Overview

• Bayard Rustin, a key figure in the civil rights movement and organizer of the 1963 March on Washington, is the focus of a new Netflix biopic titled 'Rustin'.
• The film, produced by Barack and Michelle Obama's production company, explores Rustin's navigation of personal and political hurdles as an openly gay Black man during a time when homosexuality was heavily stigmatized.
• Rustin was a pacifist who studied Gandhi's philosophy of nonviolence in India and passed it on to Martin Luther King Jr., earning him the nickname 'American Gandhi'.
• Costume designer Toni-Leslie James worked extensively to authentically depict the fashion of the Civil Rights era, with a particular focus on showcasing Rustin's multi-dimensional character through his clothing.
• The film is part of a recent resurgence of interest in Rustin's life and work, which also includes a new musical and a new book.