“Race and Film: Clips from Birth of a Nation and Jud Süss” October 23, 2011

Custom and law are closely linked systems that affect how people act toward each other. In the post-Civil War United States and in Nazi Germany, the freedoms and rights of some groups of people were limited. African-Americans were the primary target under the U.S. system of Jim Crow Laws. Jewish people were the primary target under the Nuremberg Laws of Nazi Germany. Holocaust Museum Houston presents “Race and Film: Clips from Birth of a Nation and Jud Süss.” Professor Cary Wintz from Texas Southern University will provide commentary and lead discussion relevant to these films. “Birth of a Nation,” directed by D.W. Griffith, was released in 1915. It is one of the most famous and controversial movies ever made. At the time, it was viewed as a technical marvel; crowds flocked to see it throughout the United States. Today, however, the film is most remembered for its racist portrayal of the period in American history after the Civil War known as Reconstruction. “Jud Süss” is a 1940 film, produced by Terra Filmkunst, on behalf of the Nazi regime. It was conceived as an antisemitic propaganda film. The movie played on basic Nazi stereotypes of Jews having hooked noses and being materialistic, immoral, cunning, untrustworthy and physically unattractive. Both films were used to support the legal structures existing in both Nazi Germany and the United States. By using popular culture to continue the customs that existed in the societies, each country’s dominant group was able sustain the power structures that offered privilege to some and were detrimental to the “other” group. This program is cosponsored by The Health Museum. Admission is free, but advance registration is required. Visit www.hmh.org/registerevent.aspx to RSVP onlineFor more information, call 713-942-8000, ext. 104 or e-mail events@hmh.org.

Official Website: http://hmh.org/EventDescription.aspx?ID=546