the life and times of writer/public intellectual james baldwin gets docu treatment in ‘i am not your negro’

The life and times of novelist, activist, and public intellectual James Baldwin is getting the documentary treatment in filmmaker Raoul Peck’s ‘I Am Not Your Negro’. Based on the notes from a book Baldwin was never able to finish, ‘I Am Not Your Negro’ was to center around three critical black leaders whom were each assassinated: Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X and Medgar Evers. As TIFF reports, the book was left unfinished as of Baldwin’s death but there are about 30 written pages, plus correspondence with his literary agent that will be used to explore Baldwin’s life and race relations in America. ‘I Am Not Your Negro’ will be narrated by Samuel L. Jackson and will debut at the Toronto Independent Film Festival in September, with an encore at the New York Film Festival in October.

*Erin White is an Atlanta-based writer and AFROPUNK’s editorial and social media assistant. You can follow her on Tumblr or friend her on Facebook. Have a pitch or an inquiry? Shoot her an email at erin@afropunk.com.