In 2019, a Boulder police officer harassed and threatened Zayd Atkinson, a Naropa University student, with his taser and his gun.  Zayd had been performing his work-study job at his student housing.  This racial profiling catalyzed a mass protest and a community-wide conversation on the subject of race and Boulder. More recently, the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police has further intensified this conversation, as Boulderites of all kinds took to the streets in protest.  With increased awareness that Boulder is struggling with deeply-entrenched racism, young activists are now working to turn dialogue into sustained, transformative action.

This is [Not] Who We Are documents Zayd’s story and interviews a cross-section of Boulderites to capture aspects of this conversation and the issues it has raised.  The film seeks to deepen the dialogue about Boulder, the increasingly gentrified future toward which it is heading, and whether a more economically, racially diverse, and socially just future is possible.  The voices of This is [Not] Who We Are suggest that Boulder is still driving many of its most talented and promising young people away.  The young people speak on their own behalf, and the elders share their decades of experience in a community that is not as liberal or as open as it believes it is.  The film explores new solutions to old problems, frontiers that are trying to reach beyond dialogue to informed action.  This Is [Not] Who We Are will speak to communities across the country, as people from many backgrounds seek positive efforts toward dialogue and systemic change.