Ibram X. Kendi shoots documentary “How to Raise an Antiracist”

Images courtesy of

Ibram X. Kendi is developing a documentary based on his book “How to Raise an Antiracist.”

The project is one of seven book adaptations being developed by his production company, Maroon Visions, and is being led by head of development and production Michael Lebowitz (“Unsolved Mysteries,” “I Am Not Okay with This”). The company previously produced Netflix’s “Stamped From the Beginning,” based on Kendi’s book of the same name, and ESPN’s “Skin in the Game.”

“How to Raise an Antiracist” is the sequel to Kendi’s 2019 book “How to Be an Antiracist.” The book, to be published by Penguin Random House in 2023, “provides parents, educators, and teachers with guidance on how to protect their children from harmful racist messages while raising them to grow up and participate in efforts to create equality and justice for all.”

Maroon Visions is also developing a scripted series based on Black Against Empire by Joshua Bloom and Waldo E. Martin Jr. Black Against Empire is described by the University of California Press as “the definitive history of the Black Panther Party” that “shows how these young revolutionaries organized, empowered and served their communities in the face of the government’s violent war against them.” The book was endorsed by Black Panther Party leader Bobby Seale and was purchased by Maroon Visions in a competitive auction. The series hails from Boat Rocker, where Maroon Visions has a first-look deal.

“Token” by Beverly Kendall (2023) is in preparation as a TV series directed by Jacque Edmonds Cofer (“The Wonder Years” reboot, “Moesha”). The Harper Collins novel is about “Kennedy Mitchell and her best friend Aurora, who throw themselves fully into their own PR agency. Kennedy specializes in solving scandals for Fortune 500 companies while simultaneously rekindling her passion for an old flame and struggling to accept her hard-earned success and newfound identity.” Boat Rocker produces.

George Schuyler’s 1931 novel “Black No More” is also being developed into a series at Boat Rocker. In the satirical novel, a black scientist invents a device that can turn black people white.

The Riders Come Out at Night by Darwin Bond Graham and Ali Winston is being published as a scripted series by Boat Rocker. It is based on the authors’ “meticulously researched and stirring account of the systematic corruption and brutality within the Oakland Police Department and the more than two-decade-long saga of reform attempts and explosive scandals.” The book was published by Simon & Schuster and purchased by Maroon Visions in a competitive auction. Graham and Winston are represented by Lupo Creative Group and Stuart Krichevsky Literary Agency.

“Torn Apart,” in which Dorothy Roberts “exposes the fundamental racism of the child welfare system and calls for radical change,” is in preparation as a documentary film. The book has been published by Hachette.

Kris Manjapra’s Black Ghost of Empire is a forthcoming documentary that “traces when slave owners received reparations and shifts the debate around reparations from ‘Should the descendants of slaves receive reparations?’ to ‘Should the descendants of slaves receive reparations?'” to?'” The book was published by Simon & Schuster.

Kendi will serve as executive producer on any adaptation alongside Lebowitz. Kendi and Maroon Visions are both represented by WME.