In 2000, the United States Congress
established the Veterans Project to preserve and make accessible personal
accounts of American war veterans. These
oral histories will enable future generations to hear directly from veterans
the realities of their experiences and better understand the realities of
war. The Association For the Study Of
African American Life And History (ASALH) has partnered with and endorsed The
Veterans History Project to assist in making sure the voices of African
American veterans will be represented in this endeavor.
In 2008, the Manasota ASALH branch
President, Lois Watson, appointed a committee to launch the Veteran's History
Project in the local area. The team
members were William Watkins, Chairperson, Bob Fitzgerald, Helen and Cliff
Heathington, George Hardy, and Bernard Watson.
The Ringling College of Art and Design partnered with ASALH to film
individual veterans of color in the area. Dr. Larry Thompson, President of the
Ringling College of Art and Design introduced the team to director and cinematographer
Mark Parry, a faculty member of Ringling’s Digital Filmmaking Department. Parry agreed to direct the team.
Local veterans were contacted and
thirty-one interviews of male and female veterans were conducted by ASALH
member Dr. Watson in 2008 and 2009. The interviews were sent to the Library of
Congress and each veteran was given a DVD of his/her interview for personal and
family use.
When this phase was completed, it was
realized a film that captured the major themes of the interviews would help the
wider community understand the challenges faced
by people of color during their lifetimes. A trailer, developed to facilitate
fundraising for the envisioned film, was funded by the Manasota ASALH Branch
and produced by Mr. Parry. A proposal
was developed seeking funding for the film and funding was approved in 2010. The film was completed in 2012.