As I'm sure everyone knows by now, Will Smith walked up to the Oscars podium and slapped Chris Rock across the face after making a tasteless joke at the expense of Jada Pinkett Smith and her health condition, alopecia. While it should be recognized that Locke's joke contained sexist overtones, and Smith's act of violence was undeniably inappropriate, there is another injustice here: the Summer of Soul, which won the Best Documentary Feature shortly after the slap, was robbed of an Academy Award history It was robbed of a moment worthy of Oscar history.

Directed by Ahmir Thompson (Grammy Award-winning artist Questlove), Summer of Soul depicts the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival, a six-week event held in Mount Morris Park (now Marcus Garvey Park). The event consisted primarily of concerts. The event consisted primarily of concerts and featured groundbreaking artists such as the Fifth Dimension, B.B. King, Nina Simone, and Stevie Wonder. Held the same summer as Woodstock, the festival was also known as "Black Woodstock," but has been little known since.

Such a long concert with such well-known artists (it lasted six weeks, while Woodstock was only three days!) ), may seem odd that such a little-known piece of music history would be overshadowed by the predominantly white narrative of American history, but this is a classic example of how black history is overshadowed by the predominantly white narrative of American history.

"Summer of Soul" set out to set the record straight: incorporating over 40 hours of original footage that had lain untouched in basements for over 50 years, the film delves into the legendary talent, cultural significance, and immense joy that unfolded at the festival. Moreover, the film marks a major step in reclaiming the place of blacks in the history of rock and roll. Elvis, Led Zeppelin, Janis Joplin, and The Doors have all acknowledged this.

That's all I'm going to say: Summer of Soul is an important film that everyone should pay attention to, and on any other night, the film's Oscar win would have garnered more attention. The film deserved its moment, and Questlove's moving speech and tribute to his parents deserved our full attention, but instead the world turned to Will Smith and Chris Rock, and Twitter (the top trending topic at the time WAS THAT REAL"), and the eyes turned to Twitter (the top trending topic at the time was "WAS THAT").

I'm all for a healthy chaotic energy at awards ceremonies, but at the end of the day, the Oscars is a night to honor film, and a film directed by a black man and focused on black culture winning Best Documentary was a huge moment in history.

Instead, we have the memory of a slap in the face and the confused silence that followed.