“Stories of Protest and Survival” Free Film Screening

About

“Stories of Protest and Survival” is a free Takoma Park Arts film screening that features three short documentaries that share intimate stories and moving portraits of protest, struggle, and survival. The films travel through time and place to Palestine, a WWII Japanese-American internment camp, and activists pushing boundaries with projected protest art. The featured films include: Grandmothers Share their Stories: Palestine Film director Peggy Fleming has interviewed grandmothers from more than 25 countries and begins by asking, “What is it like for you to be a grandmother?”. In 2009, she interviewed three Palestinian grandmothers living in East Jerusalem and Ramallah and then interviewed them again 16 years later via Zoom in 2025 to see how their lives had changed. The women are united by loss and love for their extended families. One grandmother lost her childhood home in Jerusalem in 1948 when Zionist soldiers fought in Palestine to create the state of Israel, which forced more than 750,000 Palestinians to flee from their homes and land. Israeli forces destroyed another grandmother’s home in 1967 during widespread ethnic cleansing in Palestinian territories that were seized by Israel during the Six-Day War, including Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem. In 2008, the third grandmother’s home in the West Bank was seized by Jewish settlers with the support of Israeli police and military. Her crippled husband suffered a stroke during the attack and died a week later. “My grandchildren do not forget,” she said. “If they forget, I remind them of our reality.” Remembering Manzanar Remembering Manzanar is a first-person account of the experience of Japanese Americans who were imprisoned at the Manzanar internment camp in central California during World War II. Through archival footage, photos, and recorded interviews with former internees, the film follows their harrowing experiences as families were forced to leave their homes and businesses after Pearl Harbor and became prisoners whose only crime was being Japanese American. Film director John Allen has been directing and producing film and video productions for more than 40 years, including award-winning documentaries and educational programs. Projecting Protest Light projection as a form of protest, what some call “temporary graffiti,” has increased over the past decade yet it remains largely unregulated, sparking debate about whether it qualifies as “free speech.” Directed and produced by Tom Clement, Projecting Protest is a Scripps News documentary that goes on the ground to interview activists across the political spectrum – from leftist artists to neo-Nazis – as they project provocative, and at times explicitly hateful, messages onto buildings and monuments. These scenes are interwoven with interviews with lawyers and law enforcement, examining the legal gray area surrounding light projection. Supporters argue that projecting messages causes no damage and is no different than displaying a banner or protest sign. Critics say it infringes on the rights of property owners. In a handful of legal battles, courts have sided with the activists on free speech grounds, but a new law in Florida has imposed harsh penalties on unsanctioned light displays. The Takoma Park Arts series is organized by the City’s Arts and Humanities Division and includes free concerts, theater, dance, art exhibitions, and other events at the Takoma Park Community Center. You can get more info about our upcoming events by signing up for our e-newsletter at takomaparkmd.gov/arts.