February 7, 2025
by Carla Hay
Culture Representation: The documentary film “When We Free the World” (inspired by the non-fiction book of the same name) features an all-African American male group of interviewees talking about what it means to be African American males.
Culture Clash: Several of the interviewees say that racism, violence, homophobia, substance abuse, parental guidance and socioeconomic status have all affected their experiences and perceptions of masculinity.
Culture Audience: “When We Free the World” will appeal primarily to people who want to see a docuentary that covers a wide range of African American male perspectives on different issues.
Black men and boys in America tell their personal perspectives on masculinity and their life experiences in this insightful documentary. Some parts are repetitive and needed better editing, but it’s an overall meaningful compilation of interviews. One of the biggest strengths of the documentary is the great diversity of African American men who are featured in the film.
Directed by Kevin Powell, “When We Free the World” is inspired by his 2020 non-fiction book of the same name. The concept is the same in the book as it is for the documentary: Black males in America share their stories and personal experiences on manhood/masculinity. Powell is a New York City-based activist, writer and public speaker who has made African American issues the focus of his work. He first came to national prominence as a cast member of the first season of MTV’s reality show “The Real World.”
Powell is the narrator of the documentary, which is formatted into nine themed chapters: History, Manhood, Fatherhood, Abandonment, Hurt, #MeToo, Brothers, Try and Hope. Very few of the interviewees are “famous.” They represent a large spectrum of Black men, including members of the LGBTQ community and disabled community. With few exceptions, the men are not identified by their jobs or where they live in the United States.
“When We Free the World” begins with Powell (seen in video clips of speaking appearances) discussing his own personal history. He candidly talks about how his father was a deadbeat dad who abandoned Powell and his mother. Powell shares a vivid memory of his mother crying because Powell’s father denied that Powell was his son and refused to pay child support.
Powell says he grew up being taught that to be a man meant that he had to be tough. As a boy, he also got mixed messages from women in his life (hs mother and aunts) who loved men but who also told him, “Men are no good.” With no father figure as a male role model, Powell says he was often felt lost and confused on how “tough” he had to be. Like many males in society, Powell was taught to believe that it was not okay for men and boys to cry.
Powell also says that he had to work to overcome his anger issues. In the past, he admits that he once shoved a girlfriend during an argument. Powell says he is ashamed that he was violent with this woman. Powell states, “I still ask the question: ‘What is a man?’ We cannot continue to erase black fathers.”
In the History chapter of the documentary, several people talk about how the inhumane enslavement that African Americans experienced (until the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 made it illegal) still has repercussions in American society today. Dr. Marcus Anthony Hunter explains that when enslaved Africans were captured and brought to the United States, they often had to wear a muzzle so they couldn’t speak or smile. It’s an example of how black people were and continue to be treated as less than human by racists, who try to suppress freedom of expression from those they want to silence.
The prejudicial belief that black men are more harmful and threatening than men of other races is deeply rooted in the history of enslavers instilling this fear into people so that people would be more likely to capture any of the enslaved who would escape. It’s also why black men, on average, tend to get harsher punishments than people of other races or genders who commit the same crimes—as pointed out by mutiple people in the documentary. The documentary also mentions how interactions between law enforcement and black men are also very different than what other races and genders might experience with law enforcement.
One of the things the documentary makes clear is that most African American men are not criminals. However, white supremacist racism has been so pervasive, this bigotry has conditioned many people (including other black people) to believe that black men are the most dangerous people on Earth. It’s one of the reasons why black men got most of the racist lynchings when these lynchings were done out in the open in America. It’s also why many people believe that modern-day police brutality disproportionately targets black men, many who are unarmed when they experience this brutality.
Ras Baraka—the longtime mayor of Newark, New Jersey—says that people tend to look at history from the views of those who were leaders at the time. And when historical leaders in the United States have tended to be white men (included those who supported enslavement of black people), it’s no wonder that white supremacist racism has been passed down through generations. Baraka also comments that, in many ways, this racism has gotten worse and spread faster because of toxic social media.
Some of the men interviewed had absentee fathers, while others did not and grew up in stable, two-parent households. Machismo and toxic masculinity are often blurred, say some of the interviewees. An interviewee named Xxavier Polk says that his father Eternal Polk (also interviewed in the film) taught Xxavier about manhood through hip-hop and being mindful of the family legacy. A lot of hip-hop (a very male-dominated music genre) has its own issues with misogynistic lyrics and glorification of violence that this documentary could have done a better job of addressing. Eternal Polk says that black men often experience peer pressure to be violent, which can prevent certain men from being good family members.
Black men from the LGBTQ community who are interviewed include Jamil Akim O’Quinn, Dr. Jamal Mayczk, Dr. John-Martin Green, Justin Dominic and Henry Smith, who all identify as gay. Transgender men in the documentary include Socorro “Cori” Morehead and Kylar W. Broadus. They all say that they had negative experiences with homophobic or transphobic family members, who shamed or rejected them for being gay, queer or transgender. All of these gay or transgender men say that these negative experiences affected their self-esteem and ideas about masculinity.
Shame is also a huge factor for black men (regardless of sexuality) who are survivors of sexual abuse. Getting therapy for this abuse is also taboo in many African American families, especially if the sexual abuse comes from other family members. Keith Mascoll, one of the people interviewed in the documentary, talks about surviving child sexual abuse that was inflicted on him separately by a male and female in his family. Conney Williams gets candid about his sexual abuse trauma that made him suicidal in the past.
Black disabled men interviewed in the documentary talk about discrimination that they often get from all races. The disable interviewees say that they don’t let their disabilities define their masculinities, even if other people have that type of biased judgment. Two of the disabled men interviewed are Jahmani Swanson and Justin Tompkins, who both have dwarfism. Another disabled interviewee is Leroy Moore, who has taken back the meaning of a derogatory word by performing as an artist named the Black Kripple. Moore mentions that Jim Crow was a disabled person.
“When We Free the World” isn’t all about sob stories or complaints about negative experiences. The documentary also celebrates joy and positive experiences, particularly when it has to do with fathers and other family members who have loving, healthy and available relationships with children they are responsible for raising. Some of the interviews feature fathers being interviewed with their sons. They these father-son interviewees include Pastor Kendric Bryant and his son Keedron Bryant; Richard Levychin and his two sons R.J. Levychin and Ryan Levychin; and three-generation family members Rev. Dr. Herbert Daughtry Sr., Herbert Daughtry Jr., Myles Daughtry and Daniel Daughtry
The #MeToo chapter acknowledges that the issues in the #MeToo movement are intertwined with civil rights issues that disproportionately affect black people. Several people in the documentary say that African American men need to be more supportive of the #MeToo movement because many #MeToo survivors are people in their families who might not get as many privileges as #MeToo survivors of other races. The #MeToo movement is also fighting many of the same systemic oppressors that inflict racism.
And even though “When We Free the World” only interviews males, there is admirable discussion of the importance that women have in raising black men, who are more likely than other races to be raised by single mothers. Black fathers who are involuntarily separated from their children often has to do with incarceration. “When We Free the World” doesn’t try to excuse or deny why people turn to crime, but it does imply that having stability in families and finances can largely determine whether or not someone will get involved in criminal activities.
Other interviewees in the documentary are Quentin Walcott, Charlie Braxton, Ista Clarke, Jonathan McCants Sr., Byron Hart, Ezekiel Hunt, Dr. Steve Jackson, Justice Roe Williams, Keith Mascoll, Patrick Oliver, Michael Scott Barnes, Dr. David Banks, Diallo Shabazz, Dr. Maurice Sennett, J.R. Rivera, Charlie Braxton, Dr. Alex Ellis, Jelani Young, Charles Oliver Sr., Lasan Hotep, Chris Atlas, Mark Byers, Ezekiel Hunter, Kevin “Brother Renny” Smith, Samson Styles, Dr. Ed Garnes Jr., Jeremy “Curlie” Arce, and Daniel P. Calderon.
“When We Free the World” covers a broad range of topics fairly well, although some of it becomes unwieldy toward the end of the film when many of the same things are repeated in different sentences. Some of the film editing needed more finesse in making the content more concise, but the transitions between the chapters flow smoothly. Watching two hours of interview sound bites might not be to every viewer’s liking. However, “When We Free the World” is a capable collection of thoughts that won’t make this 2020s film look dated because the issues covered will continue to be relevant.
Brooklyn Diego released “When We Free the World” in select U.S. cinemas on January 31, 2025.
