Filmmaker Samson Styles Uses Own Violent Past To Spark Dialogue On Growing Problem, In New Documentary Film “Killing Beef: Gun Violence In The Black Community”
Finally, someone has officially reported what filmmaker Samson Styles — and anyone living in an urban area — knows to be a fact, mass shootings in Black communities are being ignored! In a new documentary produced and directed by Styles, “Killing Beef: Gun Violence in The Black Community,” the award winning journalist uses his own violent past as a starting point for a conversation that is long, long overdue.
The Trace Reports: In 2020, mass shootings disproportionately occurred in majority-Black neighborhoods. But even the highest-casualty incidents received limited national media attention.“There was the shooting in Charlotte, North Carolina, in June of last year, where gunmen fired more than 200 rounds into a crowded block party, killing four and injuring five others. Two months later in Washington, D.C., multiple shooters fired into another neighborhood block party, killing one and injuring 21. In January of this year, gunfire erupted during a basketball game at a public park in Miami, injuring eight. None of these shootings prompted multi-day news cycles or condolences from former presidents. But they were just as devastating to local communities as the shootings in Boulder or Atlanta, doing the same kind of damage to residents’ sense of safety in public spaces.”
A reformed criminal and victim of violent crime, award winning journalist and documentary filmmaker Samson Styles searches for life’s meaning in the biographical-documentary feature “Killing Beef: Gun Violence In The Black Community” streaming now on Apple, Amazon, FandangoNow, GooglePlay, PlayStation, Vudu, and Xbox. Written and directed by Styles, the film is an unflinching look at Black-on-Black crime, and the forces that drive young Black men to commit acts of gun violence. A first-person account of criminality, Styles takes a conversational approach to “Killing Beef,” by telling his cautionary tale to a youth (Chris) dealing with his own violent trauma. After the murder of his older brother, Chris seeks advice from Styles, who uses the opportunity to discourage the him from seeking vengeance. More than a true-crime documentary, the film is a thought-provoking look at a Black man as he finds a purpose for his life: saving Black boys and preventing gun violence. How do we end the cycle of gun violence raging in America’s urban centers? How do we start Killing Beef (brokering peace) before things escalate to shots being fired? Styles sets out on a journey to find solutions.
At the heart of this documentary is the conversation between Styles and an impressionable youth, during a critical time in his development, that gives “Killing Beef” a hopefulness and a sense of meaning rarely found in urban crime docs. However, the most poignant moment in the film is when Styles reunites with the shooter who wounded him and left him for dead years earlier.
It’s been a terrifying week on school campuses this week with multiple school shootings across the nation. On Monday, shootings were reported in Italy, Texas and another in Gentilly, Louisiana. On Tuesday, in Benton, Kentucky two students were killed and 18 others injured. The safety of school campuses has been an issue as of late. Following the harrowing loss of life at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Conneticut school shootings have become a normal threat. Normally, students prepare for regional weather threats like earthquakes, tornadoes with shelter in place drills. Now, students, educators and administrators are practicing lockdown drills in preparation for possibly the worst scenario learners and leaders would potentially ever face.
As school shootings, mass shootings and gun violence increased, so did the calls for gun control. For many, the argument fell on deaf ears. Many side with the 2nd Amendment right to bear arms and refuse to join the gun control conversation, largely out of an irrational fear that any legislation will potentially jeopardize their constitutional right. Gun violence in America is akin to a flare up of a chronic disease. Though it may not be always evident on the surface, the multi-layered hate epidemic continues to plague this country. As any healthy body in its right mind would do, this country should work to end the flare ups of gun violence with staunch measures for gun control. Gun control is more than keeping guns out of the wrong hands. It’s regulation that encompasses all facets of responsible ownership and procurement.
Whether the topic is gun violence in Chicago or New Orleans, mass shootings like the horrific Route 91 Harvest Festival shooting in Las Vegas, or family violence, it’s imperative that we commit to not only conversation, but ‘treatment’ between flare ups.
A gun death anywhere, should impact gun owners everywhere.
Tuff’s quick thinking, empathy and daily dose of Psalm 23 saved herself and everyone in the school, including the gunman. However, we see daily how many lives are not spared at the hands of gunmen filled with rage, hate, confusion and mental instability. What is the solution? Many of today’s social ills are seldom properly regulated with legislation. It’s a matter of the heart, many believers feel when pressed about these social ills. In America however, freedom of religion also means the freedom to have no religion or belief in a higher power. This juxtaposition is prevalent in the office of policy makers nationwide, who work to strike a balance between what is “right” and what is Constitutional.
Not every person that encounters a gunman will be able to diffuse the situation with words or disarming engagement. With this in mind, Tuff’s story is one of divine intervention and not a how-to. Last week at the Dallas screening for the film, Executive Producer Bishop T. D. Jakes shared his thoughts about the intersection of faith and gun control as was partly the case with Tuff.
With this in mind, Bishop Jakes understands that there is work to be done, saying this: “I think that we have to do some sensible reconstruct to create laws that protect us without restricting our freedoms that this country affords. And, I think that when we stop politicizing it and start using level heads, we can achieve those goals.”
Faith Under Fire premieres on Saturday, January 27 on Lifetime Television. Toni Braxton stars as Antoinette Tuff along with Malik Yoba, YaYa DaCosta and Trevor Morgan.
