In honor of Black History Month, Hoop Habits would strongly encourage everyone to view “HOOPS, HOPES & DREAMS,” a short documentary that released nationally several weeks ago on the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday. It is available on Hulu and the Hulu hub on Disney+.
This powerful documentary tells the untold story of how Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and an all-star team of civil rights activists took to the basketball court to connect with and mobilize younger voters and provides a through line to contemporary politics when President Obama used a similar strategy during his historic campaign.
The film was directed by artist and filmmaker Glenn Kaino, and includes a mixture of historical footage, animation, and exclusive interviews to tell a unique story of sports and social change. Actor and activist, Jesse Williams, a long-time collaborator and friend of Kaino’s perhaps best captures the essence of the film(and the beauty of the sport we love), “Basketball as a vehicle for cooperation, working together and seeing and being receptive to one another,” Williams said. “Unifying folks who don’t speak the same language, aren’t from the same place, aren’t the same size or age, across all generations and cultural norms, consistently proves to be immeasurable.”
“HOOPS, HOPES & DREAMS” premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival and went on to win the Best Documentary Short at the 2025 Cleveland International Film Festival. Dr. Bernice A. King, Martin Luther King’s daughter and CEO of the King Center, served as the Executive Producer of the film and said it reflects how culture and collective action can move us closer to the Beloved Community.
