1957 RACE RELATIONS DOCUMENTARY "CRISIS IN LEVITTOWN" PENNSYLVANIA 47664

Support Our Channel :   / periscopefilm   In 1957, William and Daisy Myers, who were both college graduates, moved their family into the Dogwood Hollow section of Levittown, Pennsylvania. The Myers were black, and the suburb was all-white. The result was somewhat predictable given the era, and the fact that many of the whites had left the inner city for the suburbs to escape racial integration. The Myers were harassed, openly threatened, and snubbed. Molotov cocktails were thrown at a protest which escalated to a riot in the summer, and a cross was burned in a neighbor's yard. State police ended up protecting the family home for a month. This powerful documentary from 1957 explores the situation and features interviews with neighborhood residents, who try to explain themselves and their fellow citizens' actions. The result is a powerful document of the racist attitudes that predominated in this era, even in the northern U.S.A. You can read more about the incident in this 1997 retrospective article: http://articles.baltimoresun.com/1997... The Myers never moved, by the way, and their bravery produced an outpouring of support from some members of the community who were outraged at their treatment (see article link above). We encourage viewers to add comments and, especially, to provide additional information about our videos by adding a comment! See something interesting? Tell people what it is and what they can see by writing something for example: "01:00:12:00 -- President Roosevelt is seen meeting with Winston Churchill at the Quebec Conference." This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com