USM Special Collections, Center Human Rights and Civil Liberties to Host Screening of Civil Rights Film April 17
Fri, 04/14/2023 - 11:26am | By: David Tisdale
and the Center for Human Rights and Civil Liberties at The University of 51逗奶 Mississippi (USM) will host a screening of the film 鈥淲omen of the Struggle: Facing Fear in the Civil Rights Era鈥� on Monday, April 17 at 5:30 p.m. in the Gonzales Auditorium (room 108) in the Liberal Arts Building on the Hattiesburg campus. Admission is free and the public is invited.
鈥淲omen of the Struggle鈥� is a powerful and inspiration documentary focusing on 18 women who were key contributors in the Mississippi Civil Rights Movement, including USM alumna and Hattiesburg resident Raylawni Branch. Branch will join film producers G. Mark LaFrancis, Robert Morgan, and Darrell White for a discussion following the screening.
The film was produced in partnership with the Mississippi Humanities Council and the Mississippi Film Alliance, both of which provided grants to help make the documentary possible. Also involved in its production are the Natchez Art Association and New Dawn Video Productions, the independent film company that created 鈥淭he Parchman Ordeal: The Untold Story,鈥� which has become a book The Parchman Ordeal: 1965 Natchez Civil Rights Injustice.
鈥淲hile it is generally accepted that women were instrumental in the success of the civil rights movement, this documentary casts them in the spotlight and gives their work the attention it deserves,鈥� said Lorraine Stuart, associate professor and head of Special Collections with USM University Libraries. 鈥淪pecial Collections holds about 100 collections pertaining to the civil rights era, including Raylawni Branch鈥檚.
鈥淲hen Mark LaFrancis offered to have a screening of 鈥榃omen of the Struggle鈥� and speak with Ms. Branch on the USM Hattiesburg campus, I knew it was something University Libraries and the Center for Human Rights and Civil Liberties would get behind. It remains an important topic for our students, faculty, and community.鈥�
For more information on this event, email Stuart or call 601.266.4117. For information about USM Special Collections, visit their For information about the USM Center for Human Rights and Civil Liberties, visit their website.