BLACK MEN CAN FLY : The Story of George S. Lima
A film documentary by Ken Bento and Napoleon X
George S. Lima's story spans 86 years and goes from New England to Harlem, to the Deep South and back. It is the story of a child of Cape Verdean immigrants, a Harlem brown, student at North Carolina A&T, Tuskegee airman, military photographic officer, Brown University graduate, founder of the local chapter of Omega Psi Phi, civil rights activist, union organizer, president of the Providence chapter of the N.A.A.C.P, state representative, and elder statesman who continues to fight for people's rights in his community.
He is comrade to heroes, a friend to generals; a protector of the forgotten, a voice of the voiceless and a staunch advocate for the rights of all men and women. He has fought Joe Louis, danced to Ellington, socialized with Satchmo.
He was an aviator when it was thought that black men couldn't fly. He has walked the halls of Ivy League schools in search of an education which seemed out of reach to many of his race. He has faced poverty, prejudice, adversity and ignorance, and through it all, has maintained a love of life, an undying perseverance, and a quiet noble dignity. He has done more in his life than many of us can ever hope to do in a thousand lifetimes. He has seen things that will never be seen again and has stories that only he can tell.
Along with vintage photographs, historical film, personal insights and interviews with the people who know George S. Lima and can shed some light on the man and what makes him who he is, we hope to tell an exciting and revealing story of a man, a people and a nation. There is so much we need to know and so little time to tell it all. A man, an icon, a living history for future generations…
This is his story; our story. A story which makes us realize that even through the trials, tribulations, struggles and suffering, Black Men Can Fly.
This inspirational film documentary reminds students and professionals to aim high and reach for the sky.
George S. Lima's story spans 86 years and goes from New England to Harlem, to the Deep South and back. It is the story of a child of Cape Verdean immigrants, a Harlem brown, student at North Carolina A&T, Tuskegee airman, military photographic officer, Brown University graduate, founder of the local chapter of Omega Psi Phi, civil rights activist, union organizer, president of the Providence chapter of the N.A.A.C.P, state representative, and elder statesman who continues to fight for people's rights in his community.
He is comrade to heroes, a friend to generals; a protector of the forgotten, a voice of the voiceless and a staunch advocate for the rights of all men and women. He has fought Joe Louis, danced to Ellington, socialized with Satchmo.
He was an aviator when it was thought that black men couldn't fly. He has walked the halls of Ivy League schools in search of an education which seemed out of reach to many of his race. He has faced poverty, prejudice, adversity and ignorance, and through it all, has maintained a love of life, an undying perseverance, and a quiet noble dignity. He has done more in his life than many of us can ever hope to do in a thousand lifetimes. He has seen things that will never be seen again and has stories that only he can tell.
Along with vintage photographs, historical film, personal insights and interviews with the people who know George S. Lima and can shed some light on the man and what makes him who he is, we hope to tell an exciting and revealing story of a man, a people and a nation. There is so much we need to know and so little time to tell it all. A man, an icon, a living history for future generations…
This is his story; our story. A story which makes us realize that even through the trials, tribulations, struggles and suffering, Black Men Can Fly.
This inspirational film documentary reminds students and professionals to aim high and reach for the sky.