The Friendliest Town comes to streaming platforms and Blu-Ray/DVD January 19, 2021 from Ace Spectrum Productions and The Real News Network. This documentary follows the story of Kelvin Sewell, the first African American Police Chief in the town of Pocomoke and his efforts to create a safe town while fighting institutionalized racism. The small racially divided town acts as a case study to limits on reforms and how racism acts as an obstacle to change. In 2011, Sewell was hired as police chief. He was tired of aggressive police tactics that caused more harm than good, especially as they often targeted black communities. Using a different approach, he and his officers parked their vehicles and walked the streets to build relationships with residents, especially those who had been victimized the most.
Here’s the synopsis:
Sewell’s system worked: crime plummeted. Residents both black and white became ardent supporters of Sewell’s new paradigm of policing. It seemed all was well. Yet a conflict was brewing that would turn the city upside down; an ongoing dispute over racial discrimination engulfed Sewell and his officers in a battle that would not only cost them their jobs and professional reputations, but would thrust them into an emotional legal battle that would touch all segments of the community. Award winning The Real News Network reporters Stephen Janis (director) and Taya Graham (producer), traveled over 45 times to the small town on Maryland’s lower eastern shore, making the 3 ½ hour trip to cover council meetings, interview residents, and to document the political awakening of the town’s African American community.
