Read what critics and journalists have to say about POV’s American Revolutionary: The Evolution of Grace Lee Boggs. Watch it now on POV’s website and mobile apps until July 30, 2014.
Grace Lee Boggs, 98, is a Chinese American philosopher, writer and activist in Detroit with a thick FBI file and a surprising vision of what an American revolution can be. Rooted for 75 years in the labor, civil rights and Black Power movements, she challenges a new generation to throw off old assumptions, think creatively and redefine revolution for our times. Winner, Audience Award, Best Documentary Feature, 2013 Los Angeles Film Festival. A co-presentation with the Center for Asian American Media (CAAM) and the National Black Programming Consortium (NBPC).
“In trying to find ‘revolutionaries’ who break the mold, [filmmaker Grace Lee] found an actual one in Grace Lee Boggs.”
— Elizabeth Yuan, The Wall Street Journal
“Superb. . . . Cinema is full of unlikely heroes, and yet the real-life activist Grace Lee Boggs is more improbable still: a Chinese American black-power radical armed with a doctorate in philosophy.”
— Inkoo Kang, Los Angeles Times
“In sharing her subject’s life achievements, [Lee] raises meaningful questions and keeps them profitably open.”
— Nicolas Rapold, The New York Times
“Boggs has had quite a life to reflect on. [This is] the story of the erudite daughter of Chinese immigrants who morphed into a civil rights and black power activist in Detroit.”
— Barbranda Walls, AARP Bulletin
“Lively and intelligent. . . . Detroit fixture Grace Lee Boggs doesn’t just explode docile-Asian-female stereotypes. . . . she makes an inspiring case for self-determination and intellectual fortitude regardless of background.”
— Justin Chang, Variety
“An entertainingly revealing portrait of a remarkable woman. . . . In an era in which social activism is far too often derided, American Revolutionary represents a deeply moving examination of the power of a single individual to effect change.”
— Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter
“Grace Lee Boggs . . . has spent most of her life fighting for our civil rights.”
— Robert Bianco, USA Today
“Of [Boggs’] many extraordinary qualities, perhaps the defining one is her refusal to disengage from the work that still needs to be done. If you’re a quarter of her age you’d be lucky to have a tenth of her commitment.”
— Julie Hinds, Detroit Free Press
“A documentary on the remarkable life and career of Grace Lee Boggs is way past due. She remains a buoyant believer in grassroots democracy and in the last century has been a part of almost every major movement in the United States.”
— Bill Moyers, Moyers & Company
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