The Center for the Study of Race and Democracy at ASU held its 12th distinguished speaker, Spike Lee, as a part of its Delivering Democracy program on March 1 at Pilgrim Rest Baptist Church in Phoenix. The program features trailblazers in conversations surrounding civic engagement, art, race and history.
In conversation this year with center director and professor Lois Brown, Lee discussed the making of his most notable films, the Black experience and the power of ancestry.
Attendees included students, alumni and community members excited to hear from the Oscar-winning filmmaker.
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Alonzo Coronado, a senior studying animation, said he was looking forward to the event and immediately grabbed tickets. He said he is very interested in current events and engaging in conversations surrounding them.
"I try to go out of my way when I can, to attend a lot of discussions, especially with a lot of people of color, communities," Coronado said. "Just always wanting to see what's going on."
Lee chronicled his career and his rise in filmmaking. He credits his family, specifically his mother and grandmother, in aiding his education. He said his grandmother financed his education to film school through her Social Security checks and helped fund his first film, "She's Gotta Have It."
These close family relationships sparked Lee to tell young people in the audience to listen to "Uncle Spike." He said they have to put the work in, not only for themselves, but for their family members.
Lee said repeatedly throughout the talk, "We owe it to our ancestors."
He highlighted the Black experience in these words and touched on exploring it through his films, citing "Malcolm X," "4 Little Girls" and "Miracle at St. Anna."
In reference to "Miracle at St. Anna," Lee spoke on Black patriotism.
"Even though we knew what we were, we were looked upon, they kind of looked down upon us, we still fought for this country," Lee said. "We're the most patriotic people in the United States of America.”
Lee said although the cards have always been stacked against Black people in America, understanding this history can be empowering.
"I'm speaking for myself and my truth," Lee said. "I get energy and strength from knowing what we had to go through in the past."
His thoughts accumulated to a powerful message on resilience, drive and the need to keep pushing.
Students were inspired by Lee's speaking and topics he covered, and they expressed how important it is to have space for these conversations on college campuses.
Zamara Porter, a senior studying media arts and sciences, said programs such as Delivering Democracy can "be a beacon of hope ... specifically to Black and brown kids, POC kids, who are coming into college."
Lucilla Taryole, a senior studying animation, agrees with Porter; They said it's important that ASU houses conversations on progressive change to inspire students.
"ASU is pretty big; they give us a lot of opportunities to do really big things," Taryole said. "When they bring out these types of events that talk about certain issues within our community, and within our country and stuff like that, it creates conversation."
Edited by Andrew Dirst, Sophia Braccio, Tiya Talwar and Natalia Jarrett.
Reach the reporter at jagon128@asu.edu.
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Jazlyn is a sophomore studying journalism and mass communication. This is her second semester with The State Press. She has also worked at Blaze Radio.
