Virginia Film Festival

Drewary J. Brown was a legendary figure in the struggle for racial justice in central Virginia. As a young man, Drewary Brown lived a rough and tumble life on the streets of Charlottesville and suffered under the oppressions of Jim Crow. Mr. Brown went on to become a pioneering leader in local politics and a peerless community organizer in support of employment for African Americans all across the region. This hour-long documentary from 1999 captures Drewary Brown in the last years of his life, and includes rare interview footage with many of the key figures of the civil rights struggle in central Virginia. They tell firsthand their stories from some of the most important moments in local history – school desegregation, the destruction of Vinegar Hill, and the hard-won battles for dignity, respect, and equal opportunity for all citizens. On this 100^th anniversary of his birth, Drewary Brown’s plainspoken wisdom, deep sense of humor, and profound moral urgency are as important today as they were at the height of the civil right movement. Discussion with director Larry Garretson, producer Virginia Daugherty, Pynke Gohaner-Lyles, Jimmy Hollins, Myrtle Houchens, and Dave Norris, moderated by Coy Barefoot (Albemarle Charlottesville Historical Society)

Supported by the Historical Society and Preservation Piedmont

Presented by The Daily Progress

This film is part of the Race in America series presented by James Madison’s Montpelier and supported by Virginia Commission for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts