Movies and Movements

Abstract

Abstract Film has been recognized for its potential social and political impact since its beginning (see, for example, the debate between Walter Benjamin and Theodor Adorno). Therefore, film, and in particular documentary film, can also be seen as an instrumental tool of social movements to bring about social and political change. Although generally ignored by social movement scholars, films can have a wide range of important impact on the public, social movement organizations and policymakers. Social movements continually attempt to create public space for debate of the issues they consider important, and films can become a crucial segment of that struggle as they create a forum in which the public can encounter issues (Whiteman 2003). Activist documentaries may provide a sense of shared identification around the issue at stake and this in turn can mobilize citizens, as was the case after the screenings of Panama Deception , a film about the 1989 US invasion of Panama. Activist films may also influence the activist communities themselves. The production process itself can stimulate greater communication among individuals and organizations and can strengthen organizational networks. For example, labor organizations have mobilized their members by educating them about the long history of labor activism in the southeastern US through The Uprising of '34 (film about the 1934 textile strike). In addition, documentary films have proven to be powerful tools in influencing public policy. For example the documentary Yes, In My Backyard , exploring the dependence of one American farming town on the prison industry, helped spark debates about policy and reframe the policy agenda (Whiteman 2003).