As the United States raced against Russia to put a man in space, NASA found an 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.
- General Recommendations
- Staff-Created List
Movies for Black History Month
An amazing collection of movies, all based on either real events or real people who made and changed Black and world history.
StaffLibrary Staff
Sno-Isle Libraries


24 items
- Based on the thrilling and inspirational life of an iconic American freedom fighter, the movie tells the extraordinary tale of Harriet Tubman's escape from slavery and transformation into one of America's greatest heroes.
- 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.
- Racial tension runs high in 1971 Durham, North Carolina as residents continue to fight the 1954 Supreme Court decision to desegregate their schools. A series of town meetings are called to discuss the matter. But that could be difficult,…
- The life of Malcolm X, the black activist who became a Muslim and was a leader in the Nation of Islam until his assassination.
42
the Jackie Robinson Story
History was made in 1947, when Jackie Robinson broke the professional baseball race barrier to become the first African American MLB player of the modern era. 42 tells the life story of Robinson and his history-making signing with the…- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s historical struggle to secure voting rights for all people. A dangerous and terrifying campaign that culminated with an epic march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama in 1964.
- Jesse Owens' quest to become the greatest track and field athlete in history launches him onto the world stage of the 1936 Olympics, where he faces off against Adolf Hitler's vision of Aryan supremacy.
- Till is a profoundly emotional film about the true story of Mamie Till Mobley's relentless pursuit of justice for her 14-year-old son, Emmett Till, who, in 1955, was lynched while visiting his cousins in Mississippi. In Mamie's poignant…
Get on Up
the James Brown Story
Based on the incredible life story of the Godfather of Soul, the film will give a fearless look inside the music, moves and moods of Brown, taking audiences on the journey from his impoverished childhood to his evolution into one of the…- Based on the true story of Solomon Northup. It is 1841, and Northup, an accomplished, free citizen of New York, is kidnapped and sold into slavery. Stripped of his identity and deprived of all dignity, Northup is ultimately purchased by…
- Following the rise of Aretha Franklin's career from a child singing in her father's church's choir to her international superstardom, 'Respect' is the remarkable true story of the music icon's journey to find her voice.
- Inspired by true events, the remarkable story of the Agojie, the all-female unit of warriors who protected the African Kingdom of Dahomey in the 1800s with skills and a ferocity unlike anything the world has ever seen.
- Based on the true story that will inspire the world, follow the journey of Richard Williams, an undeterred father instrumental in raising two of the most extraordinarily gifted athletes of all time, who will end up changing the sport of…
- 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…
- Inspired by the legend of Shields 'Emperor' Green, a descendant of African kings turned outlaw slave in the pre-Civil War South. Seeking freedom for his family, Emperor fights his way north, joining the daring raid on Harper's Ferry and…
- When Tony Lip, a bouncer from an Italian-American neighborhood in the Bronx, is hired to drive Dr. Don Shirley, a world-class Black pianist, on a concert tour from Manhattan to the Deep South, they must rely on The Green Book to guide them…
- An African-American woman becomes an unwitting pioneer for medical breakthroughs when her cells are used to create the first immortal human cell line in the early 1950s.
- Chronicles the summer afternoon in 1989 when the future President of the United States, Barack Obama, wooed the future First Lady, Michelle Robinson, on an epic first date across Chicago's South Side.
- The deeply moving true story of a five-star-hotel manager who used his wits and words to save more than 1,200 lives during the 1994 Rwandan conflict.
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