Jan. 18, 2007

Remembering the struggle
Concord groups join to offer film series on civil rights
By Heidi Masek

The Concord Area Interfaith Council, New Hampshire Technical Institute and Red River Theatres are presenting three evenings of film to honor Civil Rights and Martin Luther King Day.

It’s easy to see national holidays mainly as a day off from work or school, but film can be an important way to engage people in discussion about current and past political life, Connie Rosemont of Red River said.

Mel Borrowes of the Canterbury Community Church sought the help of the NHTI Film Society to bring the Interfaith event to a wider audience. “It’s part of our mission as a community college, not only for the benefit of our students but [for] the greater Concord community as a whole,” NHTI director of learning resources Steve Ambra said about their participation.

“I think it’s going to be a very powerful weekend and I think audiences will be changed,” Rosemont said.

The selection of films is meant to give a historical perspective as well as a more contemporary one to see how far American society has moved in regard to civil rights in the past 40 years.

It opens Friday, Jan. 19, at Sweeney Hall at NHTI with a local tie. Here Am I: Send Me: The Journey of Jonathan Daniels was produced by Larry Benaquist of Keene State College. Daniels was a New Hampshire activist who was killed while working for civil rights in Alabama. In the Heat of the Night and To Kill A Mockingbird are well-known older films, while the award-winning 1993 documentary At the River I Stand takes a contemporary look back at the two months leading up to King’s death, Rosemont said. The series closes with Spike Lee’s Malcom X, a biography of the black leader whose tactics initially differed from King’s, Rosemont said.

“It’s just sort of a lot of food for thought. It will be sort of exciting to see these film with audiences,” Rosemont said.

Borrowes also suggested a live component. The Songhealers, a small subset of the Songweavers chorus from the Concord Community Music School, will perform.

Red River was asked to promote the event with their audience, and all three organizing groups participated in film selection, Ambra said. A donation of $5 is requested for admission.

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