‘The Rebel Girls’ Is A Story Of The Civil Rights Movement Children

Storytelling goes beyond simply raising awareness for a particular situation—it weaves history into the present while inspiring hope for the future. Imagine being a teenage Black girl marching for justice in 1963, only to be arrested and confined to a holding cell without beds, a bathroom or proper nourishment. Could you summon the mental strength to fight for your freedom?

Hollywood showrunner Felicia D. Henderson’s directorial debut, The Rebel Girls, is in the running for an Oscar nomination. It transports viewers to Americus, Georgia, spotlighting a pivotal, overlooked historical moment. Inspired by the true story of the 1960s fight for Civil Rights through the eyes of the girls who reinvigorated the struggling movement through the power of magical thinking, friendship, faith and fortitude.

“No one has the power to control your mind,” states Henderson during a Zoom interview. “It’s contemporary in that we are about to approach a very scary four years. But at the same time, what this film tells us, and what’s important, is that we must look toward the future. Just because we find ourselves here doesn’t mean that the here, the scary, controls us. This story of hope is saying, ‘We’re strong. We can make it. We will get through this.’ We must, just like those girls did; they went inside of their heads. Their bodies were imprisoned, but in their heads, they were dreaming.”

The story of the Leesburg Stockade gained wider recognition in 2016. Henderson’s friend sent her information on the story. It was the first time the Hollywood producer had heard of it.

Fifteen young Black girls, ranging in age from 12 to 15—though some survivors recall there being closer to 30—were imprisoned for challenging segregation laws. Their peaceful protest was met with brutality as law enforcement arrived, viciously attacked them and made arrests.

Without formal charges, the girls were held for 45 days in the Leesburg Stockade, a deteriorating Civil War-era building hidden deep in the woods of Georgia. Meanwhile, their parents—just 20 miles away—had no idea where their children were being kept or the inhumane conditions they endured.

Immediately, Henderson wanted to make a television series out of it to bring the injustice and bravery to light. She connected with two survivors, Lulu Westbrook and Carol Seay, and gained rights to their life stories.

Having been in the industry for three decades, working on shows ranging from Soul Food to Empire, Henderson has developed relationships with individuals across all departments. She first contacted executive producer Liesl Wilke, who became her first financial backer. That support nudged Henderson to assemble the team. Her A-list behind-the-scenes crew included music composer Kurt Farquhar, casting director Leah Daniels Butler, executive producer Caroline Williams and Dr. Bernice King, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s daughter.

As this story is about the perseverance of survival for the young girls, this new chapter in Henderson’s career pushed her beyond what she thought was possible. Although she had to pivot the goal from a series to a short film, she captured the essence of the dire situation.

“A lot of times we don’t ask because for whatever reason, whether it’s pride or you don’t want to impose on anyone, whatever the case may be, sometimes you don’t ask people for help,” Butler comments. “I watched Felicia do it, and everyone she asked said ‘yes.’ That’s a testament to who she is.“

The children warriors of the Civil Rights movement have never had their story told in mainstream media. It was important to showcase the different shades of Black girls’ skin tones for authentic representation. Henderson cast young actors. For many of them, the short film was their first project.

The film takes you on an emotional journey through the girls’ memories, the reality of the situation and their daydreams, which helped keep them sane as 45 days passed before anyone realized what had happened to them. Kyanna “Keekee” Simone played Bertha, an inspiring boxer who dreamt of winning a championship.

“The entire time I was filming, I had the flu, which helped me get into the character of Bertha,” Simone explains. “Bertha is one of those girls whose activism wasn’t at the front of her mind then. She was put into this position where she had to fight for herself and for the girls that she was put into this horrible position with. I was able to relate to it a bit by being so sick. After we finished filming, there was a piece of Bertha that was still with me that urged me to strive, fight, speak up.”

As women continue to fight for equality in the workplace and society, the stories of the underrepresented are critical to share. These stories raise the voices of the silenced and encourage women to keep going and stand up for what they believe is right. These untold journeys help others feel less alone during uncertain times.

King shares, “My hope is that The Rebel Girls will receive the funding to be developed as a feature film or TV series so that those in this generation who are fearful of the times we are living in can see themselves through the eyes of those young girls and be empowered to work together for freedom and draw inspiration from a previous generation that had the strength, courage and resilience to resist injustice nonviolently.”