To See or Not to See: Won’t You Be My Neighbor?

“Love is at the root of everything – all learning, all parenting, all relationships. Love or the lack of it. And what we see and hear on the screen is part of who we become.” -Fred Rogers

Fred Rogers was a pioneer of children’s television and, as such, has made a lasting impressions on the millions of people who watched the beloved classic, Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. In Won’t You Be My Neighbor, filmmaker Morgan Neville has created a documentary that reminds people what a difference one person can make.

Using archival footage of the TV show and behind-the-scenes footage along with interviews with people who knew and loved Fred (like his wife, Joanne Rogers and colleagues Betty Aberlin and Francois Clemmons), we see the evolution of the children’s TV show and Fred’s lifetime of dedication to childhood development and education.

Another aspect of the documentary that is interesting to learn (or be reminded of) are the ways in which Mister Rogers’s Neighborhood was progressive. From having an African American cast member join the show in the late 60s (and treating him as an equal) when something like that was incredibly rare to see on TV to discussing death and grief after Robert F. Kennedy’s assassination, Mr. Rogers showed us that children need to understand and process emotions and the world around them in the same way that adults do. The feelings children feel are just as valid, important, and that the way in which they are or are not experienced shape who they become.

Perhaps some of the most moving parts of the documentary feature select children and adults whose lives he and the show impacted as well as the personal inspiration behind some of the imaginary characters Rogers created. Sharing his own struggles with self-worth and fear via the medium of puppets, Rogers was able to connect with children in a way that most adults struggle to do.

Both Mister Rogers’s Neighborhood and Fred Rogers himself taught children (and adults) that compassion and kindness are two of the most important things we can share with others. Won’t You Be My Neighbor? is just the reminder of those important lessons that everyone needs right now. Everyone should watch this film. Just remember to bring tissues.