Julian Bond: Reflections from the Frontlines of the Civil Rights Movement

Gr 9 Up—African American social activist Julian Bond tells his family's story: a struggle for equality. Tracing his roots back to slavery, Bond recounts the family's tradition of hard work and an emphasis on education as a means for advancement. Using historical film footage and still photographs, a female voice speaking as Bond's mother, and scenes of Bond lecturing in his classroom at the University of Virginia, he reviews his participation in the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), his role at the 1963 March on Washington, his service in the Georgia House and Senate, his nomination for the vice presidency of the United States at the 1968 Democratic Convention, his protest of the Vietnam War, and his praise for President Lyndon Johnson's actions towards civil rights. Bond leaves viewers with a look forward—"So many undone things in this country"—and his firm belief that someone will step forward to lead the way. The centerpiece of the film is Bond talking to an off-screen interviewer—it is powerful. American history, African American studies, and government classes can utilize this film to review history from a primary source. The film's length makes it very classroom friendly.—Patricia Ann Owens, Illinois Eastern Community Colleges, Mt. Carmel