A groundbreaking new documentary, They’re Trying to Kill Us, features notable leaders and influencers from the fields of Hip Hop, medicine, sports, entertainment, policy, and politics weighing in on the singular most deadly threat to American society. And it’s not police brutality or firearms.
The film features interviews with Hip Hop artists, celebrities and medical professionals such as Ne-Yo, Mya, Dame Dash and Cedric The Entertainer. The film also features exclusive interviews with NBA All-Star Chris Paul and multiple Grammy Award Winner Billie Eilish, who are both Executive Producers on the film.
Co-directors John Lewis and Keegan Kuhn have teamed up to tell the untold story of the intersections of diet, disease, poverty, institutional racism, food deserts, government corruption and collusion with Big Food and the pharmaceutical industry. The film follows John from his upbringing in Ferguson as he seeks answers from experts as to why Americans of Color are dying from chronic diseases at often twice the rate of white Americans. Along the way he speaks with Hip Hop artists and celebrities who share their own personal experiences with how poor diets have led to a staggeringly high rate of deaths.
What is the singular most deadly threat to American society?
John: The simple answer is food. The top killers of Americans is chronic disease caused by diet and lifestyle. Heart disease, hypertension, type 2 diabetes and many types of cancer can be directly linked to the foods people eat and those foods are the most marketed, federally subsidized and widely available foods in this country. But this threat is greatest and felt the strongest for communities of color.
Tell us about what led you to your documentary, They’re Trying to Kill Us.
Keegan: When John Lewis and I started looking at the major health disparities that exist between African Americans and European Americans we knew there was a story that wasn’t being told and so we felt compelled to bring this issue to greater attention with a feature documentary.
John, you went out to seek answers from experts as to why Americans of Color are dying from chronic diseases at often twice the rate of white Americans. What shocked you the most?
What shocked me most was finding out that our DNA has less to do with our likelihood of getting and dying from chronic disease than our diet. Everyone talks about how their grandma, mom or dad has diabetes and so it runs in their family, so of course they have it too, but the truth is, everyone shares the same diet and that is why they all have the same diseases. We have been intentionally mislead to believe that our health outcomes are out of our control because of our genetics, but for the vast majority of us, it is in our control and it is the food we eat.
Why are rates of chronic disease skyrocketing in communities of color?
John: One of the main reasons communities of color suffer from higher rates of disease is because of the lack of access to healthy foods. Many African Americans live in neighborhoods which don’t have grocery stores. If you live in a community that only has fast food and corner stores, you are going to eat what is available and it’s all junk. Poverty is a major factor in this because access to healthy foods is often tied directly to income. If you work two jobs and don’t have a car, you aren’t able to get to grocery stores, you face not having enough money to buy fresh food and the whole system is set up to keep you sick.
Tell us about the film.
Keegan: They’re Trying To Kill Us follows co-director John Lewis on a journey around the country as he seeks to find answers to why Americans of Color are suffering and dying at disproportionately higher rates of chronic disease than their European American counterparts. Through speaking with experts in their fields and investigating further, John uncovers a twisted connection tying poverty, diet, disease, institutional racism, legacies of slavery with modern government and powerful industries profiting off sickness and death.
You feature interviews with Hip Hop artists, celebrities and medical professionals such as Ne-Yo, Mya, Dame Dash and Cedric The Entertainer to name a few. Why was the celebrity perspective so important for your film?
John: Hip Hop is arguably the most influential art form in modern history. What artists say, wear, drive, eat and drink influences what their millions of fans do. A lot fans don’t realize that their favorite artists care deeply about health and well-being, so we wanted to give these incredible entertainers a platform to speak about some of the issues closest to their hearts.
Were there recurring themes?
Keegan: At one point during making this film, John joked that the documentary could be called “disproportionately”, because that is the recurring theme. Black Americans are disproportionately more likely to be killed by police, wrongly convicted, die of chronic disease, live in food deserts, live near factory farms, etc than their white counterparts.
The injustice of this society is disproportionately heaped on African Americans.
The film also features exclusive interviews with NBA All-Star Chris Paul and multiple Grammy Award Winner Billie Eilish, who are both Executive Producers on the film. Tell us more.
Keegan: Chris and Billie are both incredibly talented people who care deeply about social justice issues. Their willingness to come on board as executive producers for this film speaks volumes for who they truly are and their commitment to moving society forward. They both do so much for communities behind the scenes and their cultural influence is undeniable. We feel incredibly honored to have them as part of the team.
What is behind the distrust of the medical profession in communities of color?
John: Sadly there is a long history of medical racism in this country. From historic events like the Tuskegee Study, or the 4X higher rates of maternal/infant mortality for black mothers and babies when cared for by white doctors or the ongoing medical textbooks that claim black patients exaggerate their claims. Black Americans are keenly aware that they often don’t receive the same level of care in hospitals as white patients. Just because a doctor wears a white coat doesn’t mean he doesn’t also wear a white hood.
How can society come together to rectify the issue?
John: I think one of the first steps is to address the underlying racists and white supremacist ideology that permeates society and government. We can’t keep acting like racism doesn’t play a role in all of this. Until we fix that problem, we are going to continue to battle uphill against a destructive force. The whole reason this food apartheid and medical apartheid exists is because of racism and money. White people need to realize that they are dying for other people’s profits too, so it’s not like they are getting out of this unscathed. We need to come together and stand up against a system that oppresses people, the planet and entire communities and find a better way. On November 11th, at 11am EST exclusively at www.theyretryingtokillus.com $20 to download.
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