The 50th anniversary of the March on Washington has spawned two major documentary specials.
On Tuesday, the eve of the actual anniversary, PBS is airing “The March,” featuring interviews with Harry Belafonte, Julian Bond, Diahann Carroll, Rep. John Lewis, Oprah Winfrey and Andrew Young, to name a few.
Using archival footage, “The March” recounts the events leading up to the gathering of about 250,000 people in Washington and what impact it had on America.
“ ‘The March’ is the watershed moment of the civil rights movement, the culmination of 100 years of activism against segregation and social injustice for people of color in the U.S.,” director John Akomfrah said. “Retelling this story is my small contribution to that monumental struggle.”
Georgia Public Broadcasting is scheduled to air “The March’ at 9 p.m. Tuesday. Public Broadcasting Atlanta will air it multiple times in September.
CNN will air its own oral history, “We Were There: The March on Washington,” at 10 p.m. Friday.
Lewis, the remaining living speaker from the march, talked extensively about his experience for the documentary, recounting how he had to modify his speech to appease the Kennedys and others concerned that his words were too extreme. Belafonte described how he recruited other celebrities to the cause, including Marlon Brando and Charlton Heston.
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