Alcatraz is Not an Island is a powerful documentary (which airs Nov. 7 on PBS) about the American Indian activists and their families who occupied Alcatraz Island in November 1969—an act that came to symbolize Indians' right to self-determination. Although remaining Indians were escorted off the island by armed marshals a year later, the occupation sparked both a revival in Indian culture and legislation by the Nixon administration to improve life for Indians. (Turtle Island Productions)
Watch for a new documentary on the life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the young German theologian who struggled against the Nazis. Included are highlights from Bonhoeffer's year-long stay in New York, when he was influenced by the social justice preaching of Abyssinian Baptist Church's Adam Clayton Powell Sr. Bonhoeffer, directed by Martin Doblmeier, will hit PBS stations this fall and theaters in early 2003. (Journey Films)
Bombies, an hour-long documentary, depicts the ongoing nightmare of the U.S. "secret war" against Laos. From 1964 to 1973, the United States conducted a major bombing campaign on the tiny country in which an estimated 91 million cluster bombs were dropped. Those that didn't immediately explode have killed more than 12,000 people since the war. Bombies looks at the devastating effects of the bombing and what's being done to disarm those that remain. (Bullfrog Films)
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