I have to stop the video.

My vision is clouded with tears.

The pop of gunshots rings in my ears and a video of the Parkland shooting is frozen on my phone screen.

I participated in the walkout, I saw the pictures, I read the articles, but I didn’t get it.

I couldn’t put myself in one of those classrooms, huddled in a corner, staring at my classmate’s body sprawled in a pool of blood…

Then I watched Fahrenheit 11/9.

This documentary is Michael Moore’s epic “I told you so.” He predicted what no one else could.
The election of President Donald Trump.

This is where you stop reading. You’ve heard it on NPR, you’ve seen it on twitter. Another radical liberal whining about the government.

But this documentary is not just about Trump.

It’s about the American people.

Fahrenheit 11/9 chronicles the tragedies and triumphs of a nation. Moore documents people’s distress after events like the Parkland shooting. But he also shows how their pain motivated them to become political advocates.

Each tragedy he investigates is complemented by a source of hope.

This documentary is not impartial or objective, but it never claims to be. And although Moore’s political opinions are evident, the central conflict of the film isn’t between Democrats and Republicans. It’s between corrupt politicians and the American people. In fact, three quarters of the way in he attacks the Democratic icon Barack Obama.

So, don’t be too hasty in dismissing this film. Even staunch Republicans may be moved to tears by the poignant stories Moore tells.

Americans have watched the events of the past three years unfold on TVs and newspapers and iphone screens. Right now, they’re fresh in our memories. But, a few decades from now how many people will remember the emotions that made these events significant?

Fahrenheit 11/9 is a time capsule.

It reminds us never to forget.