On Friday, June 29th, I went to the Frank Banko Alehouse Cinema at ArtsQuest to see the documentary Won't You Be My Neighbor? This feature length documentary was directed by Morgan Neville and released in select theaters on June 8, 2018. It is a reflection on Fred Rogers and his creation of the hit television show Mister Rogers' Neighborhood.
Confession: I've never seen a brand new documentary in a theater before, but something about this one caught my eye. As a child in the dark ages of the early 1980s, we didn't have the Disney Channel or Nickelodeon; all we had was PBS's Sesame Street, 3-2-1 Contact, Reading Rainbow, and Mister Rogers. So I grew up watching it, but haven't thought much about it in over 30 years.
However, last year some of my AP students studied a speech he gave in 1969 to the Senate Subcommittee on Communication in order to save funding for Public Television; he was successful in his persuasion, despite an initially hostile audience. Getting to know this speech made me curious to learn more about him and the show I enjoyed as a child.
I learned a lot from watching this documentary. First, Fred Rogers was both an early childhood education specialist and an ordained minister. You never really would've thought of it as preaching, but he viewed his gentle teaching of love and acceptance as his ministry; he just did it through puppets and outreach, rather than in a church. I thought that was fascinating because as kids, you had no idea that you were being "fed" these really important and deep messages about tolerance, but as an adult, you totally see it.
For example, the documentary included a section on this song that was sung by Daniel Tiger and Lady Aberlin. I don't specifically remember seeing this as a child, so yesterday was my first encounter. Daniel was singing about being afraid that he was a "mistake" because he's unique, and Lady Aberlin was singing a counter-melody trying to assure him that "you're not a flake, you're no mistake, you're my friend."
This episode aired in 1987... when I heard it yesterday, I saw such a powerful attempt trying to reassure kids who are afraid that something is inherently wrong with them. Thirty years ago, kids were getting these messages that no one is a mistake and everyone belongs just as they are... it made me realize, it's no wonder my generation is the one that has made such strides in forwarding things like LGBT rights. We've been conditioned for acceptance since we were children. And the crazy thing is, Mister Rogers was spreading those messages since 1968! (side note: the film actually addressed his evolution on the visibility of a gay cast member, which I thought was really interesting and didn't know before).
I think the thing that struck me the most about this documentary was learning how intentional Fred Rogers was. This show wasn't slapped together or fluff; it was a direct reaction to much of the meaningless, and often cartoonishly violent, content on television for children. It was an intentional labor of passion, created by a man who understood children on both a psychological and very human level; he was intent on making a difference, and I think all signs show he was successful. It just made you realize how special this show was, and made you a little sad that there's not anything quite like it on TV today. Watching those old clips, it seems so quaint... but maybe there's something necessary and special in the simplicity.
