{"product_id":"forever-free-and-the-illiteracy-playbook","title":"Forever Free and the Illiteracy Playbook","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv style=\"text-align: start;\"\u003e\n\u003cspan style=\"color: #ff0000;\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.collectiveeye.org\/pages\/host-a-screening\" title=\"Community Screenings Form\" target=\"_blank\"\u003e\u003cimg style=\"margin-bottom: 6px; float: start;\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0133\/2562\/files\/WebsiteButton_3bb924f4-b7af-47a7-98d9-8c2765d50eb0_480x480.jpg?v=1718641924\"\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDirected by: \u003c\/strong\u003e Dion Denis Johnson\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReleased:\u003c\/strong\u003e 2026 (educational)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eYear of Production:\u003c\/strong\u003e 2025\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #000000;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRunning Time:\u003c\/strong\u003e 96 min\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #000000;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e English\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #000000;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSubtitle Options:\u003c\/strong\u003e English Closed Captions\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #000000;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSubjects: \u003c\/strong\u003eAmerican Studies, Children and Youth, Education System\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cspan style=\"color: #000000;\"\u003e      \u003ciframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/RPz7uZCXbsY?si=-jhFIH3u6DETSy3x\" title=\"YouTube video player\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e    \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"UTF-8\"\u003e \u003cmeta charset=\"UTF-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMillions of Americans—especially in marginalized communities—struggle with basic literacy, a crisis rooted in generations of educational inequity. This documentary confronts that deliberate reality head-on, weaving archival footage, expert insights, and deeply personal stories into a powerful narrative about literacy as a gateway to civic participation, economic mobility, and personal dignity.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eStructured as a parallel timeline, the film contrasts the enduring tactics of America’s “illiteracy playbook”—terror, political suppression, and systemic neglect—with the triumphs of those who resisted. From Reconstruction-era classrooms to modern family literacy efforts, it uncovers a legacy of defiance and innovation that forms a new “literacy playbook” for today’s educators, advocates, and policymakers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBy connecting past heroism with present-day urgency, the film offers not just a history lesson, but a blueprint for change—rooted in resilience, legacy, and the transformative power of reading.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e       \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 0.875rem;\"\u003eDC Independent Film Festival - Best In Fest\u003cbr\u003eMaryland International Film Festival - Official Selection\u003cbr\u003eCleveland International Film Festival - Official Selection\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 0.875rem;\"\u003e         \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 0.875rem;\"\u003e       \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAbout the filmmaker \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv style=\"text-align: left;\"\u003e      \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv style=\"text-align: left;\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"Profile-bioCopy\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDion Johnson, a longstanding resident of Prince George’s County, MD and Morgan State University graduate in Electrical Engineering, is an award-winning filmmaker, media entrepreneur, international speaker, photographer, and published author. After founding two successful IT\u003cbr\u003ebusinesses, Dion co-created JayMedia Group with his wife, where he established publishing processes and created the layout for the company’s first book. He has since carved out a niche in personalized magazines, web development and graphic design, photography and film.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs the head of JayMedia Films - a division of JayMedia Group - Dion has directed, produced, written, and edited multiple projects—including the closed-captioned TV program Service in Action, company videos, and several award-winning films that have been licensed and streamed on multiple outlets. His film and media projects have been employed in corporate and university settings, youth sports organizations, and creative communities nationwide.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"C9DxTc\"\u003e\u003cb id=\"docs-internal-guid-11ad2532-7fff-a9e7-43bd-4551780ac1dc\"\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.collectiveeye.org\/pages\/screenings\"\u003eHost a Screening and Book the Filmmaker at your Event\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"gmail_quote\"\u003e\n\u003cblockquote class=\"gmail_quote\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/blockquote\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"pageContainer1\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"page\" title=\"Page 2\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"layoutArea\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"column\"\u003e\n\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Dion Denis Johnson","offers":[{"title":"University \u0026 College DVD (with PPR*)","offer_id":49165555269940,"sku":"FFIP-U","price":375.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Digital Site License","offer_id":49165555302708,"sku":"FFIP-D","price":550.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"DVD + DSL (w\/ PPR)","offer_id":49165555335476,"sku":"FFIP-DD","price":625.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0133\/2562\/files\/FFIPposter.jpg?v=1781731578","url":"https:\/\/www.collectiveeye.org\/products\/forever-free-and-the-illiteracy-playbook","provider":"Collective Eye Films","version":"1.0","type":"link"}