It all started with a question: Why didn’t Clarksdale, the Mississippi Delta city where “Sinners,” one of the biggest motion pictures in the world right now, is set, have a theater where local people could watch the movie that featured their hometown?
That question inspired an idea: What if Warner Brothers, the studio that produced the film, brought a special screening to the town?
That idea inspired action: A community activist posted an online petition for the major studio to screen the movie in Clarksdale. Within hours, thousands of people had signed.
That question, that idea and that action inspired Aallyah Wright, a journalist for the nonprofit newsroom Capital B and Clarksdale native, to write a story about it. Her story quickly went viral and captured the attention of Warner Brothers and “Sinners” director Ryan Coogler.
The rest, as we can say literally in this case, was history. That series of events brought about a few days that Clarksdale will never forget.
Last week, Coogler, the film’s composer Ludwig Göransson, actor Miles Canton and others who worked on the film attended a special screening at the Clarksdale Civic Auditorium. Hundreds of locals packed the room, watched the film and stayed for a Q&A with the big names in attendance.
Fittingly, the moderator of the post-screening panel was Aallyah. She led a profound conversation that got Coogler and others talking very emotionally about Clarksdale and Mississippi. True to her life’s work, she focused the discussion on the ideas, concerns and experiences of people in the local community.
After Hollywood left town and things settled down, I caught up with Aallyah about how she was feeling about it all. I’m beyond proud to share that Aallyah is a former colleague and friend. Before she started changing lives across America as a journalist at Capital B, she was changing lives across Mississippi as a journalist at Mississippi Today.
Here’s our conversation, which has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
Mississippi Today: I know things have been so crazy, but what have these past few days really been like for you?
Aallyah: I think I’m still processing all of it. It just feels so wild that this has actually happened. I mean, it’s been super emotional for me, too, because folks have all of these misconceptions, perceptions and narratives they want to share about the people in Mississippi and the state as a whole. And we all know a lot of negative narratives don’t necessarily tell the holistic story of people there.
I just think it’s been super rewarding for Clarkdale to be in this spotlight, not just because of the movie but for people to see (the city) in all its glory and beauty. It’s been really important to me to amplify the people who have always been on the ground doing this work for years, some folks even decades. I think that it was just such a heartwarming moment that I couldn’t have imagined to happen in this way. And for me to be a part of that is just so profound, and I’m so proud. I’m just so happy that Mississippi is in the spotlight for something that’s so beautiful. Yeah. And pure and centered on the collective organizing of its people. So yeah, I love that.
Can you give me a sense of what this has been like for Clarksdale from your perspective as a native of the city? You know that place as well as anyone. What has all this meant for the city?
I go back to Clarksdale often because my family is still there. Of course, I’m always doing reporting and stuff. But honestly, this time and trip home felt so different. There was this renewed sense of energy, purpose, hope and inspiration. I was emotional, I’m not gonna lie. It felt like the tide was changing, and I think it’s because a lot of the young folks are now stepping up in the spirit of our ancestors and people who were part of these instrumental movements. We all know young folks have been at the forefront of leading that charge, and I think that’s the connection with seeing that and why it was so meaningful for me.
Even though there were some negative comments and people saying that this wouldn’t work, it proved a lot of those folks wrong. Now people are just trying to figure out how to build on this momentum. Could we do a cultural festival every year? Could this become an annual thing? I know folks are figuring out how to do a Clarksdale Day event on Labor Day weekend. That can be really cool. People are having conversations about how to build up a creative arts economy there, especially around Blues tourism. How can we allow these folks who are the musicians and creators to benefit from this profitable economy? There are a lot of these different festivals, but a lot of that isn’t created by folks who actually live there. So I think there’s a lot of different questions people are asking in terms of what they can do to not only build on this momentum and sustain this arts and culture, but also create financial stability for folks.
There’s a lot of good things happening in Clarksdale. They just renovated J’s Grocery, the only Black-owned supermarket in a predominantly Black neighborhood. People should check out Griot Arts. They’re working to renovate the Paramount Theater, which was once a segregated theater in downtown Clarksdale. So there’s a lot of different things that are happening, and people are just trying to figure out what partnerships and collaborations need to happen to create that financial stability, job security and creative arts economy piece.
I want to ask you about those negative comments. Of course there are naysayers who have questioned why anyone spent time on this for Mississippi’s sake. A lot of people love hating on Mississippi, they’ve loved hating on Clarksdale and the Delta these past few days. What do you say to them now, after helping do this amazing thing for the city and the state and helping get the spotlight on this place?
To be honest with you, I don’t care about the naysayers. I care about the people of Clarksdale, the people of the Delta, the people of Mississippi, and whether or not they trust me to tell the authentic lived experiences and the authentic truths of what’s happening in these communities.
One thing that I would do is challenge folks outside of Mississippi to come to Mississippi, explore the history, talk to the people, sit in these places where these things are happening. A lot of times people will go online who have never even set foot in Mississippi and are taking from these narratives or histories that are steeped in the 1930s or like pre-Civil Rights Movement and think that Mississippi has not progressed in any sense. People have a lot of ignorant comments, and Mississippi is in the news often for very bad and valid reasons. But every single place has its challenges. Mississippi is not the only place with these things that are going on. Mississippi is just always in the spotlight for it because of a very troubling and dark history, right? But again, I challenge people to actually talk to folks there, to actually go there and actually see the progress that Mississippi has made outside of these clickbait headlines that they’re always reading.
So much of the conversation these past few days has been focused on what more needs to be done for communities like Clarksdale. These places are contributing so much to the world, and they’re not getting a ton of support in return. At Capital B, you’ve covered this far beyond just Clarksdale or Mississippi. From your perspective, what needs to be done?
That’s a tough question to answer. I can say definitively that I feel like everyone has a part to play. Whether you’re a journalist, a schoolteacher in the Mississippi Delta or elsewhere, a local business owner, you work at a chamber of commerce or tourism office, maybe you’re in the state legislature or even work in the federal government, everyone has a part to play to ensure these places have the resources and access they need to thrive.
Too often people feel like regular, everyday people can’t make change or they can’t make some sort of impact. But I’d just like to suggest people to think about the simple things that you can do to support your community. Sometimes it’s just going to the local coffee shop, like in Clarksdale, for example, going to Meraki to purchase some coffee that goes back into the youth nonprofit of Griot Arts. That’s something very simple that you could do to support the work that they’re doing with workforce development. Or maybe it’s just showing up to a community event to learn about what Higher Purpose Hub is doing for economic development and entrepreneurs in the Mississippi Delta.
So it’s how can folks just simply think about what they can do to support what’s going on in their community? How can you vote folks into office who you think could make some important changes? We know that when it comes to folks showing out and going to the polls, it’s not always high voter turnout, so how can you activate people to go to the polls? You know what I mean? All of these things have to work together if we want these places to continue to thrive and not continue to die out. And so without trying to point the blame at any particular person, industry or institution, I just think that we all have a part to play in moving the needle forward.
With this major thing still so fresh on your mind, what would you tell young journalists or really anyone about the potential and power of the work we do?
Some folks put emphasis on the awards, the accolades and the impact, which could mean a lot of different things. But it’s really important to keep your ear to the ground and be in community with the community. The reason this came about was because of the relationships I’ve cultivated with the people of Clarksdale, not just being a native of Clarkdale. It’s listening and being observant and utilizing my power to amplify voices often overlooked or dismissed. I always have the mindset of community first. I would just charge young folks, people who really want to make a difference, just do that. Learn all that. You can learn so much about the people, the place by just listening and being present. A lot of the work that I’ve done is just showing up at community meetings and going to events and reaching out to folks to have a coffee in person or virtual, just doing all of the things that don’t necessarily manifest in a story right away, but really pouring into folks and cultivating those relationships. You’ll get the impact, you’ll get the awards because it’ll show in the reporting that you do when you do a lot of that groundwork.
Last question for you. I know it wasn’t just one or two people who made all this happen, but it was a coalition of a lot of different people doing a lot of different things. I want to make space for you to shout out those people if you’re willing.
Oh yeah, for sure. I would shout out Dave Houston and Jaleesa Collins, who were two of the Clarksdale natives who basically threw out the idea like, “Hey, we should have a screening.” Tyler Yarbrough, of course, who then jumped on that and did this open letter to invite the casting crew down. You have folks like Yasmine Malone who’s been part of the planning committee. Jasmine Williams of ‘Sipp Talk Media and her team. You have folks like Justin Hardiman, the phenomenal photographer out of Jackson, Mississippi. A lot of Clarksdale folks like Mark Webb, who’s a pastor, and Christopher Coleman, who works for the city. Tim Lampkin, who was also a part of the planning, with Higher Purpose Hub. Rebekah Pleasant-Patterson with Griot Arts, Storyworks Theater. There was a huge steering committee of folks that made sure, from idea to execution, that this was able to happen. So many people ended up sponsoring the events.
Honestly, I also want to shout out Ryan Coogler, the cast, the crew and Warner Brothers because they didn’t have to decide to act on this thing that we did. They could have just seen it and moved on, but they really appreciated the invitation and really wanted to come down and then just learn and soak up the history and be in community with Clarksdale, the Delta and all of those who came. I gotta say that if I missed anybody, charge it to my head and not my heart. Those are just the top people that come to mind.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( This journalist helped bring a ‘Sinners’ screening to her Mississippi hometown )
Also on site :
- Billy Joel Absent From His Documentary Premiere After Revealing Rare Diagnosis
- Ukraine-Russia war latest: Putin will take revenge for Kyiv’s drone attack, warns Trump after phone call
- US-backed GHF group extends closure of Gaza aid sites for second day