By
Angela Orlando
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Black History Month and U.S. foreign policy intertwine
In celebration of Black History Month, the UA Africana Studies program is celebrating diversity with a series of movies and lectures that will extend well into the spring.
Lecture and film topics vary extensively, but each is pertinent in some way to the theme of racial oppression.
Frank Dorrel will present his film "What I've Learned about U.S. Foreign Policy." The 2-hour film is a compilation of 10 interviews including such activists as Martin Luther King Jr., John Stockwell, Ramsey Clark and S. Brian Wilson, who speak about racial oppression and American foreign affairs.
"A lot of people don't know that military oppression, sweatshops and what we're doing to the environment is all interrelated," Dorrel said. "Greed, especially corporate greed, is the common denominator."
And what does greed have to do with black history?
"There's a lot of oppression in black history. America's history has always featured oppression. First we conquer the Native Americans, and we take their land. Then we bring slaves from Africa, and we don't care if they die on the ships. Then there's the oil in the Middle East. We think it's ours for the taking." Dorrel went on to cite many more examples of American violations.
The Bush family, especially, riles Dorrel and many of the activists on the tape.
"The Bush family heritage (Senator Prescott Bush in particular) goes back to supporting Hitler. George (Senior) is mentioned on the tape (in a negative light) more than anyone else," he said.
Dorrel proudly considers himself a "truth teller." Real solutions to America's wrongful foreign policies - and the way we treat people in other countries - are hard to figure out, but the first step to positive action is always knowledge, he said.
"I'm going to tell my audience who I am and what I've learned," Dorrel said. "My whole goal here is to get people to see and understand that we're living in the biggest lie in the history of the world."
That lie, he added, is that although most Americans reside in a cloud of relative material wealth, they don't understand how those riches have been acquired. They can't see the harm that has been inflicted, and continues to be inflicted, on other nations.
"It's almost like mass hypnosis," he said.
Dorrel said he is not afraid of the consequences that speaking out against government actions might incur.
"Most people won't get involved with (opposing America's tactics) until it directly involves them," Dorrel said. "But I'm not going to stop talking about this unless I'm made to stop."
"We need a radical transformation of consciousness. As human beings, if we care about other human beings, we need to look at what America is doing," he said.
Dorrel has led civil-rights marches, and through conferences and networking, his tape is landing in the hands of people all over the world. This will be the first lecture of this type Dorrel has presented to students.
The lecture and film are at 5 p.m. today in the Martin Luther King Jr. building's basement.
Movies: All movies show in the Martin Luther King Jr. building's basement at 5 p.m. Admission is free and open to the public.
2/20 - "What I've Learned about U.S. Foreign Policy" - This full-length documentary by Frank Dorrel compiles interviews of peace activists ranging from Martin Luther King Jr. to Bill Moyer to Ramsey Clark. Dorrel will speak in conjunction with the film.
2/27 - "Almos' Man" - LeVar Burton stars in this film about adolescence and sharecroppers in the deep South.
3/6 - "I Shall Not Be Removed: The Life of Marion Riggs" - This film tells the story of the gay black filmmaker who died of AIDS in 1994.
3/20 - "Ta Dona" - This film has been described as the first African environmental feature film. It traces the path of Africa's development.
3/27 - "King of the Bingo Game" - Based on a novella by Ralph Ellison, this film explores the disenfranchisement of the black community from Emancipation to the Civil Rights movement.
4/3 - "Love Jones" - Gradually gathering a cult following, this recent film features creative direction, a jazz soundtrack and a story line about the intricacies of love.
Lectures: Admission to all lectures is free and open to the public.
2/21 - noon - Martin Luther King Jr. building, Room 209 - Dr. Harry Lawson, author of "The History of African Americans in Tucson: an Afrocentric Perspective" speaks about "The Struggle for Diversity at the University of Arizona."
2/28 - noon - Martin Luther King Jr. building, Room 209 - Collette Sims from the Africana Studies program presents "Black Genius: Shaking Off the Dead Hands of History."
3/8 - 7:30 p.m. - Kiva Auditorium, 1430 E. 2nd Street - "Daughters of Africa" is a musical, historical account of black women from the time of slavery to the present. The lecture features the music of Aretha Franklin, Lena Horne, Billie Holiday and others.
3/28 - noon - Martin Luther King Jr. building, Room 209 - Adjunct lecturer Kelena Reid Maxwell presents "African-American Midwives 1900-1940."
