Educational Media Reviews Online

The documentary tells the story of an artistic community in Oakland, California, and their ability to rally and empower residents who were threatened by displacement. The film opens by introducing a couple of local artists who began the Community Rejuvenation Project and used their art to highlight both the struggles and successes of two important groups within the Oakland community. Interviews with both Chinese American and African American community leaders are used to provide additional background on these groups and their local history. Also shown is footage from present day classes at the Malonga center (across the street from the mural), and snapshots and news articles covering its fraught history. The director skillfully weaves together the sense of community pride that was created as the mural came to life downtown, and also provides the historical background necessary to understand the significance of redeveloping the area and the loss of the mural.

This film is both timely and important, illustrating the power of people who are united in action for a common cause. At the conclusion of the film, it is revealed that the residents of Oakland successfully advocated for a community benefit agreement from developers. This agreement led to the construction of more affordable housing, dedicated retail space for local businesses, and other protections against further displacement of local residents. As one interviewee in the film notes, the agreement forced the developers to frame their relationship in a way that defines how they will become part of the community.

From his statement on the film’s website, the director states that he wanted “…to share the community’s struggle to exist within a city that they had helped build but which had no motivation to retain them. A movement was forming amidst the residents I had been documenting and the central battleground between development and displacement was my neighborhood.” He captures that movement and the spirit behind it in his film, Alice Street. It is both uplifting and empowering. Educators facilitating discussions on the effects of gentrification and displacement will find this film especially useful. Showcasing the power of community activism, the documentary is also a wonderful example of how art and cultural centers can become uniting forces within a community inspiring both cooperation and collaboration.

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