”XO & Struggle” draws inspiration from George Jackson and the George Jackson Brigade’s embrace of both love and struggle in the slow-burn of revolutionary progress. The filmmakers in this program push and probe these political commitments in form (interviews, verité, animation, and sonic experiments), in content (movement elders, remixed archival footage, and prison uprisings real and imagined), and in practice (collaboration, organizing, making/circulating art). United is their shared belief that art alone cannot transform the conditions that produce carceral violence. The Brigade’s rallying cry—cozy, cuddly, armed and dangerous—resonates in sharp and dulcet tones across these artistic engagements with our abolitionist horizon.

After a first installment at Maysles Documentary Center in December 2022, “XO & Struggle” returns in joyous, critical reflection of the Brigade’s legacy and of the role of filmmaking in the ongoing fight against police and prisons. However, “XO & Struggle II” is neither lament nor call for demolition. It’s a call to action, to creation—for presence, experimentation, abundance, care, and building anew. It’s the invocation of a political project at times mournful and destructive, and yet endlessly invigorated by the preciousness and creativity of human life.

Featuring work by: Saeedah Cook, Kelly Gallagher, Cameron A. Granger, Christopher Harris, Alex Johnston, and Matazi Weathers.

Post-screening conversation with Christopher Harris, Alex Johnston, Saeedah Cook, and Cameron A. Granger, moderated by Emily Rose Apter.

Full program notes available on website:
https://www.spectacletheater.com/xo-struggle-ii-the-george-jackson-brigade-and-abolitionist-cinema/