Andrew Robinson
On May 31st, 2019, Netflix dropped a heart-stopper. No, it wasn’t another Bird Box or Maniac. It wasn’t a horror movie, nor was it a show featuring A-list celebrities. Instead, Netflix released a four-part biography drama on the Central Park Five.
The Central Park Five, as they came to be known, is made up of five boys-turned-men – Kevin Richardson, Anton McCray, Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana Jr, and Korey Wise – that are falsely accused of a brutal attack and rape of a white female jogger in Central Park in 1989. The five boys are all minorities which, as the show makes it clear, is a major reason why they are targeted in the first place.
Cops and powerful people – including sitting President Donald Trump, who appears to still believe they are guilty despite their innocence being proven – failed to protect the 14-16-year-old children at all during the proceeding events. In fact, some of them called for the deaths of the then-still-unprosecuted children.
“They admitted they were guilty,” Trump said in a statement to CNN in October 2016 [far after they are proven innocent]. “The police doing the original investigation say they were guilty. The fact that that case was settled with so much evidence against them is outrageous. And the woman, so badly injured, will never be the same.” – USA Today
The show doesn’t gloss over the fact these horrific facts and statements – it forces the viewer to take a hard look at the United States; at who this country chooses to protect.
Actors Asante Blackk (young Kevin), Caleel Harris (Anton), Ethan Herisse (young Yusef), Marquis Rodriguez (young Raymond), Justin Cunningham (adult Kevin), Jovan Adepo (adult Anton), Chris Chalk (adult Yusef), Freddy Miyares (adult Raymond), and Jharrel Jerome (both young and adult Korey) are phenomenal. Jerome, who won Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series at the 2019 Emmys, is fantastic in “Part Four,” when Korey’s experiences in prison are deeply explored.
Of the kids, Blackk, nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series at the 2019 Emmys, stands out. “Part One” is his best work.
This scene, showing when the boys meet for the first time after being subjected to intense, horrific interrogations, epitomizes what the show is about. The police tell the kids what to say again and again and again (with no lawyers or parents present), and they finally give in and say it.
The show was nominated for 16 Emmys and is rated as the 32nd-best TV show of all-time by IMDb. It is well-worth dedicating 4 hours and 56 minutes to watch. You won’t be disappointed. Well, you won’t be disappointed in yourself. I sure hope you’ll be disappointed in the justice system.
Verdict
When They See Us is a must-watch in 2019. Despite the case being 30 years old, racial issues still run rampant in the United States, and minorities are still treated poorly. They are still incarcerated for things that white people are not; they are still (on average) given longer sentences than white people; they are still treated unfairly. Being a minority in the United States is still, heartbreakingly, an inherent disadvantage.
No matter what people in power may try to say.
9/10
