Evento

Abraham Lincoln Brigade Film Tribute

Guest Speakers: James Fernandez, ALBA Board Member; Jeanne Houck, ALBA Executive Director; Jill Annitto, ALBA Director of Operations

70th anniversary event commemorating the departure of the volunteers from Spain & Celebrate the release of War is Beautiful: the Journal of an American ambulance driver in the Spanish Civil War

Forever Activists is the stirring account of 3000 Americans, the Abraham Lincon Brigagde, men and women who in 1936 left the safety of civilian life to fight for the survival of the democratic Spanish government. Hitler supported the fascist Franco forces through his heavily re-armed military sorely challenging the Spanish Loyalists who suffered from arms embargoes by the US, France and England. Judith Montells film documents 50 years of Brigaders lives as they continued to play significant roles in the post World War II years: Joe McCarthy witchhunts, the Vietnam Anti-War movement, and U.S. interventions in Latin and South America. In October 1986, a contingent of the Lincoln Brigade veterans, now in their 70s and 80s, were with other international brigaders honored with Spanish citizenship in an emotional ceremony and with a special tribute paid by the Spanish government for those who gave their lives. Why is the contribution of the Abraham Lincoln Brigaders written out of U.S. history, and why are they denied credit for being years ahead of their time as the first Americans to take up arms against Hitlers aggression while the U.S. remained aloof from the struggle. The Brigaders were branded as Communist supporters by the House Un-American Activities Committee and their endless Red Scare tactics. When Brigaders were among the first to volunteer to fight in World War II, they were placed under suspicion and attempts were made to limit their service.

Judith Montells Professional Revolutionary: The Life of Saul Wellman tells the story of Wellmans political activism. It ends with Wellman, now in a wheelchair, preparing to participate in an Anti-Iraq War demonstaion in April 2003. Wellman sums up his lifes work: The worst thing is passivity.

Forever Activists: USA, 1991, 60 min.
Professional Revolutionary: USA, 2004, 60 min.