Stokes' Dilemma takes audiences into the high-stakes political and social turmoil of the 1960s by exploring the rise of Black Nationalism in Cleveland and its profound impact on the groundbreaking political journey of Carl Stokes, the first Black mayor of a major American city.
At the heart of this story of systemic racism lies the intersection of three transformative figures who shaped the course of race relations in the United States: civil rights icon Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., pioneering politician Carl Stokes, and militant Black Nationalist Fred Ahmed Evans.
Stokes, wary that King’s presence will alienate white voters, resists the civil rights leader coming to Cleveland in 1967. On a mission to empower poor Americans through voter registration, King arrives determined to stay and creates an uneasy alliance with Stokes. Meanwhile, King works to turn Fred Ahmed Evans away from his militant ideology and toward peaceful civic engagement.
Stokes wins an historic victory in November 1967, but the tide shifts dramatically just five months later with King's assassination in April 1968. Evans reverts to militancy, culminating in the bloodiest day in Cleveland police history - a tragic moment that undermines the fragile progress Stokes fought to achieve.
Through compelling archival footage, powerful interviews, and evocative storytelling, Stokes' Dilemma examines how Carl Stokes navigated the volatile intersection of race, politics, and power, forging unlikely alliances while grappling with the question of whether progress could come through the ballot or the bullet.
