SCANDALIZE MY NAME

SCANDALIZE MY NAME

    Price: $210.00

    Code: 1040

    Directed by Alexandra Isles
    2000, 60 minutes
    Purchase: $210 | Classroom Rental: $95

    Scandalize My Name examines the way Red Scare politics were used to impede the emergence of African-Americans as full participants in the political, social, and cultural aspects of postwar American life. Because television was born into this era and adopted the political attitudes of the time, the story is told through the confrontations of African-American performers with blacklists, loyalty oaths, and discrimination in casting.

    Their experiences are recalled in the light of political and economic forces that resisted any social change. In the climate of fear produced by Cold War tensions, concepts of patriotism and loyalty were redefined in reactionary terms. Performers presented a particularly vulnerable target because in so many cases, their livelihood depended on the support of networks and sponsors, and the blacklisting that dominated this period not only questioned their patriotism, but slandered their reputations and often destroyed their careers.

    The stories of Canada Lee, Paul Robeson, Hazel Scott, Jackie Robinson, Dick Campbell, Frederick O'Neal, and Harry Belafonte's encounters with the House Un-American Activities Committee, blacklisting, and the television industry reveal the forces that opposed African-Americans during the McCarthy Era. Witnesses include Harry Belafonte, Ossie Davis, Rosetta LeNoire, Adam Clayton Powell III, Frederick O'Neal, and broadcast historian Erik Barnouw. Hosted by Morgan Freeman.

    Highly recommended as a valuable teaching tool for African-American, Sociology, and American History Studies.



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