Local filmmaker Jon Scott Bennett returns to present the fifth and final episode of The Peekskill Riots documentary series.
After thousands of concertgoers were attacked during the Peekskill Riots of 1949, the same system that sanctioned this violence began rewriting history to be as though it never happened. This was done on a national level by erasing the career and legacy of Paul Robeson. His records, books, films, and writings were taken out of distribution, altered, or otherwise suppressed so that his influence as a force for change could be extinguished. Local figures in Peekskill followed this trend to downplay and reframe the riots, either to cast Paul Robeson as solely responsible or to suppress the story entirely. History is repeated by those who do not learn it, which is why they will do everything to ensure you canāt either.
The fifth and final episode of the docu-series presents the treatment of this history as an instructive example of how the cover-up was just as destructive as the riots themselves.
Free and open to all.
This documentary is being presented for educational purposes. Please be advised that the documentary contains scenes and language that some viewers may find disturbing. Viewer discretion is advised.
Warner Library 