Anne Lewis, Appalachian filmmaker
Anne Lewis is the most productive filmmaker in the history of Appalachia, making a score of films during her 30 + years making films mainly for Appalshop. She made the great film,”Shelter,” on the history of domestic violence shelters that focuses on one in Lewisburg, WV. that WV activist Rick Wilson often shows in his sociology course. Here is an e-mail I received about her film dealing with one of the most important UMW strikes in WV in recent history as shown in her film, “Justice in the Coalfields.”
I had one of those flashback moments late last week. A reporter from the Richmond Times Dispatch wanted clips from my film “Justice in the Coalfields” to run on their website for a retrospective on the Pittston strike. The strike began April 5, 1989. Then they laid off the reporter (one of 28 on Friday) so they won’t run the story — and just when they were finally doing something good about the coalfields.The Pittson strike was the strike of 1,700 coal miners in southwestern Virginia and West Virginia after the company revoked the health care of pensioners, disabled miners and their families, and widows. There were 4,000 arrests (including mine) for nonviolent civil disobedience against Pittston which owned Brinks armored trucks as well as being the largest
exporter of metallurgical coal in the country.The strike was about so many current issues — the demand for universal health care, global energy, lay offs and contracting out, worker/community alliance, the Right to Work law — that “Justice” might have renewed usefulness.
Bethel Purkey with Steve Fesenmaier at 2005 fall ceremony inducting him and others in to the WV Labor Hall of Honor created by the WV Labor History Association.
Elaine Purkey singing at memorial service for William C. Blizzard, January 2009, WV Cultural Center
WV mine activist Bethel Purkey was active in this strike, and was latter inducted in to the WV Labor Hall of Fame for his work in this strike, the Ravenswood Aluminum Lockout, and many other events. Elaine, his wife, is featured in Lewis’ film with two songs. The film ends with her singing “America the Beautiful” in her kitchen.
To see the trailer or order a copy of the Pittson film.
This Wednesday, the Austin Immigrant Rights Coalition begins their Immigrant Rights Film Series with ” Morristown: in the air and sun.” Date: April 8, Time: 8pm, Place: MonkeyWrench Books 110 E. North Loop. The series includes Heather Courtney’s “Los Trabajadores/The Workers,” Tommy Davis’ “Mojados: Through the Night,” and a collected group of shorts including Matt Gossage’s film about Hutto. This builds for a major May Day march in Austin and in other cities and towns around the country. http://www.austinirc.org/ in solidarity,
Anne
www.annelewis.org
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