The Frederick Douglass Institute's Society and Film Program will host Long Night's Journey Into Day, an acclaimed film that goes inside South Africa's efforts to heal itself with truth about crimes committed under apartheid. The 2000 documentary will be shown at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, April 1, in room 1-101 of Dewey Hall on the University of Rochester's River Campus. It is free and open to the public.
Filmmakers Frances Reid and Deborah Hoffmann studied South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission for more than two years to track a handful of the 10,000 requests for amnesty. In exchange for absolute truth about their activities and human rights abuses, offenders could be forgiven for crimes committed before apartheid ended in 1994. It was awarded the Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize for Best Documentary in 2000.
After the newly elected government ended the social and political policy of racial segregation and discrimination in South Africa for 40 years, the commission began its work. The film details four cases—the Amy Biehl story, The Cradock 4, the Magoo's bar bombing, and The Guguletu 7—and underscores universal themes of conflict, forgiveness, and renewal.
The screening is sponsored by the Frederick Douglass Institute for African and African-American Studies and the Film and Media Studies Program at the University of Rochester. For more information, contact (585) 275-7235.