"Political correctness does not legislate tolerance; it only organizes hatred.”
Jacques Barzun
Should today's selections offend you, remember that it's all history,
and that the future is what we need to put first and remember best.
Phronesis
Noveltoon: The Stupidstitious Cat (1946)
A determined baby bird goes out of the nest and finds trouble in a world he doesn't yet understand.
Sharecropping In The 20th Century - Our Story
A narrative of 5 former African American sharecroppers in the rural South during the Jim Crow era. A powerful statement of an era of American history.
Killer Diller (1948)
Vaudeville lives in this African American musical variety show, featuring The Nat King Cole Trio, the Clark Brothers and other great musical and comedy acts. Look for acts that inspired later singers and comedians.
Black Brigade (1970) A redneck officer (Stephen Boyd) is put in charge of a squad of all black troops charged with the mission of securing an important hydro dam in Nazi Germany. Their failure would delay the Allies advance into Germany, thus prolonging the war. These African-Americans are relegated to cleaning latrines and have little real military training, but Captain Beau Carter has no choice. He leads the rag-tag unit to secure the dam and they turn out to be heroic. Originally entitled Carter's Army, aired on TV in 1969. Great cast and an interesting story line.
The Negro Soldier (United States War Department - 1943)
World War II recruitment film aimed at African Americans. An African American church minister tells his flock why they should join the armed forces to fight the Nazis. Historical re-enactments of African Americans as valued participants in US armed conflicts dating from the American Revolution. The balance of the film deals with the Aftican American experience within the war effort, the conditions of their living and training, with special attention paid to the respect and dignity they will have and deserve. Part of the United States National Archives Collection.
The Brother From Another Planet (1984)
A mute alien is chased by outer-space bounty hunters through the streets of Harlem in this thought-provoking cult classic. Directed by John Sayles, starring Joe Morton, Rosanna Carter, Ray Ramirez.
Nigger (2004)
A word of hate or term of endearment? Like many young African American teens, Jermaine used the word every day. Then, in the summer of 2003, he traveled down south and met people for whom nigger will never be just another word.
A word of hate or term of endearment? Like many young African American teens, Jermaine used the word every day. Then, in the summer of 2003, he traveled down south and met people for whom nigger will never be just another word.
Sharecropping In The 20th Century - Our Story
A narrative of 5 former African American sharecroppers in the rural South during the Jim Crow era. A powerful statement of an era of American history.
Killer Diller (1948)
Vaudeville lives in this African American musical variety show, featuring The Nat King Cole Trio, the Clark Brothers and other great musical and comedy acts. Look for acts that inspired later singers and comedians.
Black Brigade (1970) A redneck officer (Stephen Boyd) is put in charge of a squad of all black troops charged with the mission of securing an important hydro dam in Nazi Germany. Their failure would delay the Allies advance into Germany, thus prolonging the war. These African-Americans are relegated to cleaning latrines and have little real military training, but Captain Beau Carter has no choice. He leads the rag-tag unit to secure the dam and they turn out to be heroic. Originally entitled Carter's Army, aired on TV in 1969. Great cast and an interesting story line.
The Negro Soldier (United States War Department - 1943)
World War II recruitment film aimed at African Americans. An African American church minister tells his flock why they should join the armed forces to fight the Nazis. Historical re-enactments of African Americans as valued participants in US armed conflicts dating from the American Revolution. The balance of the film deals with the Aftican American experience within the war effort, the conditions of their living and training, with special attention paid to the respect and dignity they will have and deserve. Part of the United States National Archives Collection.
The Brother From Another Planet (1984)
A mute alien is chased by outer-space bounty hunters through the streets of Harlem in this thought-provoking cult classic. Directed by John Sayles, starring Joe Morton, Rosanna Carter, Ray Ramirez.
Have fun!
Enough already ! Why can't it just be American history ? It's time to come together or separate !
ReplyDeleteI think that might be their point.
ReplyDeleteAfrican American...WHY...Not American African..
ReplyDeleteAMERICA COMES FIRST NOT SECOND, this is the problem with This country second BEST???
The left has always divided Americans by race . Just look at what they're doing in Hawaii giving away U.S. land so that a new nation can be formed .
ReplyDeleteIf you all are so interested in African American History and race relations: don't forget something from Salisbury's own sordid past. In 1931 an innocent black man was hung in front of the Wicomico County Courthouse by a lynch mob for a murder that, it was later discovered, was committed by someone else (a white someone else). Don't think for a minute that people forget these things.
ReplyDeleteAfrican? yeah right.
ReplyDeleteWhy black history instead of just history, you ask? Because for many, many years, there was no black history in America, other than to mention the slaves.
ReplyDeleteFor years, black children were expected to learn about all the important whites. But according to the textbooks, there were no important blacks.
Someday, our history will be fully blended. But the protesting here shows why it is important that we all -- black, white, red, yellow, tan, brown -- learn about each other's people and history.
To the contributor who posted this, thank you. Sorry you got so much flack. "Glory," the story of an all-black Union brigade led by a white man, is still one of my favorite movies today. (Civil War buff.)
It opened my eyes and made me wonder why such stories are such well-kept secrets.
No bleeding heart liberal, just someone who sees how much we undervalue the stories of others because they don't look like us.
Tom
WOW, Do African Americans even realize that it was there OWN People that sold them to the dutch and british,WHY dont they teach that in School History??????
ReplyDelete1:06, 1931? Lets see, to really be able to understand what happened at the time, you would have to be probably 10. That would mean today you would be 89. Can't be that many people around that still remember it. How many innocent white people have been killed, robbed, or beaten by blacks since then. What is the difference? The difference is that it is politically incorrect for a black to be wronged by a white, but politically ok for a black to wrong a white.
ReplyDelete1:06 you're wrong - many people here "remember" the lynching just like you "remember" the civil war. they might not have been present but these stories are passed down and don't think that they haven't worked their way into the local psyche.
ReplyDeletethe '31 lynching is no excuse for subsequent black on white crimes though.
Black people need to keep the race war going.
ReplyDeleteWhat will happen to all of their set asides, government contracts, black colleges, black tv stations, black magazines, etc, etc, etc.
It's all a scam to make white people feel guilty so the money train keeps coming.
I was entertained and learned something from these movies. And from the comments, too. Thanks.
ReplyDelete"1931 an innocent black man was hung in front of the Wicomico County Courthouse" The story was he raped a beat a white woman which is why he was hung. I still have the newspaper that has the article.
ReplyDeleteAll of you folks need to get a life....Its history no matter how you look at it.. Make today a better day and move on ........You cant change yesterday , so quit bitching.........
ReplyDeleteHistory, ( his story ), is defined by whoever is in power at the time.
ReplyDelete