Eyes On The Prize - Critical Reception

Critical Reception

The series has been hailed as more than just a historical document. Clayborne Carson, a Stanford University history professor and editor of the published papers of Martin Luther King, Jr., said that "it is the principal film account of the most important American social justice movement of the 20th century". Because of its extensive use of primary sources and in-depth coverage of the material, it has been adopted as a key reference and record of the civil rights movement.

Eyes on the Prize can be classified as a Revisionist History documentary as it “ the dominant version of the historical record” (Aufderheidi 97). In Eyes on the Prize, Henry Hampton revisited the Civil Rights Movement in the U.S. He told it not as a story of Black victims living in an evil America but rather Black heroes upholding the values America was founded upon. This perspective helped the nation to realize the importance of the Civil Rights Movement to the current way of life. The series used archival footage from various sources to remind Americans of the invaluable bravery, courage, and patriotism of the Civil Rights leaders. The film was also important for the simple fact that most documentary films about African-Americans were made by White people and Hampton was able to lend a unique Black perspective on the issues of racism, segregation, and the fight for freedom. His work helped give voice to other minority groups. A four-hour series called Chicano! was aired in 1996 following in the footsteps of EOP.