by Coley Gray

The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom on August 28, 1963, was attended by an estimated 250,000 people and is credited with spurring legislative and policy advances in civil rights and voting rights, as well as fueling decades-long waves of activism for racial justice that continue until today. The film The March, directed by James Blue, was released in 1964 and is a classic of documentary filmmaking. Its cinematic craftsmanship captures one of the most momentous events in 20th-century American history in a compact 30-minute running time.

To commemorate the 60th anniversary of the March on Washington, the National Archives and Records Administration held a screening of The March and a panel discussion on August 25, 2023. Speakers included scholars David A. Frank (University of Oregon) and William Jones (University of Minnesota); Christina Austin, NARA motion picture preservation specialist; and Isisara Bey, March on Washington Film Festival artistic director. While the panelists covered the March’s place in civil rights history, what were the origins of The March, the film? Inspired by the screening, I took a deep dive into the overlooked story behind this compelling portrait of civil rights on screen-screen including this digital exhibition on film curated by Dr. Frank.

During the summer of 1963, March organizers frantically worked to pull off this unprecedented event. As the appointed late August Wednesday approached, they weren’t sure how many marchers to expect. Meanwhile, at the United States Information Agency, plans were already in motion to document the event. Film crews had fanned out across the country following many of the people traveling to the March and the preparations needed to pull off the large-scale event.

A bit of history.

Following World War II, the US government wanted a public relations and media operation to counter the perceived growing Soviet geopolitical power and propaganda influence. The USIA (United States Information Agency) was established and it grew to encompass radio programs, print publications, libraries, and film production units, but the USIA’s cinematic efforts came with a stipulation. Fearing the possible political use of propaganda at home, lawmakers prohibited its films from being distributed domestically. And, telling the country’s story in a positive light was complicated when it came to deeply American, but profoundly disturbing issues like racism and racial segregation.

Under President Kennedy, the USIA had started covering the civil rights movement. This not only supported his domestic policy agenda but also responded to intelligence reports that Soviet media was “heavily exploiting the ‘racist’ nature of American life by focusing on the demonstrations and violence throughout the South.” This type of coverage required a more balanced way to portray the injustices faced by Black Americans, according to USIA film scholar Dr. Bret Vudoker. Transforming the March into The March, the film required someone capable and, according to USIA and director James Blue, was the right choice. Blue’s previous feature-length film depicting the Algerian struggle for independence from the French won at the Cannes Film Festival in 1962.

The second life of The March.

Within less than a year from the March, USIA had translated The March into 52 languages and distributed 300 copies worldwide. The film won a prize at the Cannes Film Festival in 1965, but there’s no records that the film was seen by the organizers of the film, civil rights leaders, March participants, or even members of the general American public. According to USIA records, the film was retired from circulation in 1974. It wasn’t shown domestically again until PBS documentary filmmakers realized its value for their civil rights series, Eyes on the Prize. The ‘Eyes’ team worked to get a law passed in 1986 to permit “The March” to be made publicly available for a new generation. In 2008, the Library of Congress selected The March for preservation in the National Film Registry as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.” NARA did an extensive and meticulous restoration and digitization in 2013 for the March’s 50th anniversary. Ten years later, the restored version of The March on NARA’s YouTube channel has been viewed more than 150,000 times.

Looking back on the March and The March

Each anniversary of the March on Washington is an opportunity to reflect anew on its meaning and to interrogate representations of the event. NARA holds 20,000+ films that were produced or distributed by USIA, according to Ellen Mulligan, NARA’s Chief of the Moving Image and Sound branch. This trove of government-funded films, still largely unseen by the American public, is a vital time capsule of stories we told, brilliant and flawed, about ourselves to the rest of the world.

Coley Gray is based in Washington, DC and has an MA in arts management from American University and works at the intersection of film, social change, and the philanthropy and nonprofit sectors.

The March: The Story Behind the Filming of the March on Washington