A Work in Progress Documentary: Struggle and Hope, Oklahoma's All-Black Towns

A new project I am taking part in, an interactive web history of Oklahoma's all-black towns, is starting to take shape with a new website which was launched today by Kari Barber www.struggleandhope.com. Why this topic? Check our "Did you Know" page to get started.

It's the first wordpress site Ive worked on, and the idea is to make readers/viewers become participants who comment and add material so that it can be "lean in" media rather than just of the "lean back" variety. The ultimate goal is to enrich our history. I still need to figure out how to make the website easy for users to upload pictures and videos which would immediately appear, rather than just comments and stories, or emails with attachments. A challenge is also to get eyeballs to the site, as well as enhance participation.

As opposed to most documentaries, the idea is for this interactive website to precede the documentary film we are planning, and for the work in progress to be part of the community building. So while the exact angle and nature of the documentary have yet to be found, the website and our new Struggle and Hope youtube channel already exist.

Below, our first "mini-documentary" video about a Sunday service in one of the historical black towns, Brooksville.



Thanks for your interest. We would love for you to join us in this effort to document the importance of Oklahoma's all-black towns. We also have a Struggle and Hope Facebook page.