FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Documentary on Literacy, History, and Civic Life to Screen Feb. 14 at Regal Gallery Place After Multiple National Festival Selections

Washington, DC — Forever Free and the Illiteracy Playbook, a new documentary exploring the roots and modern impact of America’s literacy crisis through the lens of Maryland and the greater Washington region, has been accepted into multiple national film festivals and will screen at the DC Independent Film Festival on February 14 at the Regal Gallery Place Theater.

Produced and directed by Morgan State University alumnus Dion Johnson, the film was shot extensively in Laurel, Maryland, and examines how literacy has shaped generations across the region—from segregation‑era classrooms to today’s community learning spaces.

The documentary features the Laurel Branch Library, a major community anchor in Prince George’s County, and explores the history of Montpelier Mansion. It also revisits the historic Laurel Shopping Center—the site of the 1972 shooting of Governor George Wallace—connecting that moment to broader questions about power, education, and civic life that continue to resonate across the DC metro area. These locations, along with stories from residents and community leaders, situate the film within the region’s complex educational and social history.

The film traces the political roots of literacy suppression, highlights the people working to reverse today’s literacy crisis, and follows the legacy of the filmmaker’s mother, who grew up in a segregated “colored school” and went on to earn a doctorate and found a Bible college. Her story reflects the resilience found across communities throughout the Washington–Baltimore corridor.