"The Birth of A Nation" depicts the important story of enslaved black people fighting for their freedom against oppressive white slave owners. The message couldn’t be more poignant: enslaved people could be their own heroes, and did have powerful rebellions/uprisings against their oppressors. It’s a story of the black freedom struggle and different from the typical slave movies that widely portray the enslaved as never fighting back.
The filmmaker, Nate Parker, has been lauded for an excellent historical adaptation of a crucial moment in African-American history. "The Birth of a Nation" met scintillating reviews at Sundance film festival. I was ebullient at the prospect of a black-centric film being so highly praised and needless to say, was highly anticipating seeing it the moment it hits theaters.
To my dismay, I later learned of Nate Parker sexually assaulting a fellow college student when he was studying at Penn State. The filmmaker himself spoke of the assault during an interview in order to frame the narrative before it presumably got out to the public. Talking to Variety, Parker looked back at his past and reflected on the rape allegation against him.
If he had been genuinely apologetic for the harm he had inflicted upon another person’s life, or even had an iota of remorse, this would’ve been an entirely different story. Instead, Nate Parker chose to center himself, his feelings and how the sexual assault he had committed had affected his own life. He urges the public to see him as a changed man because he has five daughters, because apparently, having female family members exempts you from being an unrepentant rapist.
Now, before you rush to interject saying, “He was found not guilty for rape! Stop trying him in the court of public opinion!” — let’s review the facts first. Nate Parker’s victim was unconscious when he and his then friend/roommate and now co-writer, Jean Celestin, sexually assaulted her. A victim that is not conscious is a victim that is unable to consent. To make matters worse, the only reason Parker got off at all for the rape is because he and his victim had had sex the night before. This exemplifies a terrible misunderstanding of consent. Simply because a person consented to have sex with another person once does not mean that sex with them is guaranteed for life. Back then, the law was not as aware of consent as it is (or at least should be) now. Nate Parker had non-consensual sex with an unconscious girl, which is rape.
The story doesn’t even end there. Parker and his friends made the poor girl’s life a living hell by harassing her, slut-shaming her and sending her nudes to the whole school. A once 4.0 student ended up dropping out of Penn State because she couldn’t deal with all the harassment. Years later, she killed herself. Yet, Parker says, “Seventeen years ago, I experienced a very painful moment in my life,” with no regard to the person he actually harmed and inflicted severe trauma upon.
So no, I will not be seeing "The Birth of a Nation" in theaters. I will not support an unconscionable rapist. I already know the story of Nat Turner’s rebellion, and I’d rather not give my money to a man who does not deserve it in the slightest. Yes, I’m pro-black, but I’m a feminist too, and I won’t encourage rape culture by letting this one slide and giving Nate Parker a pass because “he’s doing something good for the black community.”
I’ll pass.
