Labor and Film

Labor and Film

Labor and Film examines the history of unions and workers in the United States through the use of film. Students will explore the various social issues and problems raised by each film and examine how these issues are shaped by important social factors including social class, race/ethnicity and gender. We will pay particular attention to whether workers and their unions are depicted as passive victims of larger social forces or whether they are portrayed as participants in their own destinies. We will also explore how the films depict the relationship between the labor movement and other movements for social change.

KEY TOPICS

• The historical context of each film

• How movies shape society's perception of workers and unions

• When, why and how filmakers changed history to make a "better" story

• How the perspective of the filmakers shapes the presentation of the narrative

APPROACH AND FEATURES
Each week we will watch a film, analyze it and its historical context, and discuss our reactions.  The short weekly reading will be available as pdf files for download.  A list of DVDs and a link to where they can be purchased will be included in the syllabus.

BENEFITS TO YOU AND YOUR ORGANIZATION
You and your organization will have a small library of DVDs that can provide labor history education to community organizations sympathetic to labor and as an internal organizing tool.