Outcry : A powerful play exploring the deaths of Emmett Till, Trayvon Martin, Amadou Diallo, Sean Bell from an inside perspective

Have you ever wondered what it is to lose a part of your soul?

A child?

a spouse?

Have you ever wonder how the injustices of the American judicial system has affected Black families throughout the history of this country?

So often the life of a young black man is taken for granted. Never does anyone think twice about Emmett Till, Trayvon Martin, Amadou Diallo, Sean Bell and so many of the other young Black men lost to hate and ignorance. Its just crossed off as something that happen. Nothing more and nothing less. Does anyone bother to think about what the family has to deal with? Does anyone think about what it feels like to have a loved one killed for no reason other than being Black? Or the fact that young black men are societies favorite target?

Well if you have not, Thai Francis has!

Thai Francis is the writer of an AMAZING play entitled “Outcry”. “Outcry” explores the deaths of Emmett Till, Trayvon Martin, Amadou Diallo, Sean Bell from an inside perspective. From their perspective and from the perspective of loved ones.

-“Outcry” intertwines the lives of Emmett Till, Trayvon Martin, Amadou Diallo, Sean Bell, Nicole Bell and Mamie Till in a dream that is void of time 

and structure. It explores the idea of screaming and not being heard, which is paralleled to crying out against injustice and being ignored. Through laughter, love, hurt and confusion we see the characters wrestle with the 

fact that they are not heard, despite the fact that they are screaming. The stories range from Emmett Till a 14 year old boy who whistled in 1955, to Trayvon Martin a young man who looked suspicious whilst wearing a hoodie in 2012. These stories are all interwoven in Nicole Bell’s nightmare.-

From reading the description of the play I was skeptical. I did not understand how all of these stories could relate. I as a writer could not understand how they could all be connected but after seeing the play I learned that I clearly don’t think outside of the box as much as I should.

The play opens with the characters asking the audience, “Can you hear me?”. Implying that societ doesn’t hear the screams for help. Society avoids the elephant in the room.

So powerful!

As the play goes on we meet each victim and get a view of what they could possibly have felt. We get a vivid picture painted of how they were killed. From this play I learned that Emmit had his eyes gouged out and I learned that Amadou had gunshots at he bottom of his feet. If these are not hate crimes I don’t know what is.

The entire time watching the play I fought back tears. Tears of hurt. Tears of passion. Tears of confusion. Tears of distress. Finally my tears came trailing down my face uncontrollably as I listened to the recording of Trayvon Martin being killed. The idea of listening to a CHILD losing his life at the hands of a animal digs deep for me. Its more than I can understand. A little boy was killed for walking while black and the murderer (George Zimmerman) was set free because according to

lawyers, “Trayvon was armed with the sidewalk”.

This play walks you through the injustices placed upon people of color. It dissects the bullsh-t. It feeds you truth and reality. This play will have you on a roller coaster of emotions.

I am glad I was afforded the opportunity to experience this emotional creation. What it did for me was show me more vividly that we have a long way to go as a people. We need to invest in unity and strength. We need it more than ever!

Written by: Thai Francis
Directed By: Cleon Barrett
Produced By: Anthony Thompson

Cast
Allyson S. Wilson
Brandon McNeil
Danea C. Robinson
Kossim Osseni
Steven Marsh