In the lead-up to the 2024 election, Women Make Movies has teamed up with Firehouse: DCTV’s Cinema for Documentary Film in NYC for a special in-person screening series of films focused on women and U.S. politics, Her Power, Our Future. This series of six films showcases documentary films that feature women leading the charge in America’s civic discourse, political leadership, and cultural change.
- Fri. Nov. 1, 7 PM – RUNNING WITH GIRLS (dir. Rebekah Henderson) – This film follows a diverse group of women who decide to run for municipal office in Denver, one of the fastest gentrifying cities in the country after years of witnessing the political establishment ignore their community’s pressing needs.
“An intimate and moving lesson that all politics is local, but that the twin Hydra of capitalism and white supremacy is always redefining what and who is local…it’s both heartbreaking and hopeful.” -Will Berson Oscar-nominated Screenwriter for JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH
- Sat., Nov. 2, 1 PM – WITHOUT A WHISPER (dir. Katsitsionni Fox) – An exploration of the fascinating untold story of the indigenous women who were crucial to the development of the early women’s rights movement in America.
“A testimony to a history that has been suppressed, this sensitive documentary is evidence of Haudenosaunee continuity and resurgence. It should be required viewing in US history and women’s/gender studies courses.” -Patricia Richards, Professor of Sociology and Women’s Studies, University of Georgia
PAULETTE (dir. Heather Rae) – A short, insightful film that follows the historic campaign of Paulette Jordan, the first Native American candidate — as well as the first woman — to win the Idaho Primary for Governor.
“Jordan battled gracefully throughout the campaign, activating a new kind of hope for the people of Idaho who now find themselves yearning for a new type of leadership.” -Sun Valley Film Festival
- Sat., Nov. 3, 3 PM – HEATHER BOOTH, (dir. Lily Rivlin) – An inspiring film about the life and work of Heather Booth, an incredibly influential and renowned social justice activist who has been at the center of many progressive movements in the United States, beginning at the height of the civil rights movement.
“Using on-camera interviews, archival footage, and photographs—filmmaker Lilly Rivlin shows how the eminent community organizer and activist, now in her 70s, participated in nearly every major progressive movement in America from the mid-60s onward.” –The Chicago Reader
- Sun., Nov. 4, 1 PM – BARBARA LEE (dir. Abby Ginzberg) – An intimate and inspiring portrait of Representative Barbara Lee, a champion of civil rights and a steadfast voice for human rights, peace, and economic and racial justice in the U.S. Congress.
“A timely portrait of a congresswoman who has been a true pioneer on behalf of racial and economic justice.” –Deadline
- Mon., Nov. 5, 7 PM – CHISHOLM ’72 (dir. Shola Lynch) – This compelling documentary takes an in-depth look at a groundbreaking moment in American politics, the 1972 presidential campaign of Shirley Chisholm, the first black woman elected to Congress and the first to seek nomination for the highest office in the land.
“Long before Hillary Clinton there was Shirley Chisholm. [This] gripping portrayal ought to be mandatory viewing for [understanding] the historic presidential race of 2008 or the American political scene in the age of Nixon.” -Robin D. G. Kelley Professor of History & American Studies, University of Southern California
Join us in honoring the trailblazers who have fought and continue to fight for a more inclusive democracy! Milwaukee Film has been screening many of these same documentaries in their Democracy Docs series with two more upcoming screenings on 10/28 and 11/4.
