Eyes on the Prize
Encyclopedia
Eyes on the Prize is a 14-hour documentary series about the African-American Civil Rights Movement
. The series was produced in two-stages: Eyes on the Prize: America's Civil Rights Years 1954–1964 consists of the first six episodes covering the time period between the Brown v. Board decision and the Selma to Montgomery marches. It was broadcast in 1987 on PBS. The remaining 8 episodes make up Eyes on the Prize II: America at the Racial Crossroads 1965–1985, which was broadcast on PBS in 1990. The series was also shown in the United Kingdom
on BBC2
.
Created and executive-produced by Henry Hampton
at Blackside, Inc., the series uses primary sources (such as archival footage and interviews with persons involved in the mentioned events) to record the growth of the civil rights
movement in the United States
, with special focus on the ordinary people who effected the change. It has been lauded for its depiction of the Civil Rights Movement, and used extensively in schools and other educational settings as a way to convey the experiences and struggle for civil rights in America.
The title of the series is derived from the song "Keep Your Eyes on the Prize
", which is used in each episode as the opening theme music.
in early 1987 as Eyes on the Prize: America's Civil Rights Years (1954–1965). Eight more hours were broadcast in 1990 as Eyes on the Prize II: America at the Racial Crossroads (1965–1985).
It was quickly released to home video (in VHS
and Laserdisc
). By the mid-1990s, both rebroadcasts and home video production were halted for several years due to limits on the licenses of the copyrights of the archive footage used, and increasingly higher rates imposed by the copyright holders. Grants from the Ford Foundation
and others enabled Blackside to renew rights.
To date, PBS has rebroadcast the first six hours on three consecutive Mondays in October 2006, and rebroadcast the second eight hours in February 2008.
PBS reissued an educational version of the series in the fall of 2006, making it available on DVD for the first time. It is now available to educational institutions and libraries from PBS on seven DVDs (ISBN 0-7936-9262-8) or seven VHS tapes. A consumer version of part one (1954–1965) was released in March 2010. It is unclear whether any footage has been changed to appease rightsholders.
The licensing issues from 1993 to 2006 generated what was called Eyes on the Screen
, an effort to disseminate the series by file sharing networks
without regard to copyright restrictions.
, a Washington Post journalist. (hardcover ISBN 0-670-81412-1, paperback ISBN 0-245-54668-5); it was published by Viking in 1987.
in 1988 during the 60th Academy Awards.
, a Stanford University
history professor and editor of the published papers of Martin Luther King, Jr.
, said that "it is the principal film account of the most important American social justice movement of the 20th century". Because of its extensive use of primary sources and in-depth coverage of the material, it has been adopted as a key reference and record of the civil rights movement.
. A founding member of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee
(SNCC), Bond emerged as a notable figure in the Civil Rights Movement in 1965 when he was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives
. The House refused to seat him because he publicly endorsed SNCC's opposition to US involvement in the Vietnam War. In 1966, the Supreme Court of the United States
unanimously ruled that the Georgia House of Representatives had denied Bond his freedom of speech
and was required to seat him. Bond v. Floyd (385 U.S. 116).
Eyes on the Prize: America's Civil Rights Years
1 – “Awakenings” (1954–1956)
2 – “Fighting Back” (1957–1962)
3 – “Ain’t Scared of Your Jails” (1960–1961)
4 – “No Easy Walk” (1961–1963)
Martin Luther King, Jr.
and . . .
5 – “Mississippi: Is This America?” (1962–1964)
6 – “Bridge to Freedom” (1965)
Eyes on the Prize: America at the Crossroads
1 – “The Time Has Come” (1964–1966)
2 – “Two Societies” (1965–1968)
3 – “Power!” (1967–1968)
4 – “The Promised Land” (1967–1968)
5 – “Ain’t Gonna Shuffle No More” (1964–1972)
6 – “A Nation of Law?” (1968–1971)
7 – “The Keys to the Kingdom” (1974–1980)
8 – “Back to the Movement” (1979–1983)
African-American Civil Rights Movement (1955-1968)
The African-American Civil Rights Movement refers to the movements in the United States aimed at outlawing racial discrimination against African Americans and restoring voting rights to them. This article covers the phase of the movement between 1955 and 1968, particularly in the South...
. The series was produced in two-stages: Eyes on the Prize: America's Civil Rights Years 1954–1964 consists of the first six episodes covering the time period between the Brown v. Board decision and the Selma to Montgomery marches. It was broadcast in 1987 on PBS. The remaining 8 episodes make up Eyes on the Prize II: America at the Racial Crossroads 1965–1985, which was broadcast on PBS in 1990. The series was also shown in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
on BBC2
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
.
Created and executive-produced by Henry Hampton
Henry Hampton
Henry Hampton was an American filmmaker. He was the son of surgeon Henry Hampton Sr. and Julia Veva Hampton. A native of St. Louis, Missouri, Hampton would later move to Boston where he founded his film production company Blackside, Inc., in 1968. It became one of the largest minority-owned...
at Blackside, Inc., the series uses primary sources (such as archival footage and interviews with persons involved in the mentioned events) to record the growth of the civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
movement in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, with special focus on the ordinary people who effected the change. It has been lauded for its depiction of the Civil Rights Movement, and used extensively in schools and other educational settings as a way to convey the experiences and struggle for civil rights in America.
The title of the series is derived from the song "Keep Your Eyes on the Prize
Keep Your Eyes on the Prize
"Keep Your Eyes on the Prize" is a folk song that became influential during the American civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s. Although the song was composed as a hymn well before World War I, the lyrics to this version were written by civil rights activist Alice Wine in 1956...
", which is used in each episode as the opening theme music.
Original broadcast and home video releases
The film originated as two sequential projects. Part one, six hours long, was shown on PBSPublic Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
in early 1987 as Eyes on the Prize: America's Civil Rights Years (1954–1965). Eight more hours were broadcast in 1990 as Eyes on the Prize II: America at the Racial Crossroads (1965–1985).
It was quickly released to home video (in VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
and Laserdisc
Laserdisc
LaserDisc was a home video format and the first commercial optical disc storage medium. Initially licensed, sold, and marketed as MCA DiscoVision in North America in 1978, the technology was previously referred to interally as Optical Videodisc System, Reflective Optical Videodisc, Laser Optical...
). By the mid-1990s, both rebroadcasts and home video production were halted for several years due to limits on the licenses of the copyrights of the archive footage used, and increasingly higher rates imposed by the copyright holders. Grants from the Ford Foundation
Ford Foundation
The Ford Foundation is a private foundation incorporated in Michigan and based in New York City created to fund programs that were chartered in 1936 by Edsel Ford and Henry Ford....
and others enabled Blackside to renew rights.
To date, PBS has rebroadcast the first six hours on three consecutive Mondays in October 2006, and rebroadcast the second eight hours in February 2008.
PBS reissued an educational version of the series in the fall of 2006, making it available on DVD for the first time. It is now available to educational institutions and libraries from PBS on seven DVDs (ISBN 0-7936-9262-8) or seven VHS tapes. A consumer version of part one (1954–1965) was released in March 2010. It is unclear whether any footage has been changed to appease rightsholders.
The licensing issues from 1993 to 2006 generated what was called Eyes on the Screen
Eyes on the Screen
Eyes on the Screen was a project to disseminate the documentary series Eyes on the Prize by file sharing networks without regard to copyright restrictions during the period the series was out of print, 1993-2006....
, an effort to disseminate the series by file sharing networks
Peer-to-peer file sharing
P2P or Peer-to-peer file sharing allows users to download files such as music, movies, and games using a P2P software client that searches for other connected computers. The "peers" are computer systems connected to each other through internet. Thus, the only requirements for a computer to join...
without regard to copyright restrictions.
Book
The book of the same title was created as a companion volume to the series during post-production by the producers and publishing staff at Blackside, Inc. They were assisted by Juan WilliamsJuan Williams
Juan Williams is an American journalist and political analyst for Fox News Channel, he was born in Panama on April 10, 1954. He also writes for several newspapers including The Washington Post, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal and has been published in magazines such as The Atlantic...
, a Washington Post journalist. (hardcover ISBN 0-670-81412-1, paperback ISBN 0-245-54668-5); it was published by Viking in 1987.
Awards
Episode six, Bridge to Freedom, produced by Callie Crossley and James A. DeVinney, was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary FeatureAcademy Award for Documentary Feature
The Academy Award for Documentary Feature is among the most prestigious awards for documentary films.- Winners and nominees:Following the Academy's practice, films are listed below by the award year...
in 1988 during the 60th Academy Awards.
Critical reception
The series has been hailed as more than just a historical document. Clayborne CarsonClayborne Carson
Clayborne Carson is an African American professor of history at Stanford University, and director of the Martin Luther King, Jr., Research and Education Institute. Since 1985 he has directed the Martin Luther King Papers Project, a long-term project to edit and publish the papers of Martin Luther...
, a Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
history professor and editor of the published papers of Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was an American clergyman, activist, and prominent leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement. He is best known for being an iconic figure in the advancement of civil rights in the United States and around the world, using nonviolent methods following the...
, said that "it is the principal film account of the most important American social justice movement of the 20th century". Because of its extensive use of primary sources and in-depth coverage of the material, it has been adopted as a key reference and record of the civil rights movement.
Episodes and content
Each episode of the series is narrated by Julian BondJulian Bond
Horace Julian Bond , known as Julian Bond, is an American social activist and leader in the American civil rights movement, politician, professor, and writer. While a student at Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia, during the early 1960s, he helped found the Student Nonviolent Coordinating...
. A founding member of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee
Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee
The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee ' was one of the principal organizations of the American Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s. It emerged from a series of student meetings led by Ella Baker held at Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina in April 1960...
(SNCC), Bond emerged as a notable figure in the Civil Rights Movement in 1965 when he was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives
Georgia House of Representatives
The Georgia House of Representatives is the lower house of the Georgia General Assembly of the U.S. state of Georgia.-Composition:...
. The House refused to seat him because he publicly endorsed SNCC's opposition to US involvement in the Vietnam War. In 1966, the Supreme Court of the United States
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
unanimously ruled that the Georgia House of Representatives had denied Bond his freedom of speech
Freedom of speech
Freedom of speech is the freedom to speak freely without censorship. The term freedom of expression is sometimes used synonymously, but includes any act of seeking, receiving and imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used...
and was required to seat him. Bond v. Floyd (385 U.S. 116).
Eyes on the Prize: America's Civil Rights Years
1 – “Awakenings” (1954–1956)
- Murder of Emmett TillEmmett TillEmmett Louis "Bobo" Till was an African-American boy who was murdered in Mississippi at the age of 14 after reportedly flirting with a white woman. Till was from Chicago, Illinois visiting his relatives in the Mississippi Delta region when he spoke to 21-year-old Carolyn Bryant, the married...
- Montgomery Bus BoycottMontgomery Bus BoycottThe Montgomery Bus Boycott was a political and social protest campaign that started in 1955 in Montgomery, Alabama, USA, intended to oppose the city's policy of racial segregation on its public transit system. Many important figures in the civil rights movement were involved in the boycott,...
2 – “Fighting Back” (1957–1962)
- Central High School and the Little Rock NineLittle Rock NineThe Little Rock Nine was a group of African-American students who were enrolled in Little Rock Central High School in 1957. The ensuing Little Rock Crisis, in which the students were initially prevented from entering the racially segregated school by Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus, and then...
- James MeredithJames MeredithJames H. Meredith is an American civil rights movement figure, a writer, and a political adviser. In 1962, he was the first African American student admitted to the segregated University of Mississippi, an event that was a flashpoint in the American civil rights movement. Motivated by President...
and the University of MississippiUniversity of MississippiThe University of Mississippi, also known as Ole Miss, is a public, coeducational research university located in Oxford, Mississippi. Founded in 1844, the school is composed of the main campus in Oxford, four branch campuses located in Booneville, Grenada, Tupelo, and Southaven as well as the...
3 – “Ain’t Scared of Your Jails” (1960–1961)
- Nashville sit-insNashville sit-insThe Nashville sit-ins, which lasted from February 13 to May 10, 1960, were part of a nonviolent direct action campaign to end racial segregation at lunch counters in downtown Nashville, Tennessee...
and boycottBoycottA boycott is an act of voluntarily abstaining from using, buying, or dealing with a person, organization, or country as an expression of protest, usually for political reasons...
s - Freedom Riders
4 – “No Easy Walk” (1961–1963)
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was an American clergyman, activist, and prominent leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement. He is best known for being an iconic figure in the advancement of civil rights in the United States and around the world, using nonviolent methods following the...
and . . .
- Albany, GeorgiaAlbany, GeorgiaAlbany is a city in and the county seat of Dougherty County, Georgia, United States, in the southwestern part of the state. It is the principal city of the Albany, Georgia metropolitan area and the southwest part of the state. The population was 77,434 at the 2010 U.S. Census, making it the...
- Birmingham, AlabamaBirmingham, AlabamaBirmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
- The March on WashingtonMarch on Washington for Jobs and FreedomThe March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom was the largest political rally for human rights in United States history and called for civil and economic rights for African Americans. It took place in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, August 28, 1963. Martin Luther King, Jr...
5 – “Mississippi: Is This America?” (1962–1964)
- Medgar EversMedgar EversMedgar Wiley Evers was an African American civil rights activist from Mississippi involved in efforts to overturn segregation at the University of Mississippi...
- Murder of GoodmanAndrew GoodmanAndrew Goodman was one of three American civil rights activists murdered near Philadelphia, Mississippi, during Freedom Summer in 1964 by members of the Ku Klux Klan.-Early life and education:...
, ChaneyJames ChaneyJames Earl "J.E." Chaney , from Meridian, Mississippi, was one of three American civil rights workers who were murdered during Freedom Summer by members of the Ku Klux Klan near Philadelphia...
and SchwernerMichael SchwernerMichael Henry Schwerner , was one of three Congress of Racial Equality field workers killed in Philadelphia, Mississippi, by the Ku Klux Klan in response to their civil rights work, which included promoting voting registration among Mississippi African Americans... - Mississippi Freedom Democratic PartyMississippi Freedom Democratic PartyThe Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party was an American political party created in the state of Mississippi in 1964, during the civil rights movement...
6 – “Bridge to Freedom” (1965)
- Voting rights movement in Selma, AlabamaSelma, AlabamaSelma is a city in and the county seat of Dallas County, Alabama, United States, located on the banks of the Alabama River. The population was 20,512 at the 2000 census....
Eyes on the Prize: America at the Crossroads
1 – “The Time Has Come” (1964–1966)
- Malcolm XMalcolm XMalcolm X , born Malcolm Little and also known as El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz , was an African American Muslim minister and human rights activist. To his admirers he was a courageous advocate for the rights of African Americans, a man who indicted white America in the harshest terms for its...
- Lowndes CountyLowndes County, AlabamaLowndes County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama. It is named in honor of William Lowndes, a member of the United States Congress from South Carolina. As of the 2010 census, the population was 11,299...
Freedom Organization - The March Against FearMarch Against FearOn June 6, 1966, James Meredith started a solitary March Against Fear for 220 miles from Memphis, Tennessee, to Jackson, Mississippi, to protest against racism. Soon after starting his march he was shot by a sniper with birdshot, injuring him...
2 – “Two Societies” (1965–1968)
- Martin Luther King and ChicagoChicagoChicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
- Detroit Riot of 1967
3 – “Power!” (1967–1968)
- Election of Carl Stokes as Cleveland mayor
- Birth of the Black Panther PartyBlack Panther PartyThe Black Panther Party wasan African-American revolutionary leftist organization. It was active in the United States from 1966 until 1982....
- Community control of the Ocean HillOcean Hill, BrooklynOcean Hill is a subsection of Bedford-Stuyvesant in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. Founded in 1890, the neighborhood is part of Brooklyn Community Board 3 and Brooklyn Community Board 16. The ZIP code for the neighborhood is 11233...
-BrownsvilleBrownsville, BrooklynBrownsville is a residential neighborhood located in eastern Brooklyn, New York City.The total land area is one square mile, and the ZIP code for the neighborhood is 11212....
school district in BrooklynBrooklynBrooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
4 – “The Promised Land” (1967–1968)
- The final years of Martin Luther King, Jr.Martin Luther King, Jr.Martin Luther King, Jr. was an American clergyman, activist, and prominent leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement. He is best known for being an iconic figure in the advancement of civil rights in the United States and around the world, using nonviolent methods following the...
- The Poor People's CampaignPoor People's CampaignOrganized by Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the Poor People's Campaign addressed the issues of economic justice and housing for the poor in the United States King said, “We believe the highest patriotism demands the ending of the war and the opening of a...
and Resurrection City
5 – “Ain’t Gonna Shuffle No More” (1964–1972)
- Muhammad AliMuhammad AliMuhammad Ali is an American former professional boxer, philanthropist and social activist...
- The movement at Howard UniversityHoward UniversityHoward University is a federally chartered, non-profit, private, coeducational, nonsectarian, historically black university located in Washington, D.C., United States...
- National Black Political Convention
6 – “A Nation of Law?” (1968–1971)
- Fred HamptonFred HamptonFred Hampton was an African-American activist and deputy chairman of the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party...
and the Black Panther PartyBlack Panther PartyThe Black Panther Party wasan African-American revolutionary leftist organization. It was active in the United States from 1966 until 1982....
in ChicagoChicagoChicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles... - Attica Prison rebellion
7 – “The Keys to the Kingdom” (1974–1980)
- Busing and the Boston public school system
- Maynard JacksonMaynard JacksonMaynard Holbrook Jackson, Jr. was an American politician, a member of the Democratic Party, and the first African American mayor of Atlanta, Georgia. He served three terms, two consecutive terms from 1974 until 1982 and a third term from 1990 to 1994...
and the city of Atlanta - Allan BakkeRegents of the University of California v. BakkeRegents of the University of California v. Bakke, was a landmark decision of the Supreme Court of the United States that ruled unconstitutional the admission process of the Medical School at the University of California at Davis, which set aside 16 of the 100 seats for African American...
and affirmative actionAffirmative actionAffirmative action refers to policies that take factors including "race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation or national origin" into consideration in order to benefit an underrepresented group, usually as a means to counter the effects of a history of discrimination.-Origins:The term...
8 – “Back to the Movement” (1979–1983)
- Miami Riot of 1980Arthur McDuffieArthur McDuffie was an African American who died as a result of injuries suffered at the hands of five white Miami-Dade police officers after a traffic stop was conducted. He had led the officers on a high-speed chase on his motorcycle, and was driving with a suspended license. The officers were...
and preceding events - Election of Harold WashingtonHarold WashingtonHarold Lee Washington was an American lawyer and politician who became the first African-American Mayor of Chicago, serving from 1983 until his death in 1987.- Early years and military service :...
as ChicagoChicagoChicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
mayor and preceding events - Overview of the movement and its effect upon the nation and the world
External links
- PBS/WGBH Eyes on the Prize Series
- Teacher study guide
- PBS Lesson Plans
- Eyes on the Prize Interview Transcripts, Washington University Library
- Eyes on the Prize I - Henry Hampton Collection, Washington University's Film and Media Archive
- Eyes on the Prize II - Henry Hampton Collection, Washington University's Film and Media Archive
- Lyrics and discussion of the song "Eyes on the Prize", 2006 Bruce Springsteen recording
- Regarding the copyright controversies: