The Best 4th of July Movie on Netflix is Still ‘Crip Camp,’ the Obama-Produced Documentary

Most “4th of July movies on Netlfix” lists would point you to patriotic war movies like White House Down or Patriot’s Day . Both of those films are on Netflix, if that’s the kind of thing you’re looking for. But for many, there are a lot of reasons to feel not so patriotic on this Independence Day. If you’re not in the mood to celebrate America so much as you are looking to engage with it’s nuanced, complex history of discrimination and resulting political activism, then the best 4th of July movie streaming on Netflix is still Crip Camp , a 2020 Oscar-nominated documentary about the American disability rights movement.

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Produced by Barack and Michelle Obama through their Higher Ground production company, Crip Camp tells the story of a community of disabled teens who grew be activists instrumental to changing policies and American attitudes toward disabled people. The movie is anchored by archival footage of a little hippie camp in upstate New York from the ’70s, called Camp Jened, where teens with disabilities gathered for the summer. That’s just one reason it’s the perfect 4th of July flick: the impeccable summer fun vibes.

If you love camp movies like Wet Hot American Summer or nostalgic documentaries about Woodstock (Camp Jened was just a few miles away from the music festival site), you will have a blast with this incredible footage. This is a camp in the ’70s run for teens, by teens, with almost no adult supervision. They’re playing guitar, they’re smoking cigarettes, they’re playing baseball, they’re initiating summer flings. Jim LeBrecht, who co-directed the film with Nicole Newnham, is a Camp Jened alum himself, so it’s no wonder that viewers feel totally immersed in this nostalgic teen utopia.

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But in addition to their childhood antics, these kids are also having frank discussions about what it means to rely completely on your parents for basic things like showering, eating, and getting around the house. They’re being reminded by their counselors—many of whom have never seen a disabled person before this camp—to speak at their fellow campers with cerebral palsy, and not about them. They’re becoming a tight-knit community. They’re realizing that though they’ve spent most of their lives isolated, forced to the margins of a society that refuses to accommodate them, they are not alone. They’re stronger together.

Some of us may have life-long friendships, but few of us have life-long friendships that morph into a political movement that reshapes the fate of the country. But that’s what a core group of Camp Jened alum did. The second half of Crip Camp recounts the lives of campers who became disability activists, led by Judy Heumann, who eventually became the first Director for the Department on Disability Services. Heumann, who had polio as a baby and uses a wheelchair, is a bonafide folk hero, taking on lawmakers in Congress with awe-inspiring speeches. Together, she and her friends push through policies that eventually led the life-changing Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which passed in 1990.

Crip Camp may not be packaged as a July Fourth movie, but it tells a story of American history that’s far more truthful and accurate than a Mark Wahlberg movie ever could. And you won’t just learn about an overlooked chapter in American history—you’ll learn about what it means to be human. Most importantly, you’ll learn why it’s crucial that we protect each other’s humanity.

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