International Working Class Film and Video Festival (Night 5)

International Working Class Film and Video Festival (Night 5)
July 19 (Monday) 7:30 p.m. $5
New College Theater
777 Valencia St. (near 19th St.), San Francisco
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"Ten Thousand Black Men Named George"
A film by Robert Townsend, 2002 (95 minutes)
In the 1920s, the right of American workers to join a labor union was still considered an open question, and African-Americans were routinely denied their civil and economic rights. So in 1925, when journalist and political activist Asa Philip Randolph and railway car porter Ashley Totten formed the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, it was a bold gesture which proved to have a major impact in both labor and race relations in America. This made-for-cable feature dramatizes the struggle of Randolph (played by Andre Braugher) and Totten (Mario Van Peebles) to organize railway porters -- a demanding and sometimes dangerous job held almost exclusively by black men paid low wages for long hours -- against the staunch opposition of Barton Davis (Kenneth McGreggor), the head of the Pullman Railway Company and a fierce opponent of both unionization and civil rights initiatives. "10,000 Black Men Named George" (the film's title refers to the fact that porters were often called "George" by white passengers, which was considered a racial slur) also features Charles S. Dutton as Milton Webster, a veteran porter who joined the fight to organize, Carla Brothers as Lucille Randolph, Randolph's wife who would play a major role in the early years of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, and Brock Peters as Leon Frey, an early member of the union who would in time betray their cause.
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The evening will also include live music by Jack Chernos and, at 6:30 p.m. before the film, a reception for the book "We Live on the Railway" by Hiroshi Nakano.

LaborFest 2004 is a month of film, music, poetry, theater, talks, tours, and other events celebrating labor, our history and future. Held every July since 1994, LaborFest commemorates San Francisco's 1934 General Strike. For a complete schedule, visit http://www.laborfest.net