, you can't have it both ways.
}You can't be like, it's okay if you agree with me,
}and it's not okay if you don't agree with me,
}you know what I'm saying?
}[Marquel] Your phone keeps buzzing...
}[whispers] This is kind of a little side conversation
}that is happening.
}You guys are about to get back into your test prepping?
}Not today.
}Marquel and Shatira,
}they lead the class today.
}-[Marquel] That's racism, dude. -[student] How?
}[Marquel] That is... yo.
}-Ms. Karen. -[Karen] Yes?
}You see what they be sending in your class?
}You don't want to see? Look.
}Actually, cellphones need to get put away.
}Why aren't you guys getting ready for your test next week?
}Ms. Karen, I do suggest you go ahead
}and get the ball rolling on test preparation.
}-[Marquel I have a suggestion-- -[principal] I'd love to--
}-Marquel. -[principal] You know what?
}-I appreciate your suggestion. -[principal] Marquel?
}Let me tell you something.
}Either you can come and talk to me after school
}of your own volition
}because you wanna have dialogue about this,
}or I can make sure you come and see me after school.
}Do you understand the difference?
}-I understand the difference. -[principal] That's enough.
}I'd really love to talk to you after class.
}-[Karen] Absolutely. -Thanks everybody.
}[Shatira] I was upset that the principal
}kinda came in and fucked up the whole conversation.
}But there was some...
}tension between me and Marquel, because we didn't really know
}what we were gonna end up being, or...
}what was gonna happen...
}I'm here! So go ahead
}-and say what you gotta say. -[Marquel] You got the floor.
}-You got the floor. -[Shatira] Why do I have it?
}[Marquel] I told you it was going off-target.
}[Shatira] You were the one that came to me first.
}-[Marquel] No. No. -It was like, "Let's talk."
}I thought what happened was real,
}but apparently you don't.
}I just wanna be on good terms, that's all.
}That's all.
}Well, Marquel, I don't know what else you want me to tell you.
}Like, I really don't, like,
}I'm tired of receiving messages talking about, oh, fuck you.
}Basically, in all context.
}I am, 'cause that breaks my heart, a lot.
}Every time.
}You really think this is just
}about you being the one broken-hearted?
}I'm not saying I didn't fuck up.
}I said that just the other night.
}I said that last night, in fact.
}-You did? -Yeah, I know I did.
}-You did? -So you want me to apologize?
}-That's what you want? -That's what I said.
}Okay. I'm sorry.
}I apologize for everything that I've done to you.
}Like I say, you're not even gonna accept it
}-or think it's real anyway. -I said okay.
}You didn't say okay, you looked away.
}I said okay.
}[chuckles]
}-Damn, he heard it. -Jesus.
}[melancholic music]
}Oh. Hi! [laughs]
}I didn't recognize you.
}-How are you? -I'm good, how are you?
}I'm good.
}[Shatira] I have only ever really had
}like a good relationship with one teacher
}and I still failed their class.
}But... [chuckles]
}She also had, like,
}the same personality as Ms. Karen.
}So...
}In class, Marquel sort of, like, steamrolled you.
}-Dude? -Yeah.
}-Okay. -[laughs]
}And what about that?
}Um, well, Marquel's stupid.
}-What do you mean by that? -[laughs]
}When he said that he was the only African-American
}in that class, like...
}I was a little dumbfounded, and I was like, me, too.
}It kinda caught me off-guard, 'cause I was like...
}They would push you in a way that wasn't babying, like,
}They'd be like, "Oh no, you got this."
}Like, "What are you doing? You know you're messing up."
}And I know I need somebody that's gonna be, like,
}"Tighten the fuck up and get your shit done."
}You know? I feel like it's because
}that's how my mom was with me.
}What's your favorite sweet thing to eat?
}-Favorite sweet thing to eat? -Yeah...
}-Favorite. -Okay. Well...
}-Here's the crazy thing. -Okay.
}So I don't really like eating chocolate.
}-Oh. -It's not like...
}It hasn't been a thing for me for a long time.
}-Who are you? -I know.
}I know. [laughs]
}-It's kinda crazy. -[Karen] Are you human?
}[Shatira] 'Cause my mom's like a chocoholic.
}-[Karen] Chocolate's amazing. -[Shatira] Yeah.
}[grunting]
}[grunts]
}[guard] What if you actually really cared,
}and, you know, you've taken that responsibility on
}to the point where
}if someone of these kids gets injured or hurt,
}or, God forbid, killed in the school,
}then I didn't take every action possible
}to protect them.
}Whatever the case may be, um...
}It's on my back.
}[ambient music]
}I mean,
}I think there is at least a metaphor
}in the lifting thing of you've gotta take it
}a little bit further
}if you are going to be that protector.
}What are you gonna do? Just have a cellphone, call 911,
}wait with everyone else
}if something bad happens, you know?
}[exhales sharply]
}[dogs whining]
}So there it is.
}I can open it up.
}And it is...
}an unloaded firearm.
}Glock 19 nine millimeter.
}[Mitch] And have you ever had to use it?
}Had to use it? No. No.
}Never. No. Thank God, no.
}[Mitch] I mean, what would be a scenario
}where you would potentially foresee using it?
}[sighs]
}Um...
}How many times do we need to see
}these kind of things happen around the world
}to know that the threat is there?
}And I mean, if you do have opposing groups,
}somebody who would take on the role
}of defending or protecting a group of people,
}it would be nice to be able to be that person.
}I don't know if it's a completely narcissistic thing,
}but it would be nice to think
}that your intention worked. And you know what I mean?
}[video] Government was responsible
}for protecting the citizens' right to liberty,
}but Muhammad Ali brought attention to the failure
}that the government hadn't protected those rights.
}Muhammad Ali is a bold icon
}that continues to be influential everywhere.
}This was the draft of a legend.
}[electronic beat]
}That was awesome.
}Thank you.
}-Thanks for showing it to me. -We tried.
}Yeah, there is a reason why I had to show you that.
}I just want to, like,
}so you could understand where I was coming from
}and why I got upset.
}It kinda... It doesn't... Of course, I didn't get drafted,
}but it gives some context
}and where I get inspired from,
}and, like, why that upsets me the way she reacted.
}-Like, come on. -It upset me too.
}Like, let's be clear about that.
}-That it really upset me too. -Yeah. Yeah.
}That she shut you down in that way.
}Yeah, respect is one of the number one things
}my dad taught me.
}[Karen] Did you feel respected by Ms. G?
}Oh hell no. I felt like she was...
}I felt she looked at me and was like,
}this little ant needs to sit down, so...
}I don't know.
}The outcome of what that situation should be
}is like, literally, she should be listening,
}'cause you don't want to mute a voice
}that actually has something to say.
}I think you need to tell her that.
}Yeah, I agree. I think--
}And I think if you admire Muhammad Ali
}for sticking up for his rights and his beliefs,
}and going to jail for it...
}Marquel, you're not going to go to jail for this.
}-You know? -[Marquel] You've got a point.
}Hey, but... Yeah, I know that, but...
}Like, when I first find out something, I’m obviously...
}too pissed off
}-to even talk about it. -[Shatira] Yeah.
}That's why I'm saying, like,
}it takes me a couple of hours to calm down
}to just figure out what I want to say and, then...
}Yeah, so it's not like a big mess, like--
}But you never do say what you need to say, like,
}you just sit there. [giggling]
}Sometimes I just sit there
}because I feel like you'll get defensive
}about it, and, like...
}I mean... I...
}Yeah, it does irritate me that you get defensive
}over him, because...
}I’m pretty sure I've done so much more for you
}than him, and...
}I never deny that. I never ever deny that.
}I just don't want to see you fall in love with somebody else.
}That'll hurt me too much, so I’ll be like, nah,
}I’m done with this, fuck this shit.
}I just don't wanna... You get what I’m saying.
}Wow.
}You know...
}You just up and leave?
}I mean, wouldn't you? Like, say we were single--
}[Shatira] But when I was talking to Marquel
}you didn't leave.
}Okay, that's because I had this feeling.
}-[Shatira scoffs] -That shit would not...
}[Shatira] Well, obviously shit would not work, but--
}-Exactly. -[Shatira] The key
}to loving somebody is forgiveness.
}-[Robert] Exactly, and that's-- -[Shatira] And you forgive...
}no matter what.
}[Shatira] Grasshopper, dude, I got all the...
}That's not a grasshopper, that was a leaf.
}[knocking]
}-[principal] Hey! -[Marquel] How are you doing?
}[principal] Good. How are you?
}[Marquel] Not in the best mood.
}[principal] Well I’m glad to see you came by.
}Give me just one second
}to finish this little sentence here.
}[indistinct mumbling]
}[Marquel] Okay.
}So...
}How are you feeling since I saw you last?
}-[Marquel] Not good at all. -Okay.
}[Marquel] I’m feeling disrespected.
}I’m feeling like...
}honestly, you don't care.
}I don't know if you understand
}what me and the students go through
}in this school, and what we put up with, but...
}I feel like there's just...
}You're here and I’m here.
}We're on two totally different levels.
}Two totally different spectrums.
}I understand what's going on more than you
}with the social life.
}-Tell me what's happening. -[Marquel] There's micro...
}There's insults, there's harassments,
}there's jokes constantly, non-stop.
}"Oh, that’s some black nig-- would say."
}White kids are saying the N word.
}For what?
}It's like...
}we get here, where, "Oh, you've got to do the test,
}you've got to do this, the curriculum,
}you just focus on that,"
}but there's another layer to this whole school.
}-There is... -You are absolutely right
}that in a lot of ways
}this school has not been prepared for your needs.
}-And-- -It's not all about me.
}I’m not focused on me. I’m open minded.
}I’m thinking about everybody else,
}-the next generation. -I know you're not focused
}on you, and that actually what I’m asking you
}to kind of shift a little bit.
}-But I don't want-- -[principal] Now, hold on.
}I want to make sure that in the first year
}that we put our arms around a more diverse student body,
}we don't have a dip.
}-Do you know why? -[Marquel] Wait!
}-Do you understand why? -[Marquel] Wait!
}You're worried that the minorities
}-are going to create a dip? -[principal] No.
}[Marquel] See, this is where you lose me,
}because we're not on the same page with that.
}I don't understand why.
}And if you guys won't care,
}then I’m sorry, I'll do it on my own.
}[principal] Marquel, hold on! -[Marquel] There's no way...
}[principal] There's nothing about this conversation
}that should lead you to think that I don't care.
}I care about all...
}Can you please have a seat? Please.
}[Marquel] It doesn't seem like you do.
}[principal] You're responsible for coming here to school,
}thinking about your own success, and making that happen.
}Okay?
}I don't want you to get distracted
}by a whole lot of things
}that don't necessarily need your specific involvement...
}[man] Do we have anything going on Thursday night?
}-Oh, my gosh, buddy. -[boy] Yay!
}Careful, careful, careful!
}-[boy] Yay! -Thursday night, the ninth...
}-No. -[man] Okay.
}Do you want to see what I can do?
}Whoa!
}[indistinct]
}[principal] Pretty good. Look.
}You've got this line, and this line,
}and this part of the line, but look, it's missing...
}this part going like that.
}-[boy] Okay. -[principal] Wait, over here.
}Finish up your four.
}No Mommy, actually, I want to do it...
}[principal] Are you going to practice a four again?
}-[boy] Um-hm. -[principal] Okay.
}[TV dialogue]
}[teen] Marquel's pussy-whipped.
}[Marquel] Okay, but I’m not as pussy-whipped as him.
}-No! Listen! -Oh, Marquel down!
}His ass is whipped, his ass is whipped.
}My ass... Listen! My ass is whipped.
}-[all shouting] -[Marquel] But worse... Listen!
}We're all whipped,
}but we're not as whipped as this dude.
}-I bet you gonna-- -Think about that!
}[all shouting]
}What? Wait, hold up. What?
}-What'd you say? -[student] Yo, what?
}-What'd you say? -[student] I was making a joke.
}[Marquel] What was your joke? I heard the N word.
}I heard "pussy-whipped," so I said you were whipped.
}-No? -[Marquel] No, whoa! Hold up.
}That shit's not funny. Take that shit back.
}-It's not real. -[Marquel] Take that shit back!
}-I take it back. -[Marquel] Take that shit back!
}[all shouting]
}[Marquel] Not you! Because that is not your word.
}[all shouting]
}[Marquel] Man, put him on the ground!
}-[indistinct speech] -Hey!
}[shouting continues]
}Oh, no!
}[student 2] He wasn't doing nothing.
}[Shatira] I felt like, kind of, the crazy thing about...
}the exhibit, was that, like...
}He just did such simple things, and I was like,
}I guess art doesn't have to be complicated, so...
}I don't know. I feel like as a photographer
}you only stand out
}if you do things differently, and I’m not sure
}I do do things differently in photography.
}I think I do the same mediocre shit
}that everybody else does in photography.
}I just want to be more experimental
}with my work,
}and I don't know exactly how to do that.
}-[clatter] -Oh, shit!
}You want three and a half ounces of this.
}Like that?
}And a shot of this.
}I've never taken a shot before.
}So I guess we'll see how this goes.
}All right, the moment of truth.
}[Mitch] What's the moment of truth?
}This, right here.
}We'll see if I can get the darn thing on.
}All right. Lights off. Is it time?
}[laughing] Oh, shit!
}This is not happening.
}Nope.
}I don't know how people do this.
}I do not know how people do this.
}[Mitch] Yeah, I can turn it back on.
}How was it being suspended?
}I slept all day and cleaned, and, like, cleaned the house.
}I washed the bathroom, and...
}swept, vacuumed everywhere, and I went to work.
}[quietly] I’m cool here, turn it back on.
}[rap music playing]
}There's a problem with it.
}It's distorted. That's what I mean.
}I’m trying to figure it the fuck out.
}I might just rerecord this shit.
}♪ White on white On the Bronco ♪
}♪ Nigga's go high like Django ♪
}♪ Fuck with the exodus... ♪
}[rapping rapidly]
}I'm a product of my environment.
}We do what we have to do in certain situations.
}That's just kind of how my upbringing is, so...
}We have to push a person to that level
}to where they don't care that much.
}They don't care. I can't be punked anymore.
}Mostly what happens, I’m like...
}I could be in a different position
}in two years when I’m in college,
}and be like, I’m dropping out, focus on music and take off.
}That's what a lot of rappers do.
}[smooth rap music]
}[background chatter]
}[Shatira] So, it was the day after the election.
}Everybody on Facebook was like, "What the fuck!"
}-[laughing] -Like, it was, like, haywire,
}and I didn't want to go on there.
}I probably didn't go on there for, like, a couple of days.
}Like, I just...
}I tried to keep my spirit up, but at the same time,
}I was, like, damn, like, racism won, once again.
}What are you going to say? White privileged America.
}So, that was crazy.
}I watched it with my grandma, because she's been sick
}and been living with us. She was just terrified.
}She was like, "I do not want to live in this society."
}And that brought me to tears.
}I kind of just... I mean, I started a couple...
}I did a rally with Jumper, and that was cool.
}It was motivational
}because everybody was crying on that day.
}We were like we need to get the people together
}so they can get their feelings out.
}So we rallied up the whole school on the rotunda,
}and had, like, a little... I don't want to say walkout,
}but a little, like... conversation.
}It was a group of kids.
}Basically everybody was like, "Oh, let's do a walkout."
}And then, Marquel loves to think he's in charge of it.
}So, him and Jumper were like,
}"Oh, we're going to do a walkout."
}And then Marquel got mad.
}[Mitch] Come on in.
}Can you tell them that they're beautiful?
}Really fucking weird!
}[door closing]
}[Marquel] Goddamn! I can't keep the door open!
}-Jesus! -[door lock rattling]
}Just smile the anger away. [laughing]
}[student] I feel like there were just so many people
}that the principal had no choice
}but to allow the rally, you know?
}I mean, all the security guards were very tense,
}like, standing around, like...
}As if something was about to happen, and...
}People were crying.
}People were sobbing.
}I don't like the dude,
}but this is a little overboard, you know?
}It's not the end of the world.
}What, four years,
}and then it goes back to normal, right?
}What's the worst he can do?
}It feels weird editing this picture.
}[Mitch] What did you say to him?
}[student] I was walking by,
}they were talking about being whipped,
}and I was like, "Whipped, ha, ha, ha."
}I made a joke. He...
}Did what he did and turned it into a thing
}where he's the victim
}instead of me making a joke, you know?
}Apparently now I’m not allowed to make jokes,
}although he's allowed to make jokes.
}If I make a joke I'm like a Nazi
}or a white supremacist or something.
}I never liked talking politics because I don't know anything.
}I don't know about politics.
}You know? Like, I know what the media tells me,
}but I don't know about the policies
}and all that shit, you know.
}But I don't know, it's just dumb to ask me that,
}because, like, the day that he got elected
}everybody was, like, crying.
}And that didn't...
}-I didn't cry at all. -[Mitch] Why?
}I thought it was darkly funny.
}I don't know how it's going to affect me,
}and I don't even know if anybody knows
}how it's going to affect anybody.
}Like, right now, it's, like, a school,
}and, like, girls, and, like, social stuff,
}and it's always been that way.
}Like.... Act natural, Sarah.
}All right, back to the interview.
}Okay.
}So, here's the thing, I’m mic'd up right now,
}but once we go to the car I’m going to be not mic'd,
}so you're on camera, but don't act weird, okay?
}Just act like cool, okay?
}Do a cool walk. Why don't we walk this way?
}Oh, funny seeing you here.
}Marquel and, like, Shatira as a main character,
}and I’m like a side character, I think.
}Because this is the first time I’m ever, like...
}He's just filmed me.
}[indistinct chatter]
}[Marquel] People started being weird.
}People started acting all...
}In public, they started thinking they could be slick.
}They started calling you the N word
}when you was walking down.
}Just a whole bunch of stuff, I think...
}Like, some people just thought
}they were more comfortable with being prejudiced
}and discriminating.
}[student] That is so terrible!
}[video] ...put on a knit cap and some dark clothes
}and get in his white Bronco, and this recognizable person...
}...and how it didn't fit and how something's wrong.
}-[Marquel indistinct] -It occurred to me
}how they were going come here
}and stand up here and tell you
}how O.J. Simpson was going to disguise himself.
}Was going to put on a knit cap and some dark clothes
}and he was going to get in his white Bronco,
}this recognizable person.
}And go over... and kill his wife.
}That's what they want you to believe.
}[Marquel] That's okay.
}[student] Yeah, "That's what they want you to believe."
}So, there's a girl...
}[video] He was going to put on a knitted cap
}and some dark clothes and get in his white Bronco,
}and this recognizable person, and go over and kill his wife.
}That's what they want you to believe.
}[fast music beat]
}I felt like that came in way early.
}[indistinct rapping]
}[Marquel] Man, when you win,
}when I actually first got on stage at the mic
}and I had a DJ up, this is a show,
}but it was more like,
}"Well, you've got to start somewhere,
}you've gotta do something." So, I've...
}You know, they're not bad shows, they're just stepping stones,
}they're baby steps.
}Life is short, so we ain't got much time.
}You got to make do with what you got.
}And they play some cool shit.
}That thing is bigger than a tablet.
}[student] Yeah.
}-[student] She's talking to you. -[Karen] Put it down.
}-She's talking to me? -[Karen] Yes.
}Who do you think I’m talking to?
}Who else has a phone that's, like, the size
}of an encyclopedia?
}I mean, I like to learn.
}So, we're talking about a fascist regime...
}[clears throat]
}And...
}So, if they started making people wear bands
}in this country,
}denoting what denomination they were,
}what color they were, what creed they were,
}how they identified,
}would that lead you to some sort of protest
}to do something?
}And it wouldn't have to be violent.
}There are lots of different
}non-violent resistance movements.
}I mean, Sophie Scholl and the White Rose
}in Nazi Germany being one of them.
}She could have kept completely silent.
}She didn't have to act.
}She was only 21 years old. She was only 21.
}And she knew the risks of distributing these leaflets.
}She knew that she could be caught at any moment.
}And they were, because in January of 1943
}the University of Munich had this huge riot
}because Stalingrad had just been...
}Well, the Germans had just been defeated
}in Stalingrad.
}So, University of Munich,
}which was full of artists and critical thinkers,
}just erupted with these huge riots.
}[overhead speaker] This is district safety and security.
}Your school is going into lockdown.
}This is not a drill.
}All students please report immediately to the nearest...
}[Karen] All right guys, you know the drill.
}Let's go.
}This half of the room up against these...
}filing cabinets.
}Are you guys okay over there?
}[Shatira] I’m sure it was either a threat
}that somebody made, or there was a fight
}where a threat was made.
}it had to do something with a threat,
}because otherwise they wouldn't put us
}in a lockdown.
}I texted my mom and I told her I love her,
}and, you know... I waited.
}Photography is all about capturing the moments
}that are never going to happen again, and...
}[camera clicking]
}That's what I did with the photo of Ms. Karen.
}It would have been crazy if something were to happen
}and then somebody would have found my camera
}and it would have been kind of dope
}to have that be the last picture I ever took.
}We all go into...
}panic mode.
}We have no idea, we have no idea,
}if we have an active shooter on campus,
}or if there is...
}a direct threat to my class, to one of my students.
}We have no idea what the heck is coming down the pike.
}Yeah.
}No, I can totally make that happen.
}So, a happy hour?
}Deal? Promise?
}Don't flake on me, bitch.
}[chuckling]
}No, I know you wouldn't.
}All right.
}We'll get together then
}and we'll talk more about this nonsense.
}I’m scared.
}I am, I am... I'm nudging.
}Yep, well, I also shouldn't be put on,
}like, some stupid probation or being, you know...
}told that I can't sue.
}Sit!
}[chuckling]
}Animals are the best thing in the world.
}Do you know why?
}Here's why: they don't judge you.
}They don't judge you for anything.
}[tense music]
}[inaudible]
}[Mitch] What are your thoughts when teachers just disappear?
}What the fuck! [chuckling]
}I just think it's unfair, like...
}[stutters] We should... I think I have a right to know.
}I don't think it's fair at all, that she's gone, honestly.
}Especially if, like, they can't...
}They're just coming up with stories
}to keep her gone, basically.
}They've probably wanted her gone for a long time.
}She's a very outspoken person
}and not a lot of people like that.
}Conversations were supposed to be the solution.
}I feel like that whole conversation
}kind of stopped after she got fired.
}And I feel like everybody is stuck.
}We're just stuck.
}[police siren]
}[laughing]
}I told you I was going to laugh.
}-Here we go. -[Mitch] Why're you gonna laugh?
}Because it's just awkward...
}for me.
}[Mitch] Why is it awkward?
}Because we just don't talk anymore.
}Our last conversation was...
}when I told you...
}it wasn't fair that you were trying for me now
}when you could have been trying for me--
}Oh, yeah, that was high key, I remember that shit, yeah.
}And then we never talked after that
}because you got up and walked away.
}[tense music]
}[background chatter]
}[lecturer] You don't do anyone any good
}if you're doing a Hail Mary run
}like the Charge of the Light Brigade
}up against an active shooter.
}So what you need to do
}is you have to make sure you've got some tactics
}and some capability to either contain
}or track the movements.
}That is time to act. You've got to do something.
}You've got to either neutralize that threat...
}You've got to have that wherewithal to do it.
}Here's the other thing you have to consider,
}is could you shoot... a child?
}[solemn music]
}That's a very difficult thing for you to think about
}if you're carrying a gun and working in a school.
}Can you shoot a child?
}As a person responsible for the safety
}and wellbeing of children,
}you've got to be the adult in the room.
}So, what you need to do
}is you need to daydream and think.
}No different than football players
}or baseball players or anything else with a pop fly.
}You may be working out in left field
}and never get a ball the entire game,
}but that one time you do, you've practiced,
}and you thought it through, and you've brainstormed,
}and you've daydreamed about what will happen
}if the ball comes flying your way
}and how are you're going to handle that.
}[Shatira] This is the most devious thing
}I've ever done in my life.
}-[Mitch] For real? -Yeah.
}I've never snuck out.
}I don't smoke, I don't drink.
}I've been grounded more than a handful of times,
}but I've never been suspended or expelled.
}You know, I feel like there's been a lot of times
}in the past few years
}where I haven't said what I should have said,
}and I don't want to let things...
}Well, you know, in terms of, like...
}something that really affects me,
}I don't want to let it be.
}And...
}Everybody's always like, "Oh, kids don't watch the news,
}kids don't care about what happens nowadays.
}Kids don't this, they don't that,
}they don't pay attention.
}All they do is pay attention on their fucking phones,
}and yada, yada, yada."
}And...
}I just don't want to sit back anymore.
}[foreboding music]
}[music accelerates]
}[Shatira] I don't know if I would call it a story.
}I think I would call it a memory,
}to be quite honest.
}Because it's not something that's made up.
}Yeah, my life isn't a story, it's more of a memory.
}[man] Hey! Hey! Stop!
}I've seen you! Stop!
}[gunshot]
}I feel like I kind of left the old Shatira,
}and that's cool.
}[needle buzzing]
}I feel like I’m more afraid of the future
}than I am of like, death, at this point,
}because I’m like, damn, I’m 18 now, like...
}Shit really happens,
}like, you actually like, continue living.
}[laughs] Like, I guess, like, all I thought
}after high school was like death.
}[chuckles] But now I actually have to go out and live my life
}and be 30, flirty and thriving.
}Like, I don't want to do that.
}I've never planned on that.
}I've only seen it in the movies
}and I don't feel like it's realistic.
}[electronic music]