A civil rights activist on what ‘Eyes on the Prize III’ means at this moment
Phillip Agnew is familiar with standing alongside civil rights icons. He co-founded the Dream Defenders in the aftermath of Trayvon Martin’s death in 2012 and conducted a monthlong sit-in after shooter George Zimmerman’s acquittal in 2013. He was visited and supported by the likes of singer, actor, and activist Harry Belafonte and lawmaker and activist Julian Bond.
The work of Mr. Agnew and many other activists has been chronicled in a follow-up to “Eyes on the Prize,” the landmark documentary series that told the story of the Civil Rights Movement in America from 1954 to 1965. The modern-day presentation, “Eyes on the Prize III: We Who Believe in Freedom Cannot Rest” covers the years 1977 to 2015 and is currently streaming on Max.
Mr. Agnew, a native of Chicago, is prominently featured in the sixth and final episode, which picks up after the election of President Barack Obama in 2008. Mr. Agnew talks about his South Side upbringing and matriculation to Florida A&M University, providing commentary among icons such as writer and activist Angela Davis.
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The original “Eyes on the Prize” was a landmark documentary about the Civil Rights Movement. The co-founder of Dream Defenders, who is part of a new six-part series, talks about what the documentary means at this time of political upheaval.
“There was something about that moment, the stewing anger, the animosity. Four years of a Black president. How could this still be happening?” Mr. Agnew says in the documentary, describing the juxtaposition between the Obama presidency and Trayvon’s killing. “Trayvon was an alarm clock for myself and a lot of people who had just been kind of sleepwalking through the last few years of their life.”
Mr. Agnew spoke recently with the Monitor in a phone interview about the documentary and what it means during a time of great political upheaval. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
What does it mean to be a part of the “Eyes on the Prize” series at this moment?
I felt a level of pride and a sort of wonder at our times together as organizers. It caused me to deeply reminisce and reach out to some people that I hadn’t talked to in a little while, just to reconnect.
This is an incredibly hard time for us and it’s going to get harder. … [The current president] has been able to masterfully recruit all manners of people across race, class, and gender into his cause and his worldview, and into their party and what they want to see the country look like. It’s a very dangerous time for folks like us.
Did the documentary provide a sense of inspiration for you in spite of what’s going on politically and socially?
Looking back at the [documentary], I see a lot of the excitement and optimism that I had. I can’t speak for anyone else, but I feel more sober and temperate about the state of affairs now. Everyone who’s watching the doc doesn’t see all the things that happened before, during, and after those moments. It’s still a lot to reckon with and it’s my hope that this project does inspire people to research the accomplishments, the names, the organizing, the victories.
I watched “Eyes on the Prize” once in school – watched the whole series in class. And to know that “Eyes on the Prize III” will probably be banned in most schools is a telltale sign of where we are.
What did it mean to have the support of Harry Belafonte and Julian Bond at the height of your protest in 2013?
I consider Harry Belafonte a current and past mentor, no matter if he has transitioned. I’ve had a number of different opportunities over my life to sit down one-on-one to visit with Mr. B. In days and moments when you’re feeling a lack of confidence in what you’re doing, or you don’t know if the work that you’re doing is worthy or timely, to have someone like a Mr. Belafonte, or folks from SNCC [Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee] or a former Black Panther member, those are the most valuable to me.
It humanizes a struggle that if you only watch “Eyes on the Prize,” you would lionize these people, and they should be [celebrated], but to be able to have their guidance, their advice, their ability to actually meet the moment is invaluable.
What does it mean to be able to share your experiences with the next generation?
[This series] is a time capsule. And it’s my hope that anybody who watches it doesn’t leave saying, “Oh, I want to be like them,” but says, “I am them. I am already the person who is struggling against this system.” Viewers may have questions about how this world got to be the way that it is, and might be inspired by human beings who just answered a call, people that aren’t richer, or smarter, or any other qualifier, but people they can look to for guidance. I think that is very important. These are the things I saw when I watched [“Eyes on the Prize”] in elementary school. And some of it was in black and white, and some of it was in color, but it still resonated with me deeply.
