Tri-City Independent Documentary Series

June 28, 2008 (1:30 p.m.)

Fremont Main Library, 2400 Stevenson Blvd, Fremont (510) 745-1400

The Corporation

Discussion following the film will be led by Sharat G. Lin of the San Jose Peace & Justice Center. He writes on global political economy, the Middle East, India, and labor migration.

In the mid-1800s corporations emerged as a legal "persons." Imbued with a "personality" of pure self-interest, the next 100 years saw the corporation's rise to dominance. The corporation created unprecedented wealth, but at what cost? The remorseless rationale of "externalities" - the unintended consequences of a transaction between two parties on a third - is responsible for countless cases of illness, death, poverty, pollution, exploitation and lies.

The Corporation explores the nature and spectacular rise of the dominant institution of our time. Taking its status as a legal "person" to the logical conclusion, the film puts the corporation on the psychiatrist's couch to ask "What kind of person is it?" The Corporation includes interviews with 40 corporate insiders and critics - including Noam Chomsky, Naomi Klein, Milton Friedman, Howard Zinn, Vandana Shiva and Michael Moore - plus true confessions, case studies and strategies for change.

May 31, 2008 (1:30 p.m.)

Fremont Main Library, 2400 Stevenson Blvd, Fremont (510) 745-1400

USA vs. Al-Arian

Discussion following the film will be led by Hazem Kira, political consultant with the American Muslim Alliance/California Civil Rights Alliance. He will provide an update on the legal case and Al-Arian's physical condition following his recent 57-day hunger strike.

This revealing documentary presents a close portrait of an Arab-American family facing terrorism charges leveled by the U.S. government.

In February 2003, the FBI arrested university professor and political activist Sami Al-Arian in Tampa, Florida. Charged with supporting terrorism, he was placed in solitary confinement for 2-1/2 years before he received a trial.

The film follows Sami, his wife Nahla and their five children through the 6 month long trial and the difficult period after the verdict. It is a personal story of a family, who like many Muslims in the USA today, are fighting against increasing stigmatization and discrimination in a post 911-climate. The film deals with themes of freedom of speech, and the right to a fair trial. It also shows how the media influence public opinion and how the USA`s fear of and fight against terrorism can threaten civil liberties.

April 19, 2008 (1:30 p.m.)

Fremont Main Library, 2400 Stevenson Blvd, Fremont (510) 745-1400

Loose Change 911

Discussion following the film led by Paul Rea, author of "Still Seeking the Truth about 9/11" and the forthcoming "Reveille for Reality: Awakening to What Really Happened on 9/11", and Brian Good

Only three buildings in the world ever have collapsed as a result of fire - and all were part of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. So why them? Why did Vice President Dick Cheney not order the Pentagon to be evacuated when it appeared a hijacked plane was heading toward it? If there is evidence that Osama bin Laden was behind the terrorist attacks, why did the government not provide it to the Taliban when they offered to turn him over? Why was he never indicted? Loose Change 911, Final Cut attempts to answer these and other questions related to the events of that day.

March 8, 2008 (1:30 p.m.)

Fremont Main Library, 2400 Stevenson Blvd, Fremont (510) 745-1400

On the Line

Discussion following the film led by Faye Butler and Louise Lynch. Both have been to the annual demonstration at Fort Benning, Georgia, where Lynch was arrested.

On The Line tells the story of the movement to close the School of the Americas, a U.S. Defense Department facility at Fort Benning, Georgia that trains Latin American soldiers. Referred to by some as "School of Assassins", many of its graduates have been criticized for human rights violations. For example, many of the officers cited in the murder of U.S. nuns, union leaders, journalists, and others in El Salvador were SOA graduates. The school was renamed in 2001 to The Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation. Up to 1,000 students attend the school - now open to civilians and non-Latin Americans - each year.

This film takes an inside look at the movement to close the school, which is one of the largest non-violent activist groups in the United States today - more than 20,000 people.

February 2, 2008 (1:30 p.m.)

Fremont Main Library, 2400 Stevenson Blvd, Fremont (510) 745-1400

Peace, Propaganda & The Promised Land. U.S. Media & the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

Discussion following the film led by Mo Shooer, Jewish Voice for Peace.

Peace, Propaganda & The Promised Land provides a striking comparison of U.S. and international media coverage of the crisis in the Middle East, zeroing in on how structural distortions in United States coverage have reinforced false perceptions of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This documentary exposes how the foreign policy interests of American political elites - oil, and a need to have a secure military base in the region, among others - work in combination with Israeli public relations strategies to exercise a powerful influence over how news from the region is reported.

Through the voices of scholars, media critics, peace activists, religious figures and Middle East experts, Peace, Propaganda & The Promised Land carefully analyzes and explains how-- through use of language, framing and context - the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza remains hidden in the news media, and Israeli colonization of the occupied territories appears to be a defensive move rather than an offensive one.

The documentary also explores the ways that U.S. journalists, for reasons ranging from intimidation to a lack of thorough investigation, have become complicit in carrying out Israel's PR campaign. At its core, the film raises questions about the ethics and role of journalism, and the relationship between media and politics.

Interviewees include Seth Ackerman, Mjr. Stav Adivi, Rabbi Arik Ascherman, Hanan Ashrawi, Noam Chomsky, Robert Fisk and Rabbi Michael Lerner.

January 5, 2008 (1:30 p.m.)

Fremont Main Library, 2400 Stevenson Blvd, Fremont (510) 745-1400

Sir! No Sir!

Discussion after the film will be led by two of the soldiers featured in it, Michael Wong and Keith Mather.

In the 1960s an anti-war movement emerged that altered the course of history. This movement didn't take place on college campuses, but in barracks and on aircraft carriers. It flourished in army stockades, navy brigs and in the dingy towns that surround military bases. It penetrated elite military colleges like West Point. And it spread throughout the battlefields of Vietnam. It was a movement no one expected, least of all those in it. Hundreds went to prison and thousands into exile. And by 1971 it had, in the words of one colonel, infested the entire armed services. Yet today few people know about the GI movement against the war in Vietnam.

This story of the rebellion of thousands of American soldiers against the war has never been told in film. This is certainly not for lack of evidence. By the Pentagon's own figures, 503,926 "incidents of desertion" occurred between 1966 and 1971; officers were being "fragged" (killed with fragmentation grenades by their own troops) at an alarming rate; and by 1971 entire units were refusing to go into battle in unprecedented numbers. In the course of a few short years, over 200 underground newspapers were published by soldiers around the world; local and national antiwar GI organizations were joined by thousands; thousands more demonstrated against the war at every major base in the world in 1970 and 1971, including in Vietnam itself; stockades and federal prisons were filling up with soldiers jailed for their opposition to the war and the military.

Yet today, with hundreds of thousands of American GIs once again occupying countries on the other side of the world, these history-changing events have been erased from America's public memory.

Sir! No Sir! aims to change all that, exploring the impact the movement on the military and the war, and telling the story of how and why the GI Movement has been replaced with the myth of the spat-upon veteran.

Sir! No Sir! challenges deeply-held beliefs not just about the Vietnam War and those who fought it, but about the world we live in today. It is a vivid portrayal of William Faulkner's famous observation that "The past isn't dead; it isn't even past."

Discussion after the film will be led by two of the soldiers featured in it, Michael Wong and Keith Mather.

Saturday, Nov. 17, 2007 (1:30 p.m.)

Fremont Main Library, 2400 Stevenson Blvd, Fremont (510) 745-1400

Hacking Democracy

This outstanding documentary - nominated for an Emmy in Investigative Journalism - exposes the dangers of electronic voting machines, which now count about 90% of America's votes. Its real subject, the health of American democracy, could hardly be more important or timely.

Filmed over 3 years, this expose tracks investigations done by citizen activists as they take on the voting industry, targeting the Diebold Corporation. The film uncovers incendiary evidence from the trash cans of Texas to the ballot boxes of Ohio, exposing secrecy, votes in the trash, hackable software and election officials rigging the presidential recount.

This documentary has impact. Since the film was completed, two Ohio election staff featured in Hacking Democracy were sentenced on March 13th, 2007 for rigging the 2004 presidential recount. The film also spurred California's Secretary of State to commission a special report on voting machines by scientists at UC Berkeley.

A discussion after the film will be led by Dr. David Dill, a computer scientist and professor at Stanford University. Dill founded the Verified Voting Foundation (www.verifiedvoting.org) because of his concerns about the security issues around electronic voting.

For more on electronic voting, read the Newbor.com story.

Saturday, Oct. 20, 2007 (1:30 p.m.)

Fremont Main Library, 2400 Stevenson Blvd, Fremont (510) 745-1400

9/11 Mysteries

Along with 9/11 Press for Truth, which the series showed to a large crowd last spring, 9/11 Mysteries is the best-made, most accurate and most compelling of the many films challenging the "official" story about 9/11. Whereas the earlier film focused on government coverups, 9/11 Mysteries explores the strange but often ignored questions surrounding the fall of the World Trade Center Towers.

9/11 Mysteries is scientific as it draws on testimonials from mechanical engineers such as Dr. Judy Wood and physicists such as Dr. Steven Jones. Rare footage illustrates several mysterious features of the "collapses". In fact, close inspection reveals several features of planned demolitions. The film also raises a question sure to come up during the political campaign: why did Mayor Rudy Giualini acknowledge that "we were told the World Trade Center was going to collapse" but did not warn either first responders or workers in the buildings? This important film should be seen and pondered by thoughtful Americans.

Interactive discussion follows the showing, led by Dr. Paul Rea. A longtime English professor, Rea is the author of Still Seeking the Truth about 9/11 and the forthcoming Fingerprints all over the Crime.

Saturday, Sept. 22, 2007 (1:30 p.m.)

Fremont Main Library, 2400 Stevenson Blvd, Fremont (510) 745-1400

War Made Easy: How Presidents and Pundits Keep Spinning Us To Death

Narrated by Sean Penn, the film deals with how governments bent on war-making have relied on a vast arsenal of propaganda techniques to overcome resistance at home and disapproval abroad. Looking closely at the spin strategies employed by today's pundits and public officials to build support for the invasion of Iraq, striking parallels to the information wars waged by earlier administrations are revealed, both Democratic and Republican.

Moving from Vietnam to Iraq, the film examines how news reports have become nearly indistinguishable from White House and Pentagon talking points.

Discussion will follow lead by Mickey Huff, MA, who teaches critical thinking courses at several Bay Area colleges. A sharp analyst of propaganda, Huff is particularly interested in how the news media can create a climate that makes war all too easy.

Saturday, June 2, 2007 (1:30 p.m.)

Fremont Main Library, 2400 Stevenson Blvd, Fremont (510) 745-1400

Arsenal of Hypocrisy

The glory days of NASA are over! Today the Military Industrial Complex is marching towards world dominance through Space technology on behalf of global corporate interest. To understand how and why the Space program will be used to fight all future wars on earth from Space, it's important to understand how the public has been misled about the origins and true purpose of the Space program.

The discussion following the film will be led by David Dionisi, founder of the Teach Peace Foundation, ex military intelligence officer and author of "American Hiroshima: The Reasons Why and a Call to Strengthen America's Democracy".

Saturday, May 5, 2007 (1:30 p.m.)

Fremont Main Library, 2400 Stevenson Blvd, Fremont (510) 745-1400

Shut Up and Sing: The Dixie Chicks

Directed by Academy Award-winner Barbara Kopple and a hit at the Toronto Film Festival, the documentary centers on country music's Dixie Chicks and the nationwide vilification over critical statements made about Texas and President Bush in 2003. Over a three-year period, the singers went from darlings of the industry to political targets, receiving constant death threats and being demonized by the national media, boycotted by Clear Channel radio, and even denounced by some of their fans. A parable of free political and artistic expression in a democratic society.

The group made an impressive come-back winning five Grammy Awards in February of this year, one of them for the song featured in the movie: Not Ready to Make Nice.

Discussion will follow led by Professor Richard B. Simon who teaches writing and critical thinking at Chabot College and Dominican University, and is a contributing editor at Relix magazine which published his article "Media Consolidation, the Sound of one Hand Clapping". He is also a frequent on-air commentator on current affairs on KQED-FM.

Saturday, April 14, 2007 (1:30 p.m.)

Fremont Main Library, 2400 Stevenson Blvd, Fremont (510) 745-1400

Who Killed the Electric Car?

Amid ever increasing gas prices, this film delves into the short life of the GM EV1 electric car - once popular in the 1990s and now fallen by the roadside. How could such an efficient, green-friendly vehicle fail to transform our garages and skies? Through interviews with government officials, former GM employees, and concerned celebrities, including EV1 driver Tom Hanks, the film seeks answers to these questions.

Discussion will follow led by Jerry Pohorsky (featured briefly in the film) of the Santa Clara Electric Vehicle Association. His Toyota RAV electric vehicle will be on view.

Saturday, March 24, 2007 (1:30 p.m.)

Fremont Main Library, 2400 Stevenson Blvd, Fremont (510) 745-1400

9/11 Press for Truth

The film tells the moving and compelling story of four World Trade Center widows, known as the Jersey Girls, who went out of their comfort zone lobbying Congress to open an investigation into the events of that fateful day. Absent their efforts there would have been no inquiry, though sadly, most of their questions went unanswered. Discussion will follow led by Dr. Paul Rea, author of Still Seeking the Truth about 9/11.

Saturday, Feb 3, 2007 (1:30 p.m.)

Fremont Main Library, 2400 Stevenson Blvd, Fremont (510) 745-1400

Iraq For Sale: The War Profiteers

This Saturday at the Library, the film "IRAQ FOR SALE: THE WAR PROFITEERS" will be shown followed by a discussion led by Dr. Sharat G. Lin. Dr. Lin writes on the Middle East, India, global political economy, and the environment. His articles include "Economic roots of conflict in the new world order" and "Who started it? Chronology of the latest crisis in the Middle East."

The film tells the story of what happens to everyday Americans when corporations go to war. Acclaimed director Robert Greenwald takes you inside the lives of soldiers, truck drivers, widows and children who have been changed forever as a result of profiteering in the reconstruction of Iraq.

"A Senator named Harry Truman made a name for himself investigating just such misconduct during World War ll. Back then war profiteers were run out of town. Today it appears they run the town." -- Keith Olbermann.