THOUGHTS ON HUMAN RIGHTS DAY:
We would never have been able to tell the unbelievable story in "Think of Calvin" (a case of racial profiling, and that's just the start of it) if someone there hadn't thought to grab her phone and film the entire incident.
Cameras are one of the best weapons we have to fight for justice. And someday YOU might be the one who has an opportunity to film an injustice or hate crime as it happens. If so, you'll want to be prepared to think about when and how to film an incident and do so safely.
Below is a link to a hand-out you can download (for free) from Witness.org with tips to prepare yourself for that possibility. We'd like to add two more tips:
- FLIP YOUR PHONE horizontally when filming. You will be able to get more of what's happening.
- ZIP your lip (unless you need to intervene in what's happening). If you remain quiet, you'll have a better chance of capturing what's being said.
Of course, the first priority is ensuring the safety of yourself and others; if you can stop an attack or injustice, do so. But if not, filming it -- documenting it -- can be incredibly important.
https://library.witness.org/product/filming-hate/
See how we used phone footage in the Think of Calvin trailer:
