Birth of a Movement

In 1915, Boston-based African American newspaper editor and activist William M. Trotter waged a battle against D.W. Griffith’s technically groundbreaking but notoriously Ku Klux Klan-friendly The Birth of a Nation, unleashing a fight that still rages today about race relations, media representation, and the power and influence of Hollywood. Birth of a Movement, based on Dick Lehr's book The Birth of a Movement: How Birth of a Nation Ignited the Battle for Civil Rights, captures the backdrop to this prescient clash between human rights, freedom of speech, and a changing media landscape.

Directed by Bestor Cram, Susan Gray

Videos

1 clips

TrailerIndependent Lens | Birth of a Movement | Trailer | PBS

TrailerIndependent Lens | Birth of a Movement | Trailer | PBS

Images

Cast

Danny Glover

Narrator (voice)

Spike Lee

Self

Henry Louis Gates, Jr.

Self

Reginald Hudlin

Self

Related

The Curse of the Dragon

19937.2out of 10

To Kill a Tiger

20237.6out of 10

Come See Me in the Good Light

20257.2out of 10

A Toxic Love Story

20266.4out of 10

A Decade Under the Influence

20037.9out of 10

Avatar: The Deep Dive - A Special Edition of 20/20

20227.2out of 10

Capital in the Twenty-First Century

20196.5out of 10

Crips and Bloods: Made in America

20096.6out of 10

The U.S. vs. John Lennon

20066.6out of 10

Sidney

20226.9out of 10

The Summers of It - Chapter Two: It Ends

20197.1out of 10

Charlie: The Life and Art of Charles Chaplin

20037.0out of 10

Drew: The Man Behind the Poster

20137.0out of 10

The Class of ‘92

20137.1out of 10

Naqoyqatsi

20026.2out of 10

Nobody Speak: Trials of the Free Press

20176.0out of 10