Many families were separated from loved ones.
People lost their lives.
InBisbee ‘17, Greene casts natives of Bisbee to tell their own story from their perspectives.
Image by Zanda Rice
As one participant says inBisbee ‘17, collaborating on the film provided the largest group therapy ever witnessed on-screen.
Locals collaborate to stage recreations of their controversial past.
What Is ‘Bisbee ‘17’ About?
An old mining town on the Arizona-Mexico border finally reckons with its darkest day: the deportation of 1200 immigrant miners exactly 100 years ago. Locals collaborate to stage recreations of their controversial past.
The cast comprises native residents who take up different roles of the players in the initial 1917 event.
With many witnesses, a standout character in the film is a striking miner played by Mexican-American actorFernando Serrano.
More often than not, the heroes in these movies are dreamers who do anything for personal prosperity.
They fight off indigenous communities, killing, maiming, and displacing them.
InBisbee ‘17, Greene questions this portrayal of how the frontier was conquered.
Bisbee ‘17starkly reveals that capitalist dominance sometimes comes at the expense of human rights and dignity.
Image via Doc Society
Robert Greene constructs a complex narrative spanning across the past and present through historical reenactments with contemporary interviews.
Greene’sBisbee ‘17demonstrates how history can be contested and remembered unevenly among members of a community.
Bisbee ‘17is currently available to stream on Hoopla in the U.S.
WATCH ON HOOPLA
