Birth of a Nation and the Great Railroad Strike of 1877
The Birth of a Nation was a film directed by H.W. Griffith in 1915. It was originally titled, The Clansman, but was renamed to Birth of a Nation after some critics did not like the name of the film. Some film scholars agree that it is the single most important and key film of all time in American movie history. It contains many new cinematic innovations and refinement, and has a color sequence at the end. It was one of the largest grossing films of its time, raking in more tha
n eighteen million dollars in its day. The film drew criticism by the newly established Nation Association for the Advancement of Colored People for its racist portrayal of blacks. Questions or issues that this topic would illuminate would be those pertaining to the use of unions, the labor issue in general for this time period, and how depression set the tone for this great strike. The Great Railroad Strike of 1877 was the first major strike in an industry that propelled America's Industrial Revolution. Riots broke out in many cities in the United States and it was denied release in many other places. Labor disturbances began in West Virginia in July and spread to the west, gaining in violence and intensity. Questions or issues that this topic would illuminate would be those pertaining to the early actions of the NAACP, the impact of this film on the film industry, and its possible use as propaganda for the Ku Klux Klan. Other railroads followed suit and the strike was well on its way across the nation. Military force by the National Guard and federal troops finally ended the strike, but many lives were lost in the process. Action began in Illinois on July 21 and three days later, mobs in Chicago roamed the railroad yards and shut down those of the Baltimore and Ohio and the Illinois Central.
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