In the 1960s, the University of California at Berkeley became the epicenter of the Free Speech Movement, which would eventually align with the Black Power Movement. Like San Francisco on the other side of the bay, it was a magnet for the hippie movement. Mark Kitchell's Academy Award-nominated documentary "Berkeley in the Sixties" looks at this. Interspersing footage of the era with interviews of the FSM's veterans, it reminds the viewer of the movement's significance. Watching the documentary, it's hard not to think about the more recent events that mirror the things against which the FSM protested; it's conceivable that they made the documentary in response to Reagan's policies. History doesn't always repeat itself, but sometimes it rhymes.
Anyway, a fine piece of work. Bobby Seale later got interviewed for "The US vs. John Lennon", about Nixon's efforts to prevent Lennon from entering the country. Todd Gitlin died of COVID last year.
Anyway, a fine piece of work. Bobby Seale later got interviewed for "The US vs. John Lennon", about Nixon's efforts to prevent Lennon from entering the country. Todd Gitlin died of COVID last year.