Daniel Fienberg of '' The Hollywood Reporter '' wrote in his review of the first part of the miniseries : " In a film festival environment , in which stories of otherness and barrier-breaking are part of the expected tapestry , '' When We Rise '' might play as a bit quaint , muted and smoothed out for mainstream audiences , which it very clearly is . But even in 2017 , when we like to think that boundaries have been pushed a fair amount and that the voices being heard are as diverse as ever , '' When We Rise '' feels like a rather astounding thing to find on network TV . " James Poniewozik of '' The New York Times '' wrote in his review : " '' When We Rise '' , ABC 's sweeping four-night history of the gay rights movement , is a rebuttal . As a television drama , it often plays like a high-minded , dutiful educational video . But at its best moments , it 's also a timely statement that identity is not just an abstraction but a matter of family , livelihood , life and death . " Greg Braxton of the '' Los Angeles Times '' wrote in his review : " It could 've been a scene from any of the recent protests that have arisen in the stormy first weeks of the Donald Trump presidency . But peering closer — at the '70s garb , the cameras recording the scene — reveals that this was a re-creation of another , similarly tumultuous , time . ... The writer-director is still optimistic that '' When We Rise '' will appeal to a mainstream audience — including Trump supporters — because of its focus on family , emotion and perseverance . " Danette Chavez of '' The A.V. Club '' wrote in her review : " '' When We Rise '' is n't laboring in another production 's shadow , though ; instead , it tries very hard to bring all of those moments and history makers to light . This is obviously a huge undertaking , one that traces the converging paths of gay activists who thwarted Prop 6 , were later devastated by the rise of AIDS , but then rallied back to win marriage equality in 2015 . Those battles were n't all fought by the exact same people , which pushes the scope of the miniseries even further . But a central trio of characters anchors the story , which runs through four decades ( 1971 to 2015 , roughly ) . " '' When We Rise '' received a nomination for Best Miniseries at the 2018 Satellite Awards and won the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding TV Movie or Limited Series at the 29th GLAAD Media Awards
29th GLAAD Media Awards
29th GLAAD Media Awards
When We Rise