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Description
"In 1946, Branch Rickey, ... owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers, took a stand against Major League Baseball's infamous color line when he signed Jackie Robinson ... to the team. The deal put both men in the crosshairs of the public, the press and even other players. Facing unabashed racism from every side, Robinson was forced to demonstrate tremendous courage and let his talent on the field win over fans and his teammates"--Container.
Description
Eleven year-old Akeelah Anderson's life is not easy: her father is dead, her mom ignores her, her brother runs with the local gangbangers. She is a smart girl, but her environment threatens to strangle her aspirations. Responding to a threat by her school's principal, Akeelah decides to participate in a spelling bee to avoid detention for her many absences. Much to her surprise and embarrassment, she wins. Her principal asks her to seek coaching from...
Description
Iconic ballerina Misty Copeland made history when she became the first African-American woman to be named principal dancer of the legendary American Ballet Theater. Get the incredible, behind-the-scenes story of how she overcame outmoded ballet culture stereotypes and near career-ending injuries to become one of the most revered dancers of her generation.
Formats:
On Shelf
Villa Park Public Library - Adult AV
BLU-RAY BLA
1 available
BLU-RAY BLA
1 available
On Shelf
Villa Park Public Library - Adult AV
DVD ACTION BLA
1 available
DVD ACTION BLA
1 available
Description
King T'Challa returns home to the isolated, technologically advanced African nation of Wakanda to serve as new leader. However, T'Challa soon finds that he is challenged for the throne from divisions within his own country. When two enemies conspire to destroy Wakanda, the hero known as Black Panther must join forces with C.I.A. agent Everett K. Ross and members of the Wakandan Special Forces, to prevent Wakanda from being drawn into a world war.
5) Candyman
On Shelf
Villa Park Public Library - Adult AV
DVD HORROR CAN
2 available
DVD HORROR CAN
2 available
Description
Oscar® winner Jordan Peele and filmmaker Nia DaCosta unleash a fresh take on the blood-chilling urban legend: Candyman. For decades, the housing projects of Chicago's Cabrini-Green were terrorized by a ghost story about a supernatural, hook handed killer. In present day, an artist (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) begins to explore the macabre history of Candyman, not knowing it would unravel his sanity and unleash a terrifying wave of violence that puts him...
6) Dreamgirls
Formats:
Description
Three young women, Deena Jones, Effie White, and Lorrell Robinson, desire to become pop stars. They get their wish when they are picked to be backup singers for the legendary James "Thunder" Early. When they are set free for leads, Curtis Taylor and Effie's brother C.C. decide that Deena should be the lead singer, which upsets Effie. The girls discover exactly what it takes to be in the music business and what they must give up to realize their dreams....
On Shelf
Villa Park Public Library - Adult AV
DVD DRAMA FRU
1 available
DVD DRAMA FRU
1 available
Description
The true story of Oscar, a 22-year-old Bay Area resident who wakes up on the morning of December 31, 2008 and feels something in the air. Not sure what it is, he takes it as a sign to get a head start on his resolutions: Being a better son to his mother, being a better partner to his girlfriend, and being a better father to T, their beautiful four-year-old daughter. Then he's gunned down by BART officers on New Year's Day in 2009, sending shock waves...
8) ¡Huye!
Description
"A young African-American photographer (Daniel Kaluuya) is nervous at the thought of meeting his white girlfriend's parents (Catherine Keener and Bradley Whitford) for the first time during a trip to the latter's country estate. However, his anxiety soon turns into outright terror when he discovers that the family's seemingly idyllic community is hiding a sinister conspiracy, one that involves the disappearance of several black people in the area....
9) Girls trip
On Shelf
Villa Park Public Library - Adult AV
DVD COMEDY GIR
1 available
DVD COMEDY GIR
1 available
Description
When four lifelong friends travel to New Orleans for the annual Essence Festival, sisterhoods are rekindled, wild sides are rediscovered, and there's enough dancing, drinking, brawling and romancing to make the Big Easy blush.
10) Harriet
Formats:
On Shelf
Villa Park Public Library - Adult AV
DVD DRAMA HAR
1 available
DVD DRAMA HAR
1 available
Description
"Based on the thrilling and inspirational life of an iconic American freedom fighter, [the film] tells the story of Harriet Tubman's escape from slavery and transformation into one of America's greatest heroes. Haunted by memories of those she left behind, Harriet ventures back into dangerous territory on a mission to lead others to freedom. With allies like abolitionist William Still and the entrepreneurial Marie Buchanon, Harriet risks capture and...
11) The hate U give
On Shelf
Villa Park Public Library - Adult AV
BLU-RAY HAT
1 available
BLU-RAY HAT
1 available
Description
Starr Carter navigates the perilous waters between her poor, black neighborhood and her prestigious, mainly white private school. This all changes when she finds herself in the middle of racial activism after her best friend is shot by police officers, and she's forced to make a decision. Allow the media to skewer her friend to protect the status quo, or stand up and tell the truth in memory of Khalil?
12) Hidden figures
Description
Thematic elements and some language.
As the United States raced against Russia to put a man in space, NASA found untapped talent in a group of African-American female mathematicians that served as the brains behind one of the greatest operations in U.S. history. Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, and Katherine Johnson crossed all gender, race, and professional lines while their brilliance and desire to dream big, beyond anything ever accomplished before...
Description
A timeless love story set in early 1970s Harlem involving newly engaged nineteen-year- old Tish and her fiance Fonny who have a beautiful future ahead. But their plans are derailed when Fonny is arrested for a crime he did not commit. Now the pair and their families must fight for justice in the name of love and the promise of the American dream.
On Shelf
Villa Park Public Library - Nonfiction
DVD 328 LEWIS
1 available
DVD 328 LEWIS
1 available
Description
Using interviews and rare archival footage, this chronicles Lewis's 60-plus years of social activism and legislative action on civil rights, voting rights, gun control, health care reform, and immigration. Using present-day interviews with Lewis, now 80 years old, it explores his childhood experiences, his inspiring family, and his meeting with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1957. It also includes interviews with political leaders, colleagues, and...
Formats:
On Shelf
Villa Park Public Library - Adult AV
DVD DRAMA JUD
1 available
DVD DRAMA JUD
1 available
Description
Offered a plea deal by the FBI, William O'Neal infiltrates the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party to gather intelligence on Chairman Fred Hampton.
16) Just mercy
Author
On Shelf
Villa Park Public Library - Adult AV
DVD DRAMA JUS
1 available
DVD DRAMA JUS
1 available
Description
A powerful and thought-provoking true story follows young lawyer Bryan Stevenson and his history-making battle for justice. After graduating from Harvard, Bryan had his pick of lucrative jobs. Instead, he heads to Alabama to defend those wrongly condemned or who were not afforded proper representation, with the support of local advocate Eva Ansley. One of his first and most incendiary cases is that of Walter McMillian, a death-row inmate.
17) Loving
Description
The story of Richard and Mildred Loving, an interracial couple, whose challenge of their anti-miscegenation arrest for their marriage in Virginia led to a legal battle that would end at the US Supreme Court.
18) Miss Juneteenth
Description
A former beauty queen and single mom prepares her rebellious teenage daughter for the "Miss Juneteenth" pageant.
Series
Criterion collection volume 1106
Formats:
On Shelf
Villa Park Public Library - Adult AV
DVD DRAMA ONE
1 available
DVD DRAMA ONE
1 available
Description
A fictional account of one amazing night where icons Muhammad Ali, Malcolm X, Sam Cooke, and Jim Brown gathered discussing their roles in the Civil Rights Movement and cultural turmoil of the '60s.
20) Queen of Katwe
Formats:
On Shelf
Villa Park Public Library - Adult AV
DVD DRAMA QUE
1 available
DVD DRAMA QUE
1 available
Description
Based on the vibrant true story of a young girl from the streets of rural Uganda whose world rapidly changes when she is introduced to the game of chess, and, as a result of the support she receives from her family and community, is instilled with the confidence and determination she needs to pursue her dream of becoming an international chess champion.