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The Mink Slide

The Mink Slide, based on actual events, tells the story of how Black WWII veterans band together to avert the lynching of 19 year old Navy Vet, James "June Bug" Stephenson and his mother, Gladys.

For their brave stand, they are charged with attempted murder by the State of Tennessee. Dispatched by the NAACP, a powerhouse legal defense team including Nashville attorneys Z. Alexander Looby, Maurice Weaver, Leon Ransom and future Supreme Court Justice, Thurgood Marshall were assembled to take on the high profile case. Due to a brilliant strategy, all 25 men charged walk free, despite having an all-white jury.

Livid at their victory in court, the police kidnap Thurgood Marshall with the intent of lynching him. If not for the quick and courageous actions of his colleagues and the very men that he had defended in court, Thurgood Marshall would have perished in the swamps of Tennessee.

  • Christopher Phillips
    Director
  • Owen K. Woodard
    Writer
  • Owen K. Woodard
    Producer
  • Christopher Phillips
    Producer
  • Aretha Graves
    Producer
  • VIckie D. Newton
    Producer
  • Joe PE King
    Key Cast
  • Marty K. Casey
    Key Cast
  • Jason J. Little
    Key Cast
  • Scott Michael Dunn
    Key Cast
  • Tafari Jah
    Key Cast
  • Damaris Varner
    Key Cast
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Drama, Black History, Period, Short
  • Runtime:
    12 minutes 57 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    February 23, 2021
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    REDCODE RAW
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2k 2:1
  • Film Color:
    Black & White
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Christopher Phillips

Christopher is a filmmaker, community servant, and strategist forming Maverick Media Group, a media production company that focuses on film, television, and branding. Although he attained a bachelor’s degree in media communications, the self-taught filmmaker and Ferguson, Missouri resident used his gifts to transform audiences igniting social change by creating the riveting short documentary film “Ferguson 365,” which appeared in 12 festivals across the globe winning five-awards.

His diverse clientele as a director and cinematographer has included Verizon, Adidas, the Associated Press, CBS News, BJC-Children’s Hospital, The New York Times, Magnolia Films, and has work has been included in 60 Minutes, NBC Nightly News, and the Oscar-nominated James Baldwin documentary “I Am Not Your Negro”.

Active in the fight for humanity, Christopher has spoken to hundreds through guest university lectures, educational workshops, and panels. His searing, yet imperative voice against systemic and institutionalized racism can be heard domestically and abroad contributing to several news outlets such as CNN, BBC, the Berkeley Journal of Sociology, Newsweek, Grammy-winning artist J. Cole’s “For Your Eyez Only” documentary on HBO, and Christopher has been profiled by the Washington Post, Al Jazeera, and CBS News.

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Director Statement

For many years, I have been engaged in and documenting social justice activism across the country, with much of it being ignited when Michael Brown Jr. was killed in my apartment complex in 2014. The work I subsequently created from that tragic moment and connection to writer and executive producer, Owen Woodard, is how I was introduced to this story. I was so compelled to bring to life in a vivid way this unique instance of where we have resistance in the Jim Crow era by African-Americans not by protest, but through utilization of their 2nd Amendment rights. Knowing that these men served their country honorably and the risk of their families' safety, while ultimately having to rely on a legal system that did not structure these protections for Black people, I am passionate about telling this story because the collective fight of these individuals, will inspire the current generation of those working towards justice and humanity for all."