Black Girl in Suburbia

Director Melissa Lowery took inspiration for her documentary from her own childhood growing up in suburban Oregon. Here, she combines personal reminiscences, interviews with educators and students, and readings from the poem "Brown Knows" by La Toya Hampton. Lowery's mother, Susan Fatherree, explains that she chose to raise her kids in West Linn because of the good schools, although they would have been in the minority wherever they went, since the state is overwhelmingly white (only two percent black). As teacher Nia Lewis notes, "Portland is the fifth whitest city." Elaine Ford, who works as a high school diversity director, looks forward to the day that her position won't be necessary. Lowery mostly socialized with other black students when she was in high school, and she speaks here to four, including former Miss Oregon CC Barber. Traci Prinkii says she didn't date, because the few black boys in her school preferred to date white girls, and white boys thought of her strictly as a friend. When Lowery talks with black high school girls in Eugene and Portland, they say they face ignorance from white students on a regular basis. Some respond by avoiding activities associated with black culture, while others have embraced their differences. Lowery doesn't aim to cover every angle of an experience that has been variable for each of the interviewees, but her film is sure to inspire dialogue. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (K. Fennessy)