Constructing Space, A Documentary | Ahsante the Artist

[@lindaboyce8805]

this breaks my heart and there is not enough room here to address it. i have long realized that the dream we marched for , petitioned for , protested for, prayed for , sacrificed for would not be fulfilled in my lifetime. but after viewing this i am consumed with a new sadness. these are the children we wanted to prepare a feast for, all children- together. we failed them-all of them.

[@Mrepifany]

This documentary was *absolutely riveting, eye opening, amazing well put together, and honest* all in one splendid package. TWO THUMBS UP!

[@AhsanteB]

Thank you so much!!

[@tailewis1]

This is honestly amazing. I really do think that it is, and i say this because I feel like I can honestly relate to something like this. I mean, I don't attend harvard, I'm not even a college student yet, but I just feel like the struggles that these people are experiencing are struggles that I experience as well. I'm a young African American student in the dirty south, Atlanta, Georgia. I also attend a school in a predominantly rich and white neighborhood, and I'm in the IB program at that school. That already gives an idea of the demographics of african americans in my school. Out of maybe 100 IB students, there are probably 10 or less of those that are black. It's honestly hard to fit in, and i say this because there is such a HUGE gap in the social behavior of the IB kids and the kids in remedial classes. It's honestly either ghetto for remedial, and preppy for IB. Now it would be wrong to say that there aren't a couple of kids in IB who can drift from crowd to crowd, but I am not one of them. I dress really preppy, flat front shorts and a polo or oxford of some kind; not to say that I don't like to dress like that, but mostly because of the people around me and how they dress. I would like to wear a different style of clothes, but i feel like that would differentiate me from the other white students around me, and the remedial class students don't "accept" me because I'm just an uncle tom or a kiss up to the white kids. I play lacrosse in the south, it's safe to assume my behavior and the crowd that i am usually around. It's hard because i don't know how to express myself. I don't want to wear the jordans or the timbs that the other guys have, because I feel like i would be judged. I feel like i would be labeled as ghetto because I'm black and I'm wearing these clothes. So i'm not gonna give a whole spew right now. This has inspired me to make a film about being black in the IB program at north atlanta high school. It definitely won't be as good as this, but i feel like it is a problem that i should confront and i would love to experience something like this. (as in the filming, not the obvious discrimination). so thanks! haha.

[@AhsanteB]

You are so welcome! Thank you for the compliment and for sharing your experience. It's nice to know that we are not alone in the struggle to navigate through difficult and complex social and racial spaces. I encourage you to make that film! I learned so much in the process of interviewing and talking to people, and found the experience to be very grounding. Let me know, I'd love to see it when you finish!

[@tailewis1]

will do. and I'm hoping to go to harvard, which i will hopefully be attending next fall. so post more "how to get into Harvard" videos please! oh, and last thing, haha, the african american male who wore glasses with curly hair who talked about significance, value and validation and blackness being faith, is he in the Harvard Jazz Band? thanks. have a great summer!

[@AhsanteB]

I got ya covered with the Harvard vids, they'll be coming. And as a matter of fact he is in Jazz band!

[@tailewis1]

alright, great to know, thank you!

[@nkwari]

Even though this was a short film, this was so good, very comprehensive, with meaningful interviews. Especially since there were students with different levels of how "black" they felt as their identity (black, biracial, half, etc).

[@JoshPosh97]

This was very well put together and an amazing documentary.

[@JustCallMeWah]

This is great. Great.

[@bananasandberg6991]

so so so so good!! the framing and pace and how you covered this subject are just so so fantastic!!

[@mialuise9436]

this is really eye-opening, thank you for sharing all of these different voices and experiences!

[@Nyanko]

I really love your films. Keep them coming! :)

[@AhsanteB]

Thanks, I will!

[@zioscozio]

Wow, really interesting and so well done! It's always so interesting when more voices are given space to be heard, everybody can learn from this.

[@AhsanteB]

+scozio I appreciate that, thank you!

[@gaychase7216]

Very enlightening.

[@KWDforPrez2016]

"I don't know if I could describe Harvard as being safe" makes me sad and angry that we accept conditions of an unloving world. I will fight for others to bring acceptance into the public light. Don't be the unloving side of the world to any one, I'm here to love all and do anything I can to change these conditions.

[@amitymeans]

Tremendous. Thank you for this.

[@AhsanteB]

Surely, and thank you for your appreciation

[@amitymeans]

AhsantetheArtist You're very welcome.

[@jb44421]

8:23 wow

[@TheEpicTimeSuck]

The information in the film is very rich and interesting but from a cinematic perspective it feels like it drags on a little too long. It was a great film overall.

[@thewatcheronthewalls4809]

Who is the blasian she is gorgeous