From Swastika to Jim Crow
Dir: Lori Cheatle; Co-Dir/Ed: Martin D. Taub; Prod: Steven Fischler, Joel Sucher.
Video, 57 min., 1999 (RP)
Early in their film, the documentarians behind From Swastika to Jim Crow delve into what it must have been like for European Jewish scholars fleeing Nazi Germany to end up in the Jim Crow South teaching at black colleges and universities. The irony is endless: These classically trained professors, victims of racial hatred, come to America, and often end up in environments in which they are regarded as oppressors. From Swastika to Jim Crow is a testament to the power of empathy, though; many of these professors ended up making lifelong friends with their students and testify to becoming colorblind after two to three weeks at their new posts. This somewhat static and, indeed, academic documentary tells its story, and then tells it again, as the various subjects end up repeating the same themes. But the themes are intriguing and perhaps even worth repetition: Overcoming adversity and the experience of having someone believe in you, regardless of color or strange accent, go a long way toward making this documentary worth seeing.
Sat, Mar 18, 7:45pm, Dobie
This article appears in March 17 • 2000.