Series/Themes: The Black Experience, TV on the Big Screen, zFree Events and Panels, zRace in America, zSocial & Political Issues

Genre: Documentaries

Film Year: 2016

Locations: USA

Film Length: 189 min.

Director: Ezra Edelman

The 1994 murder of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman not only put the spotlight on O.J. Simpson, but on the wider relationship between the police department and the African American community in Los Angeles. The story begins much earlier, however, with Simpson’s success in football and subsequent rise to fame, which seemed to transcend racial boundaries. Where other athletes used their platform to highlight racial injustice, Simpson shied away from politics. Interviews, news footage, and archival video chronicle Simpson’s rise to fame as a football star in parallel to national events, especially the Rodney King trial and subsequent riots in Los Angeles.

We will be screening O.J.: Made in America Part 3 and 4 on Friday, November 10 at 4:00 PM in Violet Crown C. There will be a moderated discussion with director Ezra Edelman after the screening of O.J.: Made in America Part 5 on Saturday, November 11 at 7:00 PM in Vinegar Hill Theatre.

This is a free, unticketed event. Please arrive fifteen to thirty minutes before the listed start time to find a seat.

Presented by James Madison’s Montpelier