The Niagara Movement: The Early Battle for Civil Rights

THE NIAGARA MOVEMENT: THE EARLY BATTLE FOR CIVIL RIGHTS

A PRODUCTION OF WNED PBS AND FLORENTINE FILMS/HOTT PRODUCTIONS, INC.

A FILM SCREENING AND DISCUSSION WITH THE FILMMAKERS AND FILM PARTICIPANTS AT BOTH SCREENINGS

TWO SCREENINGS: SATURDAY, MAY 20 AT 4:00PM AND 7:00PM

FREE TO ATTEND; DONATIONS ARE WELCOME IN SUPPORT OF THE NORTHAMPTON CENTER FOR THE ARTS

RESERVE YOUR SEATS HERE!*

Special thanks to producer/director Larry Hott for his ongoing support of the Center!

The Niagara Movement: The Early Battle for Civil Rights is a one-hour documentary focusing on the formation and impact of the first civil rights movement of the twentieth century. The program traces the social and economic conditions of Black Americans at the turn of the century, examines the different strategies for racial advancement led by Black leaders of the time, explores the creation of Niagara Movement, and places the legacy of the movement into a contemporary context. 

Central to the story of the Niagara Movement are the roles played by three of the most dynamic Black leaders of the time – Booker T. Washington, Monroe Trotter and W.E.B Du Bois. Their lives intersected at a critical junction when leading Black activists debated how best to push to obtain civil rights. The principles that drove the creation of the Niagara Movement crystallized DuBois’ radical stance to take up the fight for equal rights and were largely seen as a direct affront to the philosophy espoused by Washington. 

Lawrence R. Hott has been producing documentary films since 1978, when he left the practice of law to join Florentine Films.  His awards include an Emmy, two Academy Award nominations, a George Foster Peabody Award, the duPont-Columbia Journalism Award, the Erik Barnouw Award, five American Film Festival Blue Ribbons, fourteen CINE Golden Eagles, screenings at Telluride, and first-place awards from the San Francisco, Chicago, National Educational, and New England Film Festivals.  Hott was the Fulbright Fellow in Film and Television in the United Kingdom in 1994 and Fulbright Specialist in Vietnam in 2015.  He received the Humanities Achievement Award from the Massachusetts Foundation for the Humanities in 1995; a Massachusetts Cultural Council/Boston Film and Video Foundation Fellowship in 2001; and the Rosalynn Carter Fellowship for Mental Health Journalism in 2001.  

Rikk Desgres is a veteran editor, color grader and sound mixer. His credits include broadcast television, museum immersive theater, radio, and corporate video. Rikk has handled post-production duties for over 25 Florentine Films documentaries and productions including Ken Burns’ Emmy winning film, BASEBALL and the Academy Award nominated WILD BY LAW. Most recently, Rikk edited THE WARRIOR TRADITION, a one-hour film about Native Americans in the U.S. military, produced by WNET and Florentine Films/Hott Productions, which aired nationally on PBS. Rikk founded Pinehurst Pictures & Sound, a full-service post-production house, located in Northampton, Massachusetts.

*Advance reservations will be capped at 175, remaining seats will be available at the door. Please arrive 1/2 hour before the screening time if you haven’t made reservations in advance.