“From the moment we were first dumped in Jamestown and had our teeth checked before getting sold off and later considered three-fifths of a human being, an abundance of 'likability' hasn't been something blacks have had to stockpile. Instead, it's been a centuries-long battle for respectability.”

American screenwriter, television director, novelist, and showrunner

John Ridley is an American screenwriter, television director, novelist, and showrunner. He is known for writing 12 Years a Slave, which won him the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, and for creating and running the anthology series American Crime. Ridley has worked across film and television as both a writer and director. He directed the documentary Let It Fall: Los Angeles 1982 to 1992 in 2017, and his work is closely associated with drama rooted in history, race, and American life.