Newly preserved by the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture, Madeline Anderson’s films Integration Report 1 (1960) and I Am Somebody (1970) bring viewers to the front lines of the fight for civil rights.

Integration Report 1 examines the struggle for Black equality in Alabama, Brooklyn and Washington, D.C., incorporating footage by documentary legends Albert Maysles and Ricky Leacock, protest songs by Maya Angelou, and a speech by Martin Luther King, Jr.

In 1969, Black female hospital workers in Charleston, South Carolina went on strike for union recognition and a wage increase, only to find themselves in a confrontation with the state government and the National Guard. Featuring Andrew Young, Charles Abernathy, and Coretta Scott King and produced by Local 1199, New York’s Drug and Hospital Union, I Am Somebody is a crucial document in the struggle for labor rights.

A testament to the courage of the workers and activists at the heart of her films as well as her own bravery, tenacity and skill, the films of Madeline Anderson are both essential historical records of activism and a vital body of cinematic work.

Description courtesy of Icarus Films.