OCCUPY CHICAGO EDUCATION

Join the Occupy Chicago Education Committee for a free screening of Howard Zinn,/a>'s film THE PEOPLE SPEAK to launch the new documentary screening series.

Thursday, December 15, 2011
7pm
Columbia College
623 S Wabash
RM 109 Hokin Lecture Hall
Chicago IL

Documentary Screening Series Kick-Off
hosted by the Occupy Chicago Education Committee

Kicking off our documentary series, THE PEOPLE SPEAK tells the dramatic stories of those who both believed and manifested the notion that democracy is not a spectator sport.

The film is inspired by Howard Zinn’s books A People’s History of the United States — first published in 1980 and one of the bestselling history books in the United States — and Voices of a People’s History of the United States, the primary-source companion to A People’s History, edited with Anthony Arnove

Because the Occupy Movement is, above all, about reclaiming human rights, we'll begin our series with the voices of the people themselves. We'll draw inspiration and gather power from their words and actions to incite our own. Join us for a post-screening discussion to let your own voice be heard.

The People Speak is being made available for this free screening through a new Chicago project of Voices of a People's History (http://www.peopleshistory.us/), a social justice and arts group co-founded by Howard Zinn. Voices is providing free educational material to hundreds of teachers across Chicago, including a DVD of the film The People Speak and several books by Howard Zinn, as well as teaching guides and lesson plans. Find out more here: http://www.peopleshistory.us/chicago.

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"From the moment that we had any kind of influence in this town, we were trying to get this project off the ground." - Matt Damon

The film features the actual words (in letters, songs, poems, speeches, and manifestoes) of rebels, dissenters, and visionaries from our past — and present — including Frederick Douglass, Susan B. Anthony, Bob Dylan, Langston Hughes, Chief Joseph, Muhammad Ali, and unknown veterans, union workers, abolitionists, and many others. These dramatic moments from our history are brought to life by a group of remarkable musicians and actors, including Matt Damon, Marisa Tomei, Danny Glover, Josh Brolin, Rosario Dawson, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, John Legend, Lupe Fiasco, Kerry Washington, David Strathairn, and many more.

Like Howard Zinn’s work as a whole, The People Speak celebrates the extraordinary possibilities for creating social change that ordinary people have realized throughout the course of our nation’s rich but often ignored history of dissent and protest.

“Striking, exhilarating…the performances are thrilling.” Los Angeles Times
http://articles.latimes.com/2009/dec/12/entertainment/la-et-people-speak...

“The documentary works beautifully…Each passionate reading flows out of the previous one.” Boston Globe
http://www.boston.com/ae/tv/articles/2009/12/12/the_people_speak_celebra...

“This is a terrifically educational and entertaining film for all ages.” Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/ae/movies/s_668548.html