Blood Done Sign My Name (2010) Movie Script
[piano music playing]
[male voice sings]
a Last Sunday morning a
a The sunshine
Felt like rain a
a The week before,
They all seemed the same a
a With the help of God
And true friends a
a I come to realize a
a I still had
Two strong legs a
a And even wings to fly a
a Oh, I ain't wasting
Time no more a
a'Cause time goes by like a
a Like hurricanes
And faster things a
(woman) We heard it on the radio.
ln the songs, you could tell
that there was a movement...
(woman 2) Because we were
hearing what was going on
all over
the country.
Yes, yes.
And it seemed like
it was real everywhere
but here.
What happened?
How did we get
left behind?
(man) I lived in this part
of North Carolina all my life.
Back in 1970, these fields
were flat-covered in tobacco.
Far as you could see.
lf tobacco was the blood
of eastern North Carolina,
then Oxford was its heart.
For 300 years, tobacco flowed
through those old warehouses.
And like blood,
it kept people alive...
black and white.
After having served
in Vietnam,
and having many black
soldiers around me,
where it was
pretty much the norm,
I come back home and
only find a few blacks
on the Highway Patrol
at the time,
it seemed a little strange to me.
But being
an old North Carolina boy
and raised down in New Bern,
um, I was surprised,
but at the same time,
my background told me
that I wasn't too surprised.
Martin Luther King
was never my favorite,
but I admired him.
I liked what he stood for.
But after Dickie Marrow
was killed,
nobody was having
that shit anymore.
We was about ready to kick
some ass our own selves.
(little boy)
What is it?
(older boy)
Shh.
See? told you
Grandma Jessie's rich.
Wow.
There's gotta be close to
$10 worth of Cokes right here.
I'm gonna take one.
She won't miss it.
(man) Vern, Tim, come on outside
and say goodbye
to your grandmother.
(grandmother)
Vernon.
Saying our goodbyes,
Mother Jessie.
Vernon, before you go,
there's something serious
l've got to talk to you about.
lf my boys broke something,
you know I'm good for it.
Bye, Grandma.
So long, Grandma!
I n the car!
Okay, last one.
Well, I think
we're ready.
Martha, I asked Vidalia to pack
a basket of food for the trip.
Would you go see
if it's ready?
Of course.
[door closes]
Anyway vErnon,
I know you believe you can talk
your way out of every predicament,
but Oxford
is not like Biscoe.
They're more
set in their ways.
Don't you worry,
Mother Jessie.
The Lord hasn't
let us down yet.
It's not the Lord
I'm worried about vErnon.
Let's get this show
on the road, Tysons.
Load'em up.
Oh, I'm gonna
miss you so much.
You be sure
and write me, you hear?
I will. I'm gonna
miss it here, too.
All right, sweetie. Bye.
Bye, Mother Jessie.
(both boys)
Bye, Grandma.
Vernon, you take
care now.
(Vern)
I don't want to leave.
(Tim)
Me, neither.
(Vernon) Come on, everyone.
We're on an adventure.
[bell rings]
Good morning,
ladies and gentlemen.
I said good morning,
ladies and gentlemen.
(class)
Good morning.
Welcome to
third period English.
My name is Mr. Chavis.
And I'm your teacher.
lf you could, turn with me
to page 15 in your textbooks.
We'll be covering
Ralph Ellison.
Mr. Chavis.
Yes.
you really know Stokely
Carmichael the Black Panther?
Yes. I know him.
When I was at U NCC, I had him
speak to a student assembly.
And they let
you do that?
Sure. I was head
of the Student Union.
And I thought it would be a good idea
if people heard what he had to say.
What's a
Student Union?
What's a Student Union?
A Student Union is basically
an organization of students,
a place to meet, discuss
ideas, affect change.
Any other questions
before we start?
Yeah. Why'd you ever want
to come back to Oxford?
Are you sure you priced
this flour right?
I can get it over at the A&P
for almost 50 cents less.
Then you just walk another mile
and a half over there and buy it.
May I have a bag, please?
(Tim) Why do we have a house
with furniture already in it?
(Martha) Because the
church owns it, honey.
It's not ours.
Remember the one where all the
furniture was covered in plastic?
(Vernon) Hah. That was a
long time ago, little buck.
Oh vErnon,
it's beautiful.
I just hope they haven't
completely redecorated the place.
Just once, l'd like
to paint our home myself.
Okay, everyone,
best behavior.
Let's go, Tysons.
Reverend Tyson! Hi.
You must be Martha.
Yes, hi.
I'm lsabel Taylor,
and on behalf
of the ladies
of First Methodist,
welcome to Oxford
and your new home.
We knew y'all would
be getting in late,
so we just dropped off a few things
so you'd have
something for supper.
Well, thank you.
Everything looks so nice.
We painted the whole
house and redid the drapes.
You shouldn't have.
Well, I don't
mean to be rude,
but I need to
excuse myself.
But you ladies, you feel
free to stay and just visit
for as long
as you like.
See you Sunday.
(woman) Sure you don't
need any help unpacking?
No, thanks,
I'm fine. Bye.
Oh, Lord, not again.
[sighs]
[knocking]
Come in.
(Roseanna)
Mrs. Tyson?
Yes?
Hi. My name is
Roseanna Allen.
I'm a friend of Vidalia,
who works for your mother.
She said you might be
needing some help.
Roseanna, you
are a godsend.
(woman)
Ben, is that you?
Yeah, it's me, Mom.
Oh, good.
Dinner's ready.
(mom) And all you could
see were these little feet
running down the hall,
just bare bottomed,
and him chasing him.
It was so...
(woman) You were chasing my baby?
I was trying
to catch him.
I was trying to... And you know, you
would be surprised how quick he is.
He was just mad because
they broke the vase.
Do you know how long
we've had that, though?
I gave you
the money for...
Oh, come
on, that...
Quit crying
about the vase.
So did you see Mary
Catherine Chavis at school?
Mm-hmm.
She still there?
She was tough.
I still don't understand why
you didn't take that offer
to start on your doctorate right away.
You know, you are always better off
just getting into it
and getting it over with.
I don't know. Those kids
at Mary Potter, they'll
drive Ben to graduate school
faster than a scholarship.
Well, actually,
I was thinking
about doing something
else with my time.
Really? What's that?
Reopening the
Ridley Drive-l n.
Opening up Granddaddy's
old place?
Why?
Well, I think
there's a need.
A need for whom?
I guess we'll
find out.
[male voice
sings pop song]
a Un-huh a
a I know a place a
a Ain't nobody crying a
a Ain't nobody worried a
a Ain't no smiling faces a
a Unh-unh a
a No no a
a Lying to the races a
a Help me a
a Come on, come on,
Somebody help me now a
a I'll take you there a
a Help me y'all a
a I'll take you there a
a Help me now a
a I'll take you there a
a Oh-ooh a
a I'll take you there a
a Oh, oh, mercy a
a I'll take you there a
a Oh, let me
Take you there a
a I'll take you there a
a Oh-oh a
a Let me take you there a
a I'll take you there a
a Play it Mary a
a Play your piano now
All right a
a Do it do it a
a Come on now,
Play on it, play on it a
a Big Daddy now a
a Daddy, Daddy, Daddy a
a Play your... Mmm a
[chatter]
a Ooh, Lord a
a All right now a
a I'll take you there a
a Un-huh a
a Lying to the races
I'll take you there a
a Oh a
a I'll take you there a
a Ain't no smiling faces a
a I'll take you there a
a Up in here,
Lying to the races a
a I'll take you there a
a You gotta gotta
Gotta let me a
a I'll take you there a
a Take you, Take you, Oh my Lord a
a I'll take you there a
a Oh, I'll take you there a
[music fading]
(man 1)
How's it look?
(man 2)
That's good.
What do you think?
Yeah, man, good job.
My father loved
this place.
[chuckles gently]
This may be your Ph D.
[chuckles softly
(Vernon)
Good morning.
(congregation)
Morning.
For those of you just returned
from behind the I ron Curtain
or perhaps trekking somewhere
high in the Himalayas
where phone service, I'm
told, is not all that good...
my name is
Vernon Tyson,
your new pastor here at
Oxford Methodist Church.
I want to
thank all of you
who welcomed
my wife Martha
and our four children,
Vern, Tim,
Boo, and Julie,
with such open arms
and made us feel
so welcome this week.
Now, let us pray.
Father,
we live in difficult times
that challenge our faith
in new and often
difficult circumstance.
Grant us the power to
choose right from wrong,
and the strength
to love all people
of all races, because
in the eyes of God,
we are all equal.
ln Your holy name
we pray. Amen.
(congregation)
Amen.
[knock on door]
Mrs. Alwin,
I'm Reverend Tyson.
I heard you
on the radio.
You have a
beautiful voice.
Well, thank you, ma'am.
'Course, I don't usually trust
preachers with beautiful voices.
They tend to think too
highly of themselves.
But then I heard your
sermon about the Negroes,
and I changed my mind.
I thought this
is either a man
with a total disregard for his career,
or else he's one of the
bravest preachers I ever heard.
Either way, he wasn't
all full of himself.
(Vernon)
Well, I'm not sure
my wife would completely
agree with you on that.
(chuckles) She must be a good woman.
She is.
Children?
Two boys,
two girls.
Good.
You know, Reverend, l've
been a member of that church
for 87 years,
and l've seen
20, 22 pastors
stand in that pulpit,
some good, some
not so good.
But they all fell
into two groups.
They were either priests,
or they were prophets.
The priests told us the comforting
things we wanted to hear.
The prophets
challenged us
with the difficult
things we needed to hear.
Which one
are you?
I try to be a little bit of both.
Oh, Reverend,
in these times, I think you're
going to find it very hard
to be both.
[cheerful indistinct chatter]
[soul music]
a [male voice
sings indistinct] a
Man, we need to put up a
basketball hoop out back.
What for? Why don't you
just go to the park and play?
[men laugh]
What's so funny?
They took down
all the rims.
What you mean, took down the
rims? What are you talking about?
Rims, man. The town
took down the rims
to keep us out of
their neighborhood.
Oh, man, don't
look like that.
You know how stuff
changes here.
One step forward,
two steps back.
Name one black person
working a shop downtown.
Unless they got a broom in their hands.
They got one brother
on the police force.
He been
there four years
and still ain't allowed
to arrest any white folks.
So what y'all gonna
do about that?
Shit. People been pushing
change downtown for years.
Ain't nothing
gonna happen.
Yeah. I agree
with you, Eddie.
Ain't nothing
gonna happen...
unless you make
it happen.
(male voice) No one's saying
you don't work hard, Robert.
Jesus. You work
like a slave.
It's just that some folks
downtown want to make sure
you got things under
control out here, that's all.
Now you tell those folks not
to worry about their investment.
Ain't nobody gonna
mess with me out here.
I got friends who'll
guarantee me of that.
The change machine's
empty in the laundromat.
Hello, Mr. Watkins.
Larry, how you
doing, son?
Fine, sir!
[cash register
bell rings]
Now you have
a good day.
Howdy.
What you need?
Driving by,
see the shop,
realize I'm due
for a haircut.
No.
No?
No what?
I need to make
an appointment?
No.
I don't cut
y'all's hair here.
All right, all right.
No problem.
I'll go to a fellow
in town I know.
Y'all have a good day.
You know what, Robert?
You've got a good
thing going on out here.
lf you don't die of a heart
attack trying to keep it up
and if you keep that temper
of yours under control,
you might just end up a rich man.
Don't you worry
about me, Billy.
I'm gonna be fine.
(male voice) Next order of
business, a request by Mike Taylor
for a new stop sign
down his way.
Neil, is the application in order?
Yes. We've been out
there and checked it out.
Then I'm looking for a motion
to move this thing along.
Motion.
Second.
All in favor?
(many)
Aye.
Opposed? Motion carried.
Next item.
Restoration of the
basketball rims in city park.
Mr. Chavis, this
is your request?
It is, Your Honor.
Looks pretty
straightforward to me.
Um...
unfortunately, Mr. Chavis,
we are not
the jurisdictional body
you need to be addressing.
That would be the town
Recreational Committee,
which meets the first
Tuesday of every month.
I have, Your Honor.
I beg your pardon?
I have submitted that
request to the Rec Committee,
but since it never holds
a quorum in its meetings,
it can't vote
on that request.
Well, better
luck next month.
Mr. Mayor,
the Rec Committee has not
held a quorum since 1964,
which, not coincidentally,
was the year of the
Federal Civil Rights Act.
But, that may be,
but there's nothing that
we can do about that.
Actually, there is,
Your Honor.
Based on the town charter,
if a standing committee
is without a quorum
for a period of longer
than six months,
then it's possible for this
council... to call for a vote.
Neil?
He is correct,
Your Honor.
But only if there is
a quorum present
at the time
the vote is called.
[clears throat]
Your Honor
and everybody,
I'm sorry, but I forgot I
need to leave early tonight.
I'm afraid I have to leave
early as well, Your Honor.
Well, that leaves us
without a quorum.
Adjourned.
How'd it go?
What was that
Frederick Douglass quote
your father was always
so fond of reciting?
Power concedes nothing...
Without a demand.
Yeah, well,
I demanded.
The power just rolled right over me.
Well, I don't think
Frederick Douglass
expected the power to
yield on his first attempt.
[chuckles]
I guess he didn't.
Get some rest, son.
Night, Momma.
Pack of menthol
Rx, please.
What you trying
to pull, boy?
They're...for
my momma, sir.
Yeah?
Then she ought to know
that they're 35 cents.
Why'd you tell him these
were for your momma?
For 35 cents, he'd sell the
baby Jesus a pack of smokes.
He's got, like,
500 other...
(Jebbie)
That was awesome.
Sweet, man.
What the heck?
Hey, what're you niggers
doing in our neighborhood?
What're you doing?
Y'all better get your
black asses out of here
before we come over
there and kick them out!
(several)
Run!
(Roseanna)
Hey!
You get home. Now.
[sigh]
Thank you, Roseanna.
He was gonna
kill me!
And why
would that be?
Well, because Jebbie
threw a rock at him.
I didn't throw it!
Well, it didn't look like
you did much to stop him.
You go clean up.
And get them cigarettes
out your back pocket
before your momma
gets home.
Thanks, Roseanna.
Good night.
(Vernon)
See you tomorrow.
What're you
gonna do?
I'm taking you on
a trip, little buck.
(Daddy)
Whoo!
Come on! Let's go!
Come on, Daddy!
Are you
speaking to me?
Yeah!
Woo-hoo!
Daddy?
When are you
gonna talk to me?
I'm not, little buck.
I'm gonna
show you something.
What is it, Daddy?
It's a revival!
Tim.
Tim. It's
not a revival.
(man's voice)
The light of Jesus.
(several)
For our God.
The light of Jesus.
(several)
The light of Christ.
The light of Jesus.
Deliverance.
We are the chosen ones.
By the fire of
Calvary's cross
and the sentinel and
the bearer of the light,
jointly give birth
to the star.
For our God.
For our God.
Let the circles of light become alive.
The light of Christ.
We mean to cleanse
and purify our virtues
by burning out our vices
from the fire of His word.
The light of Christ.
Honor,
truth, loyalty, purity.
For our God.
For our God.
[cheering]
I want to go, Daddy.
Shh.
(faint) Please, Daddy.
I want to go home now.
Let the circle
truly become
a living representation
of our order
in the darkness
of the world.
When I saw the cross, I
thought everything was good.
Evil can sometimes be
hard to recognize.
It hides in
normal things.
People you
think you know.
But recognizing evil
isn't the hardest part.
It's standing
up to it,
even when nobody
else will.
(Dr. Proctor) So essentially,
the quality of our choices
determine the quality
of our lives.
Which, translated, means you
probably need to work a little harder.
[whispering]
Thank you.
Dr. Proctor, my name is
Reverend Vernon Tyson.
Reverend Tyson.
Please.
I'm the pastor at the
Oxford Methodist Church.
I heard you
preach last year
at the North Carolina
Council of Churches.
You gave a
magnificent speech.
Well, thank you,
Reverend Tyson.
But I'm assuming that wasn't the
only reason you came to see me.
So he said yes.
And we'll get run out of
town together. [chuckles]
You might be
right about that.
Well, I think
you're overreacting.
I'm just saying there
are people in this town
who think that things have moved
awfully fast in a very short time
and maybe they should
just... slow down a bit.
Well, if anybody bothered to
ask the blacks in this town,
they'd tell you if things went any
slower they'd be going backward.
At the very least don't you
think you should've consulted
with the Executive Committee
before inviting him to speak?
Dr. Samuel Proctor is one of
the leading educators in America.
All the more embarrassing
if you have to go back
and tell him they won't let him preach.
They? Who is they?
You know full well who's they.
They, who put bread on our table.
[sigh]
I know what I'm
doing, Martha.
Trust me.
Just promise you'll give me 24
hours notice to start packing.
Bless this food to the
nourishment of our bodies.
[phone ringing]
May Your goodness
and mercy be upon us
and with those
less fortunate.
I n Your
holy name. Amen.
(others)
Amen.
No. I got it.
Reverend Tyson.
Oh, hello, John.
Yes, as a matter of fact,
we just sat down...
Yeah, sure, l'd
be happy to listen.
I see.
Un-huh.
Well, I'm sorry
you feel that way,
but I'm afraid
I can't do that.
No.
[phone ringing]
Reverend Tyson.
(male voice)
Is it true you invited
a nigger to preach
at our church?
Who is this?
'Cause if it's true,
you're gonna regret it.
Who is this?
[dial tone]
[sigh]
(kids, shouting)
Fight! Fight!
Stop it! Stop it!
Tim Tyson!
What are you doing?
He called Daddy
a nigger-lover.
Your daddy doesn't
need you to defend him.
I wasn't defending
him, Momma.
I was trying
not to be wicked.
Wicked?
Daddy says the wickedest thing we can do
is to do nothing.
[sigh]
Oh, honey.
[ding]
Dorothy.
I came as soon
as I heard.
How's Joe?
He's gonna be okay.
Thank God.
Vernon...
he isn't gonna want to
see you when he comes out.
(Martha)
Vernon? Ls that you?
Vernon?
Dick called.
They scheduled an executive
committee meeting tonight at 7:00.
What was I
thinking, Martha?
Did I really believe I could
change everything by myself?
You're not changing
anything...by yourself.
I'm here.
Stand your ground.
Good evening, everyone.
Reverend Tyson.
Jack, Mr. Pink.
Vernon.
Dick.
I'm assuming we're
all here tonight
because of my invitation to Dr.
Samuel Proctor to speak this Sunday.
Why would you
do this vErnon?
I got people coming
into my store asking me
what kind of ship
we're running here.
Wanting to know did
we really invite
a Negro preacher to stand in our pulpit?
And what did you
tell them, Jack?
I told them
they heard wrong.
Ain't no Negro professor
speaking in our church on Sunday.
Oh, Jack, why in the hell would
you say something like that?
'Cause it's the
truth, Thad!
Vernon, nobody's saying
that it's perfect here,
but we've got good relations
with the Negro community.
This might not be time
to...to stir things up.
What time is
a good time, Dick?
A year from now?
What, five years
from now, Doug?
Does that sound about right? Once
your boys graduate high school?
Ten years from now? Heck, this
is starting to sound like work.
Why don't we just leave it
for the next generation to fix?
lf this man
speaks on Sunday,
there will
be a breach
that will split
this congregation.
Is he worth tearing
this church apart over?
You, um, you can end
this with one call vErnon.
Just call him and tell him don't come.
We're living beneath
a dam, gentlemen,
a dam that's holding back
300 years of wrong.
Now, you can say that dam
ain't going to break
all you want,
but when the rains come
and that dam bursts open
and all that's bad
comes flooding out,
you won't have time
to run for high ground.
Now is the time.
That's why
I invited him.
And that's why I'm not
making that phone call.
Well, that's all
well and good vErnon,
but this is
our church,
and you don't have
a right to do this.
Well, actually, Jack, I
do. And you gave it to me.
This is the Methodist
Book of Discipline.
It defines the rules that
govern our denomination.
And it says...
"the pastor of this church
can determine the number
and the nature of services
held in the sanctuary."
And for the moment, I am still
the pastor of this church.
Now, if you see
things differently,
you give Bishop Grayson
Tullis a phone call
and you let him know.
Otherwise, I have a job
to do tomorrow, gentlemen.
And I hope to see
you all there.
[organ playing]
Reverend Tyson?
You never asked me what I
was going to speak about.
No, sir.
I didn't think
that was my place.
Thank you.
Shall we face
the lions?
[chuckles]
I come to you today
to talk about a problem
of enormous magnitude.
Something some of you would
probably rather not hear about.
But it is a subject
that affects us.
I am the president
of North Carolina A&T,
a black university
of approximately 4,000...
I'll be right back.
outstanding young men
and women.
Among our many fine
accomplishments
is our football program.
The other day, my
coach came in to see me.
He told me that the finest running back
he had ever seen
is down at New Bern.
Now, this prospect's daddy and
his brother both went to A&T.
But when my coach went
down to recruit him,
he say he ain't
coming to A&T.
Said he's going to school
over at Chapel Hill,
says he's going to play
for the Tarheels.
They got the big school
over there, big money,
the big stadium, and he's
going to play for them.
Then my poor coach
drove over to Kinston
to see about this 300-pound
offensive tackle they got
at the Negro
high school there.
A fine young man,
good grades,
but he say he ain't
coming to A&T, either.
That his mama wants him
to play for N.C. State
and wear the red and white
of the Wolfpack.
Well, when Coach finished,
he looked at me defeated,
and said, "I'm sorry,
but we're going to struggle
"next year
on the football field
and probably
for years to come."
l've never seen
a sadder man.
I walked over and put an
arm around him and said,
"See, that's the problem
with all this integration,
Coach, that's just the price
we're going to have to pay."
[laughter]
Our lesson today comes
from the Book of John.
Willie Mae? You listening to the radio?
Willie Mae?
(little girl, happily)
Daddy!
[happy sob]
[loud music,
cheerful whooping]
[chatter]
[indistinct chatter]
What'd they feed you over
there, boy? You're getting big.
Ah! Cockroaches.
[laughs]
Take this off, handsome.
How are y'all all doing?
You're looking great,
looking great.
That Miss Mary Catherine?
How you doing, son?
Hey, Mr. Yancey.
Thank you for coming tonight.
I really appreciate it.
You look great.
You look great.
Thank you, sir.
Still growing up like a weed,
but you look great.
Thank you. See you guys in a little bit.
See you.
How you doing, man?
Fanny. Hey, baby,
how you doing?
It's good to see you.
Good to see you. I'll
see you in a little bit.
Hey, Roseanna.
Hey.
You look wonderful.
Auntie Roberta.
Wonderful.
Give me some
of that sugar.
Yes. Yes.
Dickie, we took care of Willie
Mae and the girls for you.
Just like you
took care of me.
Yes.
Now it's your turn
to take care of them.
I will.
I promise.
Hey, darling.
Betsy, you didn't let him touch
none of this food, did you?
Well, well, well. What
the cat dragged in.
How's life at
the rubber plant?
It's good. They're starting
up a late shift next week,
but I ain't
too interested in that.
Well, good. You can
help me down at the store
in all your
spare time.
[sigh]
Did you put that chain on that
boat trailer like I told you?
Yeah.
Well, you better have.
You let something
like that slip
and you go back and
that boat won't be there.
The chain's there. Boat'll
be there when we get back.
Like that time you left the bolt undone
on the back door and they
stole us blind down at the shop.
That was
an accident.
Took care of that.
Yeah, when it
was too late.
You need to use
your head, son.
Yes, sir.
Betsy went to
the doctor today.
The baby's doing fine.
Everything looks okay.
Maybe once that baby comes,
y'all'll come by more often.
You ready to
be a granddaddy?
Hmpf.
You ready to be
an uncle, boy?
I don't even like
being a brother.
[laughs]
Go on back upstairs and
start packing your bags, then.
All right, you
see Mr. Fox here?
Mr. Fox needs some sleep, too,
just like you need some sleep.
All right? All right.
So get to bed.
I'll see you in the morning. All right?
[tired sigh]
Why don't you
go find Boo
and play a couple hands of bid whist.
I know you've been
wanting to catch up.
I'll be okay.
I'll be back
in a bit.
I'll be waiting.
Go on.
(Fanny)
Who's there?
It's Dickie, Fanny.
How you feeling?
Oh, I'm hanging
in there.
lf you're looking for
Boo, he ain't here.
Think he's
at Four Corners.
lf you're
going over there,
will you get me
a ice-cold soda?
I sure am thirsty.
You got it.
And don't go getting in no trouble.
Bring my soda right back here to me.
Yes, ma'am.
Okay. I took out the trash
and broke down those boxes.
Anything else?
Yeah. Go lock up
the barber shop.
How much longer
we gonna be here?
Well, till the old man
turns the lights out.
[whistles]
He closing up?
I'll bet you that's the last
time Roger comes over for dinner.
Hey, Dickie.
Is that you?
Yes, ma'am,
Mrs. Downing.
Seen Boo?
No, man.
Nowhere.
All right.
Hey, girls.
Y'all looking
good tonight.
Is this where all
the action is?
I can't believe y'all out
here all by y'allselves.
Hey, nigger!
Hey, you!
That's my wife
you're talking to.
Hey, man, listen, I was just
talking to the sisters here.
Right.
Hey, man, it's cool.
Listen, listen.
I was just talking
to the sisters over here.
The hell you were.
Man, what're
you doing?
I'll show you
what I'm doing.
[grunts]
(wife)
Larry, no!
Hey!
Larry, no!
[grunts]
Stop it!
Larry, stop!
[wife]
Stop!
Damn!
You're crazy, man!
[wife] He's got a knife!
Hey, Dickie!
Dickie, run!
Hey, where's the fire?
[shotgun blasts echo]
[Boo shouts, moaning]
[panting]
I didn't do nothing!
Okay, okay, man.
You got me.
Let's just forget about
it. You got me, man.
Okay?
[grunts]
[grunting,
fists pounding]
[grunts and pounding]
[grunts and thuds]
Better stop that
before you kill him!
You better get back
in your house, woman!
[grunts]
[continued kicking]
[heavy breathing]
[gunshot]
[dog barking in distance]
[train whistling in distance]
Go lock up the stores.
[sobbing wildly]
Oh, God.
Oh, God, Dickie.
Ba-bro, get us a car.
Go get us a car!
Honey, we got to find him.
Oh, dear. Okay,
you look over here.
(nurse) Ma'am, stop.
You can't go in there.
Over here.
Dickie? Dickie,
it's Roberta.
I'm right
here, honey.
Ma'am, you'll
have to leave.
Oh, my God!
What have they
done to you?
They're going to have to
take him to Duke Hospital.
[ambulance siren wailing]
No. No!
I ain't going to no
damn police station.
They ain't gonna listen
to a word I got to say.
Boo, I'll take you down.
Ain't nobody gonna
mess with us.
Who's on the desk?
Let me speak with him.
Dale.
Yeah, this is
Billy Watkins.
I understand there was
a shooting tonight
at, um, Mr. Teel's store
out at Four Corners.
Mm-hmm. Yeah.
He's with me.
I'll bring him in
a little later.
'Preciate it.
Do you still have people up in Berea?
Yeah.
Call'em. Tell them
you're gonna be staying
with'em
for a while.
Well, what you
want me to do?
Go upstairs.
Get yourself
a pillowcase.
Fill it with all the money
you can put your hands on.
You're gonna need it.
Excuse me, Sergeant.
This is
William Chavis.
He was shot this evening
by Mr. Robert Teel.
Mr. Teel and his sons
killed Dickie Marrow.
It was witnessed
by Mr. Chavis
and he'd like to report that murder,
his own assault, and swear out
a warrant for the Teels' arrest.
Have a seat.
Sorry.
[sigh]
All that time
he was in the service,
I prayed that nothing
would happen to him.
I prayed and prayed.
Somebody should've told me
I needed to be praying
he wouldn't get shot
in his own hometown.
Nothing I can do.
C'mon, Boo.
Let's go home.
John, I just heard.
What can I do?
It's too late vErnon. Too late.
Go on home.
Oh, nice one.
So close.
Hey, where you been?
Home. Y'all hear?
Daddy, Roger, and them
shot them a nigger.
Why?
Said something he shouldn't
have to Larry's wife Judy.
Tim Tyson.
Come in for supper.
What're we having?
I am not announcing my
menu to the neighborhood.
Come in now.
[rumble of thunder]
Shh. It's only me.
Daddy.
Is everything
going to be okay?
Go to sleep,
little buck.
[indistinct shout]
Y'all, come on.
[shouting]
[shouting continues]
Let's go around back.
[siren approaches]
[shouting and noise fade]
(mayor)
Quiet, please.
This morning, I dispatched a
telegram to the Governor's office
informing him of the
events of last night,
as well as my intention to declare
the existence of a state of emergency
and the imposing of a
curfew for all citizens
from 7:30 in the evening until 6
in the morning, beginning tonight.
Further, I requested from him
the assistance of State Troopers
to help enforce this curfew.
And most importantly,
to restore a safe, secure,
and law-abiding environment
for the hearing tomorrow
and for the trial
in the months to come.
All citizens my ass!
Damn right.
That curfew
ain't nothing
but a No Niggers
After Nightfall Act.
(several)
That's right.
(teacher)
You can have...
whatever you can take.
(student)
Yeah.
That's right.
Yeah, Mr. Chavis.
But you can only keep...
what you can...
hold.
That's right.
We're gonna keep it!
Keep what, Darrel?
Beer? Cigarettes?
TV sets?
You think that's why the
State Troopers are here?
Because you broke some windows
and stole some groceries?
They're not.
You want to know
why they're here?
They're here because last night,
when you hit those streets,
you took something more valuable
than you could ever imagine.
Something our families have
been fighting for for years.
I'm talking about equality.
And they're not going to let
you keep it without a fight.
I ain't giving
it back.
Me, neither.
Good.
Mr. Chavis!
Mr. Chavis,
where you going?
What's going on?
Come on!
Please take a seat
quickly and quietly.
[gavel pounds]
[gavel pounds]
Proceed.
I saw three men
standing over Dickie.
Can you
identify those men?
Yes.
Two of them
are over there.
Robert Teel,
he had a shotgun,
and Larry Teel,
he had a rifle.
Where's the third man?
Your Honor, none of
the witnesses were able
to positively
identify the third man.
[sigh]
[birds chirping]
[sigh]
Hey, Momma.
Hey.
I took my students
to the Teel hearing today.
I heard.
Quite a show.
Yeah, it was
a show, all right.
I just wanted them to witness
the legal process, you know?
All they saw was
the same old Oxford.
Every rich businessman in
town sang that killer's praises
like he was
the Lord Jesus himself.
I made a
phone call today.
I called
Ralph Abernathy.
He's sending
someone to help.
[female voice sings
spiritual type song]
a Mmm a
a Oh, freedom a
a Oh, freedom over me a
a Before I'll be a slave a
a I'll be buried
ln my grave a
a And go home
To my Lord and be free a
Good morning, gentlemen.
I thought I was coming to a funeral.
You fellows look like
you're expecting an attack.
We're expecting a fellow from
out of state to stir things up.
Stir things up?
What's his name?
His name's Frinks.
Golden Frinks?
He's coming here?
Hoo-hoo, hell
of a speaker.
That man can flat-out
ring the bells of heaven
when you get him going.
You ever heard him preach?
No. Can't say
that we have.
Hot as a pepper.
He was with
the late Dr. King
in Selma, Montgomery,
and Birmingham.
I heard he been
arrested over 50 times
for his civil
rights involvement.
And on top of
all of that,
he's a hell of
a sharp dresser.
You boys ever seen
a picture of him?
No, sir.
He always wears
a dashiki
with a big cross
'round his neck.
But stir things up?
Now, I don't know how
you can stir up a funeral.
We can't let you in, Mr. Frinks.
I understand.
I understand completely.
I see them watches.
You boys get them in Vietnam?
Yes, sir.
Well, you know Dickie
Marrow was a vet, too.
He served.
He was a soldier,
just like y'all.
And he deserves a whole
lot better than all of this.
No, sir, Mr. Jones.
You're not too late.
Go right ahead.
(pastor) ...one of the
closest Scriptures in my heart,
and I say that...
[spectators]
Praise the Lord.
I n the name
of our Lord, the Almighty.
Amen.
(spectators)
Amen.
Amen.
Yes. Amen.
Pastor, could I
say a few words?
Thank you.
This young man...
was a husband,
he was a daddy.
He was a son, an uncle...
and a cousin.
For 30 years, l've been attending
the funerals of soldiers.
Soldiers of the movement.
And l've had
enough of it.
(several)
Yes, sir.
Now, I know we're here
to bury Dickie Marrow today,
but when I look
in your faces,
I see there's something
else that needs to be buried.
Discrimination.
(several)
Yes.
Segregation.
(several)
That's right.
(woman)
Amen. Yes.
Bigotry!
(several)
That's right!
And all the complicity
of pulling a people down.
(many)
Yeah!
(man)
That's right! Yes!
Now, to them downtown
who put that statue up,
this young man here
is just another
nigger dead.
(man)
Yeah.
But it ain't
gonna end that way
'cause what's gonna
end up dead is Jim Crow!
Jim Crow's
gonna be dead.
(Boo)
Yes.
Now, I know we ain't got no permit.
We ain't got nothing.
But we are marching on.
(several) That's right. M m-hmm.
We're going to go march
to that Confederate
monument downtown,
and we're going to tell
that old soldier
it's time for him
to come down.
(many voices assent)
And that South
that he's guarding
for all those
years is dead.
And we will
tell him loud, like,
because he's a old man
and he has a hard time
hearing these kind of things.
(man) Preach it now, preach it.
You don't represent us,
and you never did!
(woman)
Yes! Go ahead!
This here is
our South, too!
(man)
That's right.
We were born here...
grew up here...
work here...
raise our
children here...
Yes, Lord.
and we ain't gonna
be silent no more!
(many)
No more!
And then we're
going to tell him
that this young man here, Dickie Marrow,
didn't die for nothing.
Yes, sir.
He died for us.
(several)
Yes, he did.
And we're never
gonna forget it.
Never!
Yes!
a Ain't gonna let
Nobody know a
a Turn me around a
a Turn me around, I ain't
Gonna let nobody know a
a Turn me around, We
gotta keep On walking a
a Keep on talking a
a Walking up
The freedom way a
a Don't you let nobody know a
a Turn it around,
Turn it around a
a Turn it around
And let segregation know a
a Turn you around, We
gotta keep On walking a
a Keep on talking a
You're Elizabeth
Chavis' boy, aren't you?
How you doing, Mr. Frinks? I'm Ben.
Call me Goldie.
Come on, everybody.
Unh. Ungawa.
(all)
Unh, unh, black power.
Say it again.
Unh. Ungawa.
Mean it.
Unh, unh, black power.
Unh. Ungawa.
Unh, unh, black power.
[repeating]
Vernon, I believe
your damn has burst.
Ungawa. Black power.
[soul music]
So what's your
plan, Goldie?
My plan?
Ben, look all
around you.
See these young people?
They are alive and energized
because they had a taste of
some of that freedom wine.
[chuckling]
And they liked it.
Their spirits are
flying right now
with the possibilities
of all that that wonderful
drink can bring them.
My plan, as you call it,
is to keep that
wine flowing.
And how are you
going to do that?
We. How are we gonna
keep it flowing?
We start off by getting hold of a mule.
A mule?
[female voice sings]
a Hold on, I'm coming a
a I'm on my way a
a Your lover a
a If you get cold, yeah,
I will be your cover a
a Don't have to worry a
a'Cause I'm here a
a Don't need to suffer, baby a
a'Cause I'm here a
a Just hold on a
a I'm coming a
a Hold on a
All right.
Come here, baby.
[laughs]
Here we go.
All right.
You okay?
Well, y'all
be good now.
(boy's voice)
All right, momma.
lf you get thirsty, you go
and help yourself, all right?
All right?
Don't worry. Ain't nothing gonna happen.
Seventy people.
A man is murdered, and we got
70 people to march to Raleigh.
It's not
where you start.
It's where you end
that counts.
Let's go.
Come on.
That's what I'm
worrying about.
M ight not be anybody left
by the time we get to Raleigh.
[no audible dialogue]
Get back on. Keep
on keeping on, sister.
All right.
How long they been
back there?
About a half hour.
They just been watching?
They ain't offered
me a ride yet.
[tires screeching]
Whoa, whoa, whoa.
(man) Yee-ha! [gunshots]
[women, children scream]
[gunshots]
[unintelligible shouting]
[shooting continues]
Come on, let's get
back on the road.
It's gonna take a lot
more than that to stop us.
Is everybody okay?
You all right?
Check everybody out. Check
everybody out. Help them out.
It's gonna take
a lot more than that.
Let's get back in line
and let's keep on marching.
Come on.
It's all locked up.
Thought someone was supposed to be here.
Maybe they got the message
that it might not be healthy.
Come on, come on.
You think this is bad? This ain't bad.
You'll know bad
when you see it.
What exactly
does bad look like?
Fellas, fellas.
Sorry we're late.
Better late than never.
All right then,
my brother.
Let's get in here, man.
Hey, guys,
bring some food.
Everybody's
probably hungry.
So I heard the Klan had meetings
all around us last night.
Well, at least somebody
knows we're out here.
Come on.
All right. You okay?
All right.
Hi!
(little girl's voice)
Hi!
Hi!
Who's this?
I made some
calls down east.
Thought it was time to
prime the pumps a little bit,
get our numbers right.
Hey, y'all.
Right on time.
Welcome, welcome.
Glad y'all here.
Welcome now.
Welcome.
I know, baby. I know you don't
want to get back on that wagon.
But we just got
one more day, okay?
And then
we'll be all right.
I love you.
[female voice
sings slow song]
a Wandering road lead me a
a To finding my own a
I got here as soon as I could.
a Place that Was meant For me a
So glad you came.
a I'm not alone a
You okay?
Yeah.
a A darkness is parting a
a How far we've come a
a A new hope's arising a
a Leading us on a
[no audible dialogue]
a Wandering road behind me a
a Finding my stride a
a Struggle and pain, sorrow a
a Till arms open wide a
a The darkness has parted a
a No turning back a
a A new hope's arising a
a Leading us on a
[cheering continues]
Now this is what
I'm talking about.
[drumming]
[cheering continues]
Power.
This is a great day
in the history of
black people in Raleigh.
[cheering,
drumming]
ln North Carolina.
(crowd)
Yeah!
Everywhere.
Right now,
Ben Chavis and Henry
Marrow's widow, Willie Mae,
they're going to go have
a meeting with the Governor.
[crowd cheers]
Yeah!
This is a day for us to
come together for justice.
(crowd)
Yeah!
[knocking]
Jesus rode
into Jerusalem
on the back
of a donkey.
Ain't nobody
in there.
Willie Mae and her two
beautiful daughters...
I thought you said Mr.
Frinks contacted the Governor.
That's what he said.
That's what he told me.
So many long, hot miles.
50 long, hot miles to
bring us right here today.
(crowd)
Yes!
All those
people who walked
thought we were talking to the Governor.
My girls rode
all the way here.
For what?
What?
Please, just get
me out of here.
Come on.
Okay.
(Frinks) We will not stop
till we have justice! No!
And because blood
done signed our names.
Come on!
[cheering]
The blood
of Martin Luther King.
Blood of Malcolm X.
(many)
Yes!
The blood of Medgar Evers.
The blood of Dickie Marrow
brought us here today.
Wait, they're back. Let's
hear what they got to say.
Tell us what
the Governor said.
Ben Chavis is going to tell us
what Governor Scott has said.
(man)
Brother, speak!
[clears throat]
Governor Scott has chosen
not to meet with us today.
(many)
What?
Come on, man.
Neither he nor the
Lieutenant Governor
nor any of their staff, though
they were told we were coming,
chose to make
themselves available!
What the Governor just
told us by his absence
is that to the
white power structure,
Dickie Marrow's just
another nigger dead!
(crowd)
No!
Well, Governor, you mark
this day on your calendar.
Because the day for
begging for black people
in North Carolina is over!
And you will never
forget this day again!
[cheering
and drumming]
[female voice
sings slow song]
a Let us praise
God together a
a On our knees a
a Let us praise
God together a
a On our knees a
a When I fall on my knees a
a With my face
To the rising sun a
a O Lord a
a Have mercy on me a
(Frinks) So you see what
we accomplished today?
If we stick together and stand together,
there's nothing
we can't do.
See you on the bus.
You told Willie Mae that we was
going to meet with the Governor
when you knew he wouldn't
see us, didn't you?
I told her the truth.
I told her I notified his
office that we were coming.
You let her and her girls
ride on top of that fake coffin
for 50 miles, knowing that
meeting wasn't gonna happen.
That don't bother you?
You think Dickie
Marrow's murder
is the worst civil rights lynching ever?
It doesn't even come close
to the things I've seen.
And you think her pain is any different
from the pain of
those other families?
Now, what's special
about his death is
that it gives us an opportunity
to make things better.
Who do you
think I am?
I'm not Dr. King.
I'm not one
of his golden boys.
I'm a stoker, man.
You understand?
They send me in to the
towns to keep things hot.
That's my job.
I'm just a stoker.
(anchorman over TV)
In Raleigh today,
groups of blacks
marched in protest
over the killing of a
Negro Oxford man last week.
Governor Scott's refusal
to meet with black leaders
has reportedly angered
many of the marchers.
Local police in Oxford
continue to claim
that the situation there
is under control.
Shit, man, put that damn thing out.
Okay, now
we sync watches.
Sync on five,
four,
three,
two, one.
(driver) We got a call. Come on.
[siren wails]
Let's go.
[glass smashing]
(Eddie)
Go, go, go, go. Go!
Come on.
Hurry up. Hurry up!
Eddie, what
you doing, man?
Wait, wait, wait, wait.
Something's wrong.
Maybe it didn't catch.
Just give it a second.
Shit. It didn't catch.
Eddie!
Eddie.
[creaking]
I think it worked.
[distant siren wails]
Daddy?
It's big.
Daddy, is it
coming here?
(Vernon)
Oh, no, honey.
It's okay.
Ain't nothing gonna
happen unless you make it.
I've presided over several
racially charged cases.
I harbor no prejudice
against Negroes.
I was raised
in a mainly black county.
I ate with them.
I played with them.
We had an instinctive
love for the Negro race.
(crowd)
Black power!
My secretary is black.
That should show you
how I feel about them.
I have heard the arguments
that this community is
too turbulent for a trial.
But I do not feel
they present
an adequate reason for
moving these proceedings.
[all talking at once]
Does it concern you that only
9 of the 100 juror candidates
examined for this
trial were black?
No. Why would
that concern me?
Because Warren County, from
which the jury pool is drawn,
is in fact more than 2/3 black.
This is a fair
and impartial jury.
And it'll be a fair
and impartial trial.
Mr. Burgwyn, is the
prosecution ready?
Yes, we are,
Your Honor.
We call Dr. Page Hudson to the stand.
The deceased had two serious
fractures of the skull,
one on the top of his
head, the other on the back.
He also had bruises and
abrasions all over his body,
both.410 and 12-gauge shotgun
wounds on the backs of his legs,
as well as a.22-caliber bullet
wound in the center of his forehead.
I'd been hanging
with the fellas
in the shed at the old fish market.
Suddenly I hear Dickie
and a white man arguing.
That's when I
saw Mr. Teel
come out the store
with a shotgun.
And what did you do?
I ran!
I mean, we all ran.
I heard about two
or three shots.
And, uh, then
I came back.
I saw Larry Teel
standing over Dickie
with a shotgun.
I...yelled at him.
"Stop before you
kill that boy."
Finally, I
heard the shot.
Who was holding the rifle, Mrs. Downing?
Who was
holding the gun
that fired
the final shot?
Him there.
Larry Teel.
I was on my way
to find everybody
when Willie and Jimmie
and them flew by me.
Then I heard
a shotgun blast.
And after they beat him, what happened?
There was
one more shot.
Sounded like
a cap pistol.
[gunshot]
No further questions,
Your Honor.
Boo, have you ever been in any trouble?
Legal trouble?
Yeah. But I
ain't on trial.
What kind
of trouble?
Stuff.
Receiving stolen goods,
breaking and entering?
That kind of stuff?
Yeah, but I ain't
killed nobody.
I'm sorry. I didn't say you did.
Did you serve time
for those crimes?
Yeah.
In fact, you're on
probation right now,
isn't that correct?
Yeah.
Mr. Chavis,
do you see the man
that fired the shot that
killed Dickie Marrow?
Yes.
Will you get up and
go over and touch him?
Yeah, sure.
Please.
Touch him.
Thank you.
That's all.
[general murmuring]
(judge) Is the defense
ready, Mr. Watkins?
Yes, we are,
Your Honor.
What did Dickie Marrow say to you?
He said,
"Hey, white girl."
"Hey, white girl."
Huh.
Had you said
anything to him?
No, sir.
And then
what happened?
And then Larry told him, "Don't
be speaking to her like that."
And then he came at Larry with a knife,
and I screamed
for help.
(Larry Teel) He said, "Hey,
white girl. Hey, you bitch."
I said, "Don't talk
to my wife like that."
And he said, uh, "Come
on, I'm a soul brother."
Then he pulled
his knife on me.
After he went down,
what happened?
I hit him
with my fists,
took the knife away
from him, then stood up.
The rifle that
shot him.
Were you holding
the rifle?
No, sir.
Did you see who
was holding it?
No. I was looking down
at him on the ground.
Did you recognize
the other men?
It was
happening so fast.
The boy attacked me.
And I ran
after him...
Larry...
did you recognize
the other men?
My father was there.
I recognized his voice when he said,
"I'm gonna call an
ambulance and the police."
And what about
the other man?
I didn't know
who he was.
(anchorman over TV) ln a surprise
move here Thursday, Larry Teel,
son of a local barber, Robert Teel,
took the witness stand in
Granville County Superior Court
and denied that he shot and
killed a local Negro man.
(Watkins) Were you holding the rifle?
(Larry)
No, sir.
(Watkins) Did you see
who was holding it?
So tell me, Roger, one
more time, what happened.
I heard Judy
call for help.
I ran after
my father.
When I got to the other
side of the fish market,
I saw him and Larry
and joined them.
Did Larry Teel at any time that night
have a gun
in his hand?
No.
Then how could that last
shot have been fired?
Roger?
I was holding it.
Someone bumped my shoulder,
and the gun went off.
[weeping]
I didn't mean
to kill anybody.
It was
an accident.
No further questions,
Your Honor.
(attorney) lf this was an accident,
why did you let
your father and brother
stand trial for
first-degree murder?
'Cause my lawyers told
me not to say nothing.
Do you mean to
tell this jury
that you let
them sit in jail
without the privilege
of bond for three months,
and didn't tell anybody
that you shot this man
or that it
was an accident?
Your father and your brother
were on trial for their lives!
For their lives!
And you have not set
foot in this courtroom
until today!
My attorney told me not to come.
That boy lay
on the ground
begging for his life,
helpless, Roger.
Did you kick him?
We was all
kicking him.
And did
you beat him
with the stock
of that rifle, Roger?
His skull
was fractured.
Did you hit
him with it?
I refuse to answer on the grounds
that it may incriminate me.
Who told you
to say that?
Who told you to plead
the Fifth Amendment?
My lawyers.
Mr. Watkins.
And did they tell you that
all the witnesses had testified
that Larry was holding the gun?
And that if you said
that you shot the rifle
and that it
was an accident,
that your father and brother
might not have to go to prison?
I refuse to answer on the...
Your brother shot that
boy, didn't he, Roger?
And you and your daddy
helped kill him, didn't you?
They let you stay home with
your wife and your baby.
Now you're supposed
to help them
and say that
you shot him
because they know there
isn't a witness anywhere
that can testify
to that effect.
Nobody but your wife
and your attorney,
and neither one of them
can testify against you.
But I'm sure they told you
that, too, didn't they, Roger?
No further questions.
[hubbub of voices]
(female voices)
Lieutenant Williams,
why wasn't the third man indicted?
There was a
third party mentioned
from time to time
during the investigation,
but none of my witnesses
were able to make
a positive identification
of a third person,
and they all saw the defendant,
Larry Teel, fire the fatal shot.
[clears throat]
Three men beat
Dickie Marrow
while he helplessly
begged for his life,
more than a hundred feet
off of their property.
First they shot him
as he was running away,
and then, when he was
flat on his back,
they beat him,
and they kicked him.
And they stomped him
and hit him in the
head with a shotgun butt
over and over.
Then they put a bullet in his head,
just like you or I
would kill a snake,
and they called it
self-defense.
Then, after the state
proved beyond any doubt
that this killing
was by no stretch
of the imagination
an act of self-defense,
they came up
with a new story.
An accident.
Or what
they might call...
accidental self-defense.
Of course, there is no such
category, ladies and gentlemen,
and nothing remotely
like that happened.
This case is one of
the most serious cases
ever to be tried
in this state.
And the outcome will affect
events in this community,
the state of
North Carolina,
and across the nation.
We cannot tell the world
that we have one system
of justice for Negroes
and another for whites.
We must face the truth
and we must act upon it
or be damned
by our lies forever.
[baby crying]
(female voice)
Shh shh shh.
[baby gurgles quietly]
I...I hear that baby cry,
and I can't help but
think about a little girl
going to have
to grow up now
without knowing
her father.
And I can't help
but hear that cry
as a cry from
Dickie Marrow,
saying, "Don't
let them kill me...
"and just tell the world
it was an accident.
Please!...Don't let
them do that to me."
And if you do,
ladies and gentlemen,
well, you may as
well hang a wreath
on the courthouse door on the way out,
because you just as
clearly say to the world
that justice is dead...in
Granville County.
[indistinct music
on jukebox]
[sigh]
What's your plan, Ben?
What's my plan?
M m-hmm.
You mean
for tomorrow?
The day
after tomorrow.
I haven't really thought about it. Why?
There's been a killing
down in Louisiana.
Young girl. They need
a stoker down there.
That's not what they
need here anymore.
After tomorrow...
they need a leader.
The jury's coming back!
[excited chatter]
(girl)
Hey!
[organ]
(judge)
Mr. Foreman,
has the jury reached
a unanimous verdict?
We have, Your Honor.
[organ]
[church bell tolling slowly]
Will the defendants
please rise?
We, the members
of the jury,
unanimously find the defendant
Larry Teel not guilty...
[indistinct angry shouting]
[gavel
pounding continuously]
[shouting, pounding continues]
Let us pray.
Father, we have
been tempted
to love things
and use people.
When we have
been called
to love people
and use things.
We ask Your forgiveness
for our complicity in these sins
and in the evils
of our own time.
And pray Your healing
upon our hearts.
Amen.
[female voice
sings in choir]
a You've got
To know a
(choir) a You've got To know a
a Well a
a It may be hard a
a You may be poor a
a You may be rich a
a Now when we all a
a Get ready a
a You gotta move a
a You've got
To move a a
[sigh]
Why?
Why?
Why?
[murmuring]
No, not...not... not
why did this happen,
'cause we know
the answer to that.
Yes, that's right.
Why do we do
what we do?
Every day
in this town.
(man)
We know better.
[chattering]
Why do we watch movies
at white-owned theaters
where we still must
sit in the balconies
and enter and exit
through a side door?
Why do we spend our money
in stores where blacks
are only welcomed as customers
and never as employees.
That's right.
That's right.
And why do we put our money into banks
that refuse to hire
blacks except as janitors,
and are loathe to give us loans
for anything except automobiles.
Why is there only one
African-American on the police force
and none on the
fire department?
[indistinct],
grocery store workers...
Yet we make up 40% of the
population of this county.
Why?
Why do we
do what we do
every day
in this town?
Fear?
Tradition?
No, that's not good enough, not anymore.
Power concedes nothing without a demand,
and we need to start
demanding some things, people.
And I'm not talking about
sometime in the future,
it's a change that needs
to happen right now.
Right now.
Until that change comes,
we need to take
our money elsewhere.
(woman) He started the change.
That took strength.
That took a
lot of strength.
The women held
it together.
Mostly, we shopped
out of town.
Went to Henderson.
Yes. Durham.
Durham.
It took a while.
About three months.
Yeah, about
three months.
It worked.
Because we took dollars away from here
and took them
somewhere else.
Exactly.
After the tobacco
warehouses was destroyed,
the tobacco market
moved on down to Kinston.
And everybody felt it,
especially the white people.
(Vernon) Dick? What you doing out here?
Hey vErnon.
Vernon.
Gray.
C'mon in.
Close the
door, please.
That's a right good-size hole
you're digging there, brethren.
Yeah. We're digging a hole
big enough so we can bury
every sorry sumbitch
in Oxford.
(man) Well, that's the stupidest
damn thing l've ever heard of.
Who's going to be left
to cover us all up?
[laughs] That's good. That's real good.
(Vernon) And they have
sand dunes in Wilmington.
White, white sand dunes.
Where it's the ocean
in the distance there.
And we're gonna run
over them sand dunes
and we're gonna
run in the water.
And we're gonna just go
crazy. You in? You in?
You in? Yeah?
[sniffles]
[sigh]
[openly sobs]
Hey, $5.00, please, and
can I borrow that air gauge?
C'mon, pumpkin.
Thank you.
Daddy?
Did we get run
out of town?
Of course not.
We've been offered a
new church in Wilmington.
It's a good church, too.
Some of the kids
at my school
said that you were the reason
that everything happened.
They said their parents
are glad that you're gone.
I imagine some of them'll be
crowing about now, that's true.
But you know, the rooster
crows and the sun comes up
and that old rooster thinks
he done it all by himself.
But the Lord sees it
a little bit differently.
I did what I had
to do, little buck.
Let's go.
Everybody in the car.
We're on an adventure.
Thank you.
(male voice) Did you
ever hear Golden Frinks?
Yeah, I heard Golden Frinks preach once.
Long time ago
at a funeral.
He flat rang the bells of heaven, too.
Who's Golden Frinks?
[soft music]
[female voice sings softly]
a Wandering road lead me a
a To finding my own a
a A place that was
Meant for me a
a I'm not alone a
a A darkness a
a ls parting a
a How far we've come a
a A new hope's arising a
a Leading us on a
[male voice sings]
a Last Sunday morning a
a The sunshine
Felt like rain a
a The week before,
They all seemed the same a
a With the help of God
And true friends a
a I come to realize a
a I still had
Two strong legs a
a And even wings to fly a
a Oh, I ain't wasting
Time no more a
a'Cause time goes by like a
a Like hurricanes
And faster things a
(woman) We heard it on the radio.
ln the songs, you could tell
that there was a movement...
(woman 2) Because we were
hearing what was going on
all over
the country.
Yes, yes.
And it seemed like
it was real everywhere
but here.
What happened?
How did we get
left behind?
(man) I lived in this part
of North Carolina all my life.
Back in 1970, these fields
were flat-covered in tobacco.
Far as you could see.
lf tobacco was the blood
of eastern North Carolina,
then Oxford was its heart.
For 300 years, tobacco flowed
through those old warehouses.
And like blood,
it kept people alive...
black and white.
After having served
in Vietnam,
and having many black
soldiers around me,
where it was
pretty much the norm,
I come back home and
only find a few blacks
on the Highway Patrol
at the time,
it seemed a little strange to me.
But being
an old North Carolina boy
and raised down in New Bern,
um, I was surprised,
but at the same time,
my background told me
that I wasn't too surprised.
Martin Luther King
was never my favorite,
but I admired him.
I liked what he stood for.
But after Dickie Marrow
was killed,
nobody was having
that shit anymore.
We was about ready to kick
some ass our own selves.
(little boy)
What is it?
(older boy)
Shh.
See? told you
Grandma Jessie's rich.
Wow.
There's gotta be close to
$10 worth of Cokes right here.
I'm gonna take one.
She won't miss it.
(man) Vern, Tim, come on outside
and say goodbye
to your grandmother.
(grandmother)
Vernon.
Saying our goodbyes,
Mother Jessie.
Vernon, before you go,
there's something serious
l've got to talk to you about.
lf my boys broke something,
you know I'm good for it.
Bye, Grandma.
So long, Grandma!
I n the car!
Okay, last one.
Well, I think
we're ready.
Martha, I asked Vidalia to pack
a basket of food for the trip.
Would you go see
if it's ready?
Of course.
[door closes]
Anyway vErnon,
I know you believe you can talk
your way out of every predicament,
but Oxford
is not like Biscoe.
They're more
set in their ways.
Don't you worry,
Mother Jessie.
The Lord hasn't
let us down yet.
It's not the Lord
I'm worried about vErnon.
Let's get this show
on the road, Tysons.
Load'em up.
Oh, I'm gonna
miss you so much.
You be sure
and write me, you hear?
I will. I'm gonna
miss it here, too.
All right, sweetie. Bye.
Bye, Mother Jessie.
(both boys)
Bye, Grandma.
Vernon, you take
care now.
(Vern)
I don't want to leave.
(Tim)
Me, neither.
(Vernon) Come on, everyone.
We're on an adventure.
[bell rings]
Good morning,
ladies and gentlemen.
I said good morning,
ladies and gentlemen.
(class)
Good morning.
Welcome to
third period English.
My name is Mr. Chavis.
And I'm your teacher.
lf you could, turn with me
to page 15 in your textbooks.
We'll be covering
Ralph Ellison.
Mr. Chavis.
Yes.
you really know Stokely
Carmichael the Black Panther?
Yes. I know him.
When I was at U NCC, I had him
speak to a student assembly.
And they let
you do that?
Sure. I was head
of the Student Union.
And I thought it would be a good idea
if people heard what he had to say.
What's a
Student Union?
What's a Student Union?
A Student Union is basically
an organization of students,
a place to meet, discuss
ideas, affect change.
Any other questions
before we start?
Yeah. Why'd you ever want
to come back to Oxford?
Are you sure you priced
this flour right?
I can get it over at the A&P
for almost 50 cents less.
Then you just walk another mile
and a half over there and buy it.
May I have a bag, please?
(Tim) Why do we have a house
with furniture already in it?
(Martha) Because the
church owns it, honey.
It's not ours.
Remember the one where all the
furniture was covered in plastic?
(Vernon) Hah. That was a
long time ago, little buck.
Oh vErnon,
it's beautiful.
I just hope they haven't
completely redecorated the place.
Just once, l'd like
to paint our home myself.
Okay, everyone,
best behavior.
Let's go, Tysons.
Reverend Tyson! Hi.
You must be Martha.
Yes, hi.
I'm lsabel Taylor,
and on behalf
of the ladies
of First Methodist,
welcome to Oxford
and your new home.
We knew y'all would
be getting in late,
so we just dropped off a few things
so you'd have
something for supper.
Well, thank you.
Everything looks so nice.
We painted the whole
house and redid the drapes.
You shouldn't have.
Well, I don't
mean to be rude,
but I need to
excuse myself.
But you ladies, you feel
free to stay and just visit
for as long
as you like.
See you Sunday.
(woman) Sure you don't
need any help unpacking?
No, thanks,
I'm fine. Bye.
Oh, Lord, not again.
[sighs]
[knocking]
Come in.
(Roseanna)
Mrs. Tyson?
Yes?
Hi. My name is
Roseanna Allen.
I'm a friend of Vidalia,
who works for your mother.
She said you might be
needing some help.
Roseanna, you
are a godsend.
(woman)
Ben, is that you?
Yeah, it's me, Mom.
Oh, good.
Dinner's ready.
(mom) And all you could
see were these little feet
running down the hall,
just bare bottomed,
and him chasing him.
It was so...
(woman) You were chasing my baby?
I was trying
to catch him.
I was trying to... And you know, you
would be surprised how quick he is.
He was just mad because
they broke the vase.
Do you know how long
we've had that, though?
I gave you
the money for...
Oh, come
on, that...
Quit crying
about the vase.
So did you see Mary
Catherine Chavis at school?
Mm-hmm.
She still there?
She was tough.
I still don't understand why
you didn't take that offer
to start on your doctorate right away.
You know, you are always better off
just getting into it
and getting it over with.
I don't know. Those kids
at Mary Potter, they'll
drive Ben to graduate school
faster than a scholarship.
Well, actually,
I was thinking
about doing something
else with my time.
Really? What's that?
Reopening the
Ridley Drive-l n.
Opening up Granddaddy's
old place?
Why?
Well, I think
there's a need.
A need for whom?
I guess we'll
find out.
[male voice
sings pop song]
a Un-huh a
a I know a place a
a Ain't nobody crying a
a Ain't nobody worried a
a Ain't no smiling faces a
a Unh-unh a
a No no a
a Lying to the races a
a Help me a
a Come on, come on,
Somebody help me now a
a I'll take you there a
a Help me y'all a
a I'll take you there a
a Help me now a
a I'll take you there a
a Oh-ooh a
a I'll take you there a
a Oh, oh, mercy a
a I'll take you there a
a Oh, let me
Take you there a
a I'll take you there a
a Oh-oh a
a Let me take you there a
a I'll take you there a
a Play it Mary a
a Play your piano now
All right a
a Do it do it a
a Come on now,
Play on it, play on it a
a Big Daddy now a
a Daddy, Daddy, Daddy a
a Play your... Mmm a
[chatter]
a Ooh, Lord a
a All right now a
a I'll take you there a
a Un-huh a
a Lying to the races
I'll take you there a
a Oh a
a I'll take you there a
a Ain't no smiling faces a
a I'll take you there a
a Up in here,
Lying to the races a
a I'll take you there a
a You gotta gotta
Gotta let me a
a I'll take you there a
a Take you, Take you, Oh my Lord a
a I'll take you there a
a Oh, I'll take you there a
[music fading]
(man 1)
How's it look?
(man 2)
That's good.
What do you think?
Yeah, man, good job.
My father loved
this place.
[chuckles gently]
This may be your Ph D.
[chuckles softly
(Vernon)
Good morning.
(congregation)
Morning.
For those of you just returned
from behind the I ron Curtain
or perhaps trekking somewhere
high in the Himalayas
where phone service, I'm
told, is not all that good...
my name is
Vernon Tyson,
your new pastor here at
Oxford Methodist Church.
I want to
thank all of you
who welcomed
my wife Martha
and our four children,
Vern, Tim,
Boo, and Julie,
with such open arms
and made us feel
so welcome this week.
Now, let us pray.
Father,
we live in difficult times
that challenge our faith
in new and often
difficult circumstance.
Grant us the power to
choose right from wrong,
and the strength
to love all people
of all races, because
in the eyes of God,
we are all equal.
ln Your holy name
we pray. Amen.
(congregation)
Amen.
[knock on door]
Mrs. Alwin,
I'm Reverend Tyson.
I heard you
on the radio.
You have a
beautiful voice.
Well, thank you, ma'am.
'Course, I don't usually trust
preachers with beautiful voices.
They tend to think too
highly of themselves.
But then I heard your
sermon about the Negroes,
and I changed my mind.
I thought this
is either a man
with a total disregard for his career,
or else he's one of the
bravest preachers I ever heard.
Either way, he wasn't
all full of himself.
(Vernon)
Well, I'm not sure
my wife would completely
agree with you on that.
(chuckles) She must be a good woman.
She is.
Children?
Two boys,
two girls.
Good.
You know, Reverend, l've
been a member of that church
for 87 years,
and l've seen
20, 22 pastors
stand in that pulpit,
some good, some
not so good.
But they all fell
into two groups.
They were either priests,
or they were prophets.
The priests told us the comforting
things we wanted to hear.
The prophets
challenged us
with the difficult
things we needed to hear.
Which one
are you?
I try to be a little bit of both.
Oh, Reverend,
in these times, I think you're
going to find it very hard
to be both.
[cheerful indistinct chatter]
[soul music]
a [male voice
sings indistinct] a
Man, we need to put up a
basketball hoop out back.
What for? Why don't you
just go to the park and play?
[men laugh]
What's so funny?
They took down
all the rims.
What you mean, took down the
rims? What are you talking about?
Rims, man. The town
took down the rims
to keep us out of
their neighborhood.
Oh, man, don't
look like that.
You know how stuff
changes here.
One step forward,
two steps back.
Name one black person
working a shop downtown.
Unless they got a broom in their hands.
They got one brother
on the police force.
He been
there four years
and still ain't allowed
to arrest any white folks.
So what y'all gonna
do about that?
Shit. People been pushing
change downtown for years.
Ain't nothing
gonna happen.
Yeah. I agree
with you, Eddie.
Ain't nothing
gonna happen...
unless you make
it happen.
(male voice) No one's saying
you don't work hard, Robert.
Jesus. You work
like a slave.
It's just that some folks
downtown want to make sure
you got things under
control out here, that's all.
Now you tell those folks not
to worry about their investment.
Ain't nobody gonna
mess with me out here.
I got friends who'll
guarantee me of that.
The change machine's
empty in the laundromat.
Hello, Mr. Watkins.
Larry, how you
doing, son?
Fine, sir!
[cash register
bell rings]
Now you have
a good day.
Howdy.
What you need?
Driving by,
see the shop,
realize I'm due
for a haircut.
No.
No?
No what?
I need to make
an appointment?
No.
I don't cut
y'all's hair here.
All right, all right.
No problem.
I'll go to a fellow
in town I know.
Y'all have a good day.
You know what, Robert?
You've got a good
thing going on out here.
lf you don't die of a heart
attack trying to keep it up
and if you keep that temper
of yours under control,
you might just end up a rich man.
Don't you worry
about me, Billy.
I'm gonna be fine.
(male voice) Next order of
business, a request by Mike Taylor
for a new stop sign
down his way.
Neil, is the application in order?
Yes. We've been out
there and checked it out.
Then I'm looking for a motion
to move this thing along.
Motion.
Second.
All in favor?
(many)
Aye.
Opposed? Motion carried.
Next item.
Restoration of the
basketball rims in city park.
Mr. Chavis, this
is your request?
It is, Your Honor.
Looks pretty
straightforward to me.
Um...
unfortunately, Mr. Chavis,
we are not
the jurisdictional body
you need to be addressing.
That would be the town
Recreational Committee,
which meets the first
Tuesday of every month.
I have, Your Honor.
I beg your pardon?
I have submitted that
request to the Rec Committee,
but since it never holds
a quorum in its meetings,
it can't vote
on that request.
Well, better
luck next month.
Mr. Mayor,
the Rec Committee has not
held a quorum since 1964,
which, not coincidentally,
was the year of the
Federal Civil Rights Act.
But, that may be,
but there's nothing that
we can do about that.
Actually, there is,
Your Honor.
Based on the town charter,
if a standing committee
is without a quorum
for a period of longer
than six months,
then it's possible for this
council... to call for a vote.
Neil?
He is correct,
Your Honor.
But only if there is
a quorum present
at the time
the vote is called.
[clears throat]
Your Honor
and everybody,
I'm sorry, but I forgot I
need to leave early tonight.
I'm afraid I have to leave
early as well, Your Honor.
Well, that leaves us
without a quorum.
Adjourned.
How'd it go?
What was that
Frederick Douglass quote
your father was always
so fond of reciting?
Power concedes nothing...
Without a demand.
Yeah, well,
I demanded.
The power just rolled right over me.
Well, I don't think
Frederick Douglass
expected the power to
yield on his first attempt.
[chuckles]
I guess he didn't.
Get some rest, son.
Night, Momma.
Pack of menthol
Rx, please.
What you trying
to pull, boy?
They're...for
my momma, sir.
Yeah?
Then she ought to know
that they're 35 cents.
Why'd you tell him these
were for your momma?
For 35 cents, he'd sell the
baby Jesus a pack of smokes.
He's got, like,
500 other...
(Jebbie)
That was awesome.
Sweet, man.
What the heck?
Hey, what're you niggers
doing in our neighborhood?
What're you doing?
Y'all better get your
black asses out of here
before we come over
there and kick them out!
(several)
Run!
(Roseanna)
Hey!
You get home. Now.
[sigh]
Thank you, Roseanna.
He was gonna
kill me!
And why
would that be?
Well, because Jebbie
threw a rock at him.
I didn't throw it!
Well, it didn't look like
you did much to stop him.
You go clean up.
And get them cigarettes
out your back pocket
before your momma
gets home.
Thanks, Roseanna.
Good night.
(Vernon)
See you tomorrow.
What're you
gonna do?
I'm taking you on
a trip, little buck.
(Daddy)
Whoo!
Come on! Let's go!
Come on, Daddy!
Are you
speaking to me?
Yeah!
Woo-hoo!
Daddy?
When are you
gonna talk to me?
I'm not, little buck.
I'm gonna
show you something.
What is it, Daddy?
It's a revival!
Tim.
Tim. It's
not a revival.
(man's voice)
The light of Jesus.
(several)
For our God.
The light of Jesus.
(several)
The light of Christ.
The light of Jesus.
Deliverance.
We are the chosen ones.
By the fire of
Calvary's cross
and the sentinel and
the bearer of the light,
jointly give birth
to the star.
For our God.
For our God.
Let the circles of light become alive.
The light of Christ.
We mean to cleanse
and purify our virtues
by burning out our vices
from the fire of His word.
The light of Christ.
Honor,
truth, loyalty, purity.
For our God.
For our God.
[cheering]
I want to go, Daddy.
Shh.
(faint) Please, Daddy.
I want to go home now.
Let the circle
truly become
a living representation
of our order
in the darkness
of the world.
When I saw the cross, I
thought everything was good.
Evil can sometimes be
hard to recognize.
It hides in
normal things.
People you
think you know.
But recognizing evil
isn't the hardest part.
It's standing
up to it,
even when nobody
else will.
(Dr. Proctor) So essentially,
the quality of our choices
determine the quality
of our lives.
Which, translated, means you
probably need to work a little harder.
[whispering]
Thank you.
Dr. Proctor, my name is
Reverend Vernon Tyson.
Reverend Tyson.
Please.
I'm the pastor at the
Oxford Methodist Church.
I heard you
preach last year
at the North Carolina
Council of Churches.
You gave a
magnificent speech.
Well, thank you,
Reverend Tyson.
But I'm assuming that wasn't the
only reason you came to see me.
So he said yes.
And we'll get run out of
town together. [chuckles]
You might be
right about that.
Well, I think
you're overreacting.
I'm just saying there
are people in this town
who think that things have moved
awfully fast in a very short time
and maybe they should
just... slow down a bit.
Well, if anybody bothered to
ask the blacks in this town,
they'd tell you if things went any
slower they'd be going backward.
At the very least don't you
think you should've consulted
with the Executive Committee
before inviting him to speak?
Dr. Samuel Proctor is one of
the leading educators in America.
All the more embarrassing
if you have to go back
and tell him they won't let him preach.
They? Who is they?
You know full well who's they.
They, who put bread on our table.
[sigh]
I know what I'm
doing, Martha.
Trust me.
Just promise you'll give me 24
hours notice to start packing.
Bless this food to the
nourishment of our bodies.
[phone ringing]
May Your goodness
and mercy be upon us
and with those
less fortunate.
I n Your
holy name. Amen.
(others)
Amen.
No. I got it.
Reverend Tyson.
Oh, hello, John.
Yes, as a matter of fact,
we just sat down...
Yeah, sure, l'd
be happy to listen.
I see.
Un-huh.
Well, I'm sorry
you feel that way,
but I'm afraid
I can't do that.
No.
[phone ringing]
Reverend Tyson.
(male voice)
Is it true you invited
a nigger to preach
at our church?
Who is this?
'Cause if it's true,
you're gonna regret it.
Who is this?
[dial tone]
[sigh]
(kids, shouting)
Fight! Fight!
Stop it! Stop it!
Tim Tyson!
What are you doing?
He called Daddy
a nigger-lover.
Your daddy doesn't
need you to defend him.
I wasn't defending
him, Momma.
I was trying
not to be wicked.
Wicked?
Daddy says the wickedest thing we can do
is to do nothing.
[sigh]
Oh, honey.
[ding]
Dorothy.
I came as soon
as I heard.
How's Joe?
He's gonna be okay.
Thank God.
Vernon...
he isn't gonna want to
see you when he comes out.
(Martha)
Vernon? Ls that you?
Vernon?
Dick called.
They scheduled an executive
committee meeting tonight at 7:00.
What was I
thinking, Martha?
Did I really believe I could
change everything by myself?
You're not changing
anything...by yourself.
I'm here.
Stand your ground.
Good evening, everyone.
Reverend Tyson.
Jack, Mr. Pink.
Vernon.
Dick.
I'm assuming we're
all here tonight
because of my invitation to Dr.
Samuel Proctor to speak this Sunday.
Why would you
do this vErnon?
I got people coming
into my store asking me
what kind of ship
we're running here.
Wanting to know did
we really invite
a Negro preacher to stand in our pulpit?
And what did you
tell them, Jack?
I told them
they heard wrong.
Ain't no Negro professor
speaking in our church on Sunday.
Oh, Jack, why in the hell would
you say something like that?
'Cause it's the
truth, Thad!
Vernon, nobody's saying
that it's perfect here,
but we've got good relations
with the Negro community.
This might not be time
to...to stir things up.
What time is
a good time, Dick?
A year from now?
What, five years
from now, Doug?
Does that sound about right? Once
your boys graduate high school?
Ten years from now? Heck, this
is starting to sound like work.
Why don't we just leave it
for the next generation to fix?
lf this man
speaks on Sunday,
there will
be a breach
that will split
this congregation.
Is he worth tearing
this church apart over?
You, um, you can end
this with one call vErnon.
Just call him and tell him don't come.
We're living beneath
a dam, gentlemen,
a dam that's holding back
300 years of wrong.
Now, you can say that dam
ain't going to break
all you want,
but when the rains come
and that dam bursts open
and all that's bad
comes flooding out,
you won't have time
to run for high ground.
Now is the time.
That's why
I invited him.
And that's why I'm not
making that phone call.
Well, that's all
well and good vErnon,
but this is
our church,
and you don't have
a right to do this.
Well, actually, Jack, I
do. And you gave it to me.
This is the Methodist
Book of Discipline.
It defines the rules that
govern our denomination.
And it says...
"the pastor of this church
can determine the number
and the nature of services
held in the sanctuary."
And for the moment, I am still
the pastor of this church.
Now, if you see
things differently,
you give Bishop Grayson
Tullis a phone call
and you let him know.
Otherwise, I have a job
to do tomorrow, gentlemen.
And I hope to see
you all there.
[organ playing]
Reverend Tyson?
You never asked me what I
was going to speak about.
No, sir.
I didn't think
that was my place.
Thank you.
Shall we face
the lions?
[chuckles]
I come to you today
to talk about a problem
of enormous magnitude.
Something some of you would
probably rather not hear about.
But it is a subject
that affects us.
I am the president
of North Carolina A&T,
a black university
of approximately 4,000...
I'll be right back.
outstanding young men
and women.
Among our many fine
accomplishments
is our football program.
The other day, my
coach came in to see me.
He told me that the finest running back
he had ever seen
is down at New Bern.
Now, this prospect's daddy and
his brother both went to A&T.
But when my coach went
down to recruit him,
he say he ain't
coming to A&T.
Said he's going to school
over at Chapel Hill,
says he's going to play
for the Tarheels.
They got the big school
over there, big money,
the big stadium, and he's
going to play for them.
Then my poor coach
drove over to Kinston
to see about this 300-pound
offensive tackle they got
at the Negro
high school there.
A fine young man,
good grades,
but he say he ain't
coming to A&T, either.
That his mama wants him
to play for N.C. State
and wear the red and white
of the Wolfpack.
Well, when Coach finished,
he looked at me defeated,
and said, "I'm sorry,
but we're going to struggle
"next year
on the football field
and probably
for years to come."
l've never seen
a sadder man.
I walked over and put an
arm around him and said,
"See, that's the problem
with all this integration,
Coach, that's just the price
we're going to have to pay."
[laughter]
Our lesson today comes
from the Book of John.
Willie Mae? You listening to the radio?
Willie Mae?
(little girl, happily)
Daddy!
[happy sob]
[loud music,
cheerful whooping]
[chatter]
[indistinct chatter]
What'd they feed you over
there, boy? You're getting big.
Ah! Cockroaches.
[laughs]
Take this off, handsome.
How are y'all all doing?
You're looking great,
looking great.
That Miss Mary Catherine?
How you doing, son?
Hey, Mr. Yancey.
Thank you for coming tonight.
I really appreciate it.
You look great.
You look great.
Thank you, sir.
Still growing up like a weed,
but you look great.
Thank you. See you guys in a little bit.
See you.
How you doing, man?
Fanny. Hey, baby,
how you doing?
It's good to see you.
Good to see you. I'll
see you in a little bit.
Hey, Roseanna.
Hey.
You look wonderful.
Auntie Roberta.
Wonderful.
Give me some
of that sugar.
Yes. Yes.
Dickie, we took care of Willie
Mae and the girls for you.
Just like you
took care of me.
Yes.
Now it's your turn
to take care of them.
I will.
I promise.
Hey, darling.
Betsy, you didn't let him touch
none of this food, did you?
Well, well, well. What
the cat dragged in.
How's life at
the rubber plant?
It's good. They're starting
up a late shift next week,
but I ain't
too interested in that.
Well, good. You can
help me down at the store
in all your
spare time.
[sigh]
Did you put that chain on that
boat trailer like I told you?
Yeah.
Well, you better have.
You let something
like that slip
and you go back and
that boat won't be there.
The chain's there. Boat'll
be there when we get back.
Like that time you left the bolt undone
on the back door and they
stole us blind down at the shop.
That was
an accident.
Took care of that.
Yeah, when it
was too late.
You need to use
your head, son.
Yes, sir.
Betsy went to
the doctor today.
The baby's doing fine.
Everything looks okay.
Maybe once that baby comes,
y'all'll come by more often.
You ready to
be a granddaddy?
Hmpf.
You ready to be
an uncle, boy?
I don't even like
being a brother.
[laughs]
Go on back upstairs and
start packing your bags, then.
All right, you
see Mr. Fox here?
Mr. Fox needs some sleep, too,
just like you need some sleep.
All right? All right.
So get to bed.
I'll see you in the morning. All right?
[tired sigh]
Why don't you
go find Boo
and play a couple hands of bid whist.
I know you've been
wanting to catch up.
I'll be okay.
I'll be back
in a bit.
I'll be waiting.
Go on.
(Fanny)
Who's there?
It's Dickie, Fanny.
How you feeling?
Oh, I'm hanging
in there.
lf you're looking for
Boo, he ain't here.
Think he's
at Four Corners.
lf you're
going over there,
will you get me
a ice-cold soda?
I sure am thirsty.
You got it.
And don't go getting in no trouble.
Bring my soda right back here to me.
Yes, ma'am.
Okay. I took out the trash
and broke down those boxes.
Anything else?
Yeah. Go lock up
the barber shop.
How much longer
we gonna be here?
Well, till the old man
turns the lights out.
[whistles]
He closing up?
I'll bet you that's the last
time Roger comes over for dinner.
Hey, Dickie.
Is that you?
Yes, ma'am,
Mrs. Downing.
Seen Boo?
No, man.
Nowhere.
All right.
Hey, girls.
Y'all looking
good tonight.
Is this where all
the action is?
I can't believe y'all out
here all by y'allselves.
Hey, nigger!
Hey, you!
That's my wife
you're talking to.
Hey, man, listen, I was just
talking to the sisters here.
Right.
Hey, man, it's cool.
Listen, listen.
I was just talking
to the sisters over here.
The hell you were.
Man, what're
you doing?
I'll show you
what I'm doing.
[grunts]
(wife)
Larry, no!
Hey!
Larry, no!
[grunts]
Stop it!
Larry, stop!
[wife]
Stop!
Damn!
You're crazy, man!
[wife] He's got a knife!
Hey, Dickie!
Dickie, run!
Hey, where's the fire?
[shotgun blasts echo]
[Boo shouts, moaning]
[panting]
I didn't do nothing!
Okay, okay, man.
You got me.
Let's just forget about
it. You got me, man.
Okay?
[grunts]
[grunting,
fists pounding]
[grunts and pounding]
[grunts and thuds]
Better stop that
before you kill him!
You better get back
in your house, woman!
[grunts]
[continued kicking]
[heavy breathing]
[gunshot]
[dog barking in distance]
[train whistling in distance]
Go lock up the stores.
[sobbing wildly]
Oh, God.
Oh, God, Dickie.
Ba-bro, get us a car.
Go get us a car!
Honey, we got to find him.
Oh, dear. Okay,
you look over here.
(nurse) Ma'am, stop.
You can't go in there.
Over here.
Dickie? Dickie,
it's Roberta.
I'm right
here, honey.
Ma'am, you'll
have to leave.
Oh, my God!
What have they
done to you?
They're going to have to
take him to Duke Hospital.
[ambulance siren wailing]
No. No!
I ain't going to no
damn police station.
They ain't gonna listen
to a word I got to say.
Boo, I'll take you down.
Ain't nobody gonna
mess with us.
Who's on the desk?
Let me speak with him.
Dale.
Yeah, this is
Billy Watkins.
I understand there was
a shooting tonight
at, um, Mr. Teel's store
out at Four Corners.
Mm-hmm. Yeah.
He's with me.
I'll bring him in
a little later.
'Preciate it.
Do you still have people up in Berea?
Yeah.
Call'em. Tell them
you're gonna be staying
with'em
for a while.
Well, what you
want me to do?
Go upstairs.
Get yourself
a pillowcase.
Fill it with all the money
you can put your hands on.
You're gonna need it.
Excuse me, Sergeant.
This is
William Chavis.
He was shot this evening
by Mr. Robert Teel.
Mr. Teel and his sons
killed Dickie Marrow.
It was witnessed
by Mr. Chavis
and he'd like to report that murder,
his own assault, and swear out
a warrant for the Teels' arrest.
Have a seat.
Sorry.
[sigh]
All that time
he was in the service,
I prayed that nothing
would happen to him.
I prayed and prayed.
Somebody should've told me
I needed to be praying
he wouldn't get shot
in his own hometown.
Nothing I can do.
C'mon, Boo.
Let's go home.
John, I just heard.
What can I do?
It's too late vErnon. Too late.
Go on home.
Oh, nice one.
So close.
Hey, where you been?
Home. Y'all hear?
Daddy, Roger, and them
shot them a nigger.
Why?
Said something he shouldn't
have to Larry's wife Judy.
Tim Tyson.
Come in for supper.
What're we having?
I am not announcing my
menu to the neighborhood.
Come in now.
[rumble of thunder]
Shh. It's only me.
Daddy.
Is everything
going to be okay?
Go to sleep,
little buck.
[indistinct shout]
Y'all, come on.
[shouting]
[shouting continues]
Let's go around back.
[siren approaches]
[shouting and noise fade]
(mayor)
Quiet, please.
This morning, I dispatched a
telegram to the Governor's office
informing him of the
events of last night,
as well as my intention to declare
the existence of a state of emergency
and the imposing of a
curfew for all citizens
from 7:30 in the evening until 6
in the morning, beginning tonight.
Further, I requested from him
the assistance of State Troopers
to help enforce this curfew.
And most importantly,
to restore a safe, secure,
and law-abiding environment
for the hearing tomorrow
and for the trial
in the months to come.
All citizens my ass!
Damn right.
That curfew
ain't nothing
but a No Niggers
After Nightfall Act.
(several)
That's right.
(teacher)
You can have...
whatever you can take.
(student)
Yeah.
That's right.
Yeah, Mr. Chavis.
But you can only keep...
what you can...
hold.
That's right.
We're gonna keep it!
Keep what, Darrel?
Beer? Cigarettes?
TV sets?
You think that's why the
State Troopers are here?
Because you broke some windows
and stole some groceries?
They're not.
You want to know
why they're here?
They're here because last night,
when you hit those streets,
you took something more valuable
than you could ever imagine.
Something our families have
been fighting for for years.
I'm talking about equality.
And they're not going to let
you keep it without a fight.
I ain't giving
it back.
Me, neither.
Good.
Mr. Chavis!
Mr. Chavis,
where you going?
What's going on?
Come on!
Please take a seat
quickly and quietly.
[gavel pounds]
[gavel pounds]
Proceed.
I saw three men
standing over Dickie.
Can you
identify those men?
Yes.
Two of them
are over there.
Robert Teel,
he had a shotgun,
and Larry Teel,
he had a rifle.
Where's the third man?
Your Honor, none of
the witnesses were able
to positively
identify the third man.
[sigh]
[birds chirping]
[sigh]
Hey, Momma.
Hey.
I took my students
to the Teel hearing today.
I heard.
Quite a show.
Yeah, it was
a show, all right.
I just wanted them to witness
the legal process, you know?
All they saw was
the same old Oxford.
Every rich businessman in
town sang that killer's praises
like he was
the Lord Jesus himself.
I made a
phone call today.
I called
Ralph Abernathy.
He's sending
someone to help.
[female voice sings
spiritual type song]
a Mmm a
a Oh, freedom a
a Oh, freedom over me a
a Before I'll be a slave a
a I'll be buried
ln my grave a
a And go home
To my Lord and be free a
Good morning, gentlemen.
I thought I was coming to a funeral.
You fellows look like
you're expecting an attack.
We're expecting a fellow from
out of state to stir things up.
Stir things up?
What's his name?
His name's Frinks.
Golden Frinks?
He's coming here?
Hoo-hoo, hell
of a speaker.
That man can flat-out
ring the bells of heaven
when you get him going.
You ever heard him preach?
No. Can't say
that we have.
Hot as a pepper.
He was with
the late Dr. King
in Selma, Montgomery,
and Birmingham.
I heard he been
arrested over 50 times
for his civil
rights involvement.
And on top of
all of that,
he's a hell of
a sharp dresser.
You boys ever seen
a picture of him?
No, sir.
He always wears
a dashiki
with a big cross
'round his neck.
But stir things up?
Now, I don't know how
you can stir up a funeral.
We can't let you in, Mr. Frinks.
I understand.
I understand completely.
I see them watches.
You boys get them in Vietnam?
Yes, sir.
Well, you know Dickie
Marrow was a vet, too.
He served.
He was a soldier,
just like y'all.
And he deserves a whole
lot better than all of this.
No, sir, Mr. Jones.
You're not too late.
Go right ahead.
(pastor) ...one of the
closest Scriptures in my heart,
and I say that...
[spectators]
Praise the Lord.
I n the name
of our Lord, the Almighty.
Amen.
(spectators)
Amen.
Amen.
Yes. Amen.
Pastor, could I
say a few words?
Thank you.
This young man...
was a husband,
he was a daddy.
He was a son, an uncle...
and a cousin.
For 30 years, l've been attending
the funerals of soldiers.
Soldiers of the movement.
And l've had
enough of it.
(several)
Yes, sir.
Now, I know we're here
to bury Dickie Marrow today,
but when I look
in your faces,
I see there's something
else that needs to be buried.
Discrimination.
(several)
Yes.
Segregation.
(several)
That's right.
(woman)
Amen. Yes.
Bigotry!
(several)
That's right!
And all the complicity
of pulling a people down.
(many)
Yeah!
(man)
That's right! Yes!
Now, to them downtown
who put that statue up,
this young man here
is just another
nigger dead.
(man)
Yeah.
But it ain't
gonna end that way
'cause what's gonna
end up dead is Jim Crow!
Jim Crow's
gonna be dead.
(Boo)
Yes.
Now, I know we ain't got no permit.
We ain't got nothing.
But we are marching on.
(several) That's right. M m-hmm.
We're going to go march
to that Confederate
monument downtown,
and we're going to tell
that old soldier
it's time for him
to come down.
(many voices assent)
And that South
that he's guarding
for all those
years is dead.
And we will
tell him loud, like,
because he's a old man
and he has a hard time
hearing these kind of things.
(man) Preach it now, preach it.
You don't represent us,
and you never did!
(woman)
Yes! Go ahead!
This here is
our South, too!
(man)
That's right.
We were born here...
grew up here...
work here...
raise our
children here...
Yes, Lord.
and we ain't gonna
be silent no more!
(many)
No more!
And then we're
going to tell him
that this young man here, Dickie Marrow,
didn't die for nothing.
Yes, sir.
He died for us.
(several)
Yes, he did.
And we're never
gonna forget it.
Never!
Yes!
a Ain't gonna let
Nobody know a
a Turn me around a
a Turn me around, I ain't
Gonna let nobody know a
a Turn me around, We
gotta keep On walking a
a Keep on talking a
a Walking up
The freedom way a
a Don't you let nobody know a
a Turn it around,
Turn it around a
a Turn it around
And let segregation know a
a Turn you around, We
gotta keep On walking a
a Keep on talking a
You're Elizabeth
Chavis' boy, aren't you?
How you doing, Mr. Frinks? I'm Ben.
Call me Goldie.
Come on, everybody.
Unh. Ungawa.
(all)
Unh, unh, black power.
Say it again.
Unh. Ungawa.
Mean it.
Unh, unh, black power.
Unh. Ungawa.
Unh, unh, black power.
[repeating]
Vernon, I believe
your damn has burst.
Ungawa. Black power.
[soul music]
So what's your
plan, Goldie?
My plan?
Ben, look all
around you.
See these young people?
They are alive and energized
because they had a taste of
some of that freedom wine.
[chuckling]
And they liked it.
Their spirits are
flying right now
with the possibilities
of all that that wonderful
drink can bring them.
My plan, as you call it,
is to keep that
wine flowing.
And how are you
going to do that?
We. How are we gonna
keep it flowing?
We start off by getting hold of a mule.
A mule?
[female voice sings]
a Hold on, I'm coming a
a I'm on my way a
a Your lover a
a If you get cold, yeah,
I will be your cover a
a Don't have to worry a
a'Cause I'm here a
a Don't need to suffer, baby a
a'Cause I'm here a
a Just hold on a
a I'm coming a
a Hold on a
All right.
Come here, baby.
[laughs]
Here we go.
All right.
You okay?
Well, y'all
be good now.
(boy's voice)
All right, momma.
lf you get thirsty, you go
and help yourself, all right?
All right?
Don't worry. Ain't nothing gonna happen.
Seventy people.
A man is murdered, and we got
70 people to march to Raleigh.
It's not
where you start.
It's where you end
that counts.
Let's go.
Come on.
That's what I'm
worrying about.
M ight not be anybody left
by the time we get to Raleigh.
[no audible dialogue]
Get back on. Keep
on keeping on, sister.
All right.
How long they been
back there?
About a half hour.
They just been watching?
They ain't offered
me a ride yet.
[tires screeching]
Whoa, whoa, whoa.
(man) Yee-ha! [gunshots]
[women, children scream]
[gunshots]
[unintelligible shouting]
[shooting continues]
Come on, let's get
back on the road.
It's gonna take a lot
more than that to stop us.
Is everybody okay?
You all right?
Check everybody out. Check
everybody out. Help them out.
It's gonna take
a lot more than that.
Let's get back in line
and let's keep on marching.
Come on.
It's all locked up.
Thought someone was supposed to be here.
Maybe they got the message
that it might not be healthy.
Come on, come on.
You think this is bad? This ain't bad.
You'll know bad
when you see it.
What exactly
does bad look like?
Fellas, fellas.
Sorry we're late.
Better late than never.
All right then,
my brother.
Let's get in here, man.
Hey, guys,
bring some food.
Everybody's
probably hungry.
So I heard the Klan had meetings
all around us last night.
Well, at least somebody
knows we're out here.
Come on.
All right. You okay?
All right.
Hi!
(little girl's voice)
Hi!
Hi!
Who's this?
I made some
calls down east.
Thought it was time to
prime the pumps a little bit,
get our numbers right.
Hey, y'all.
Right on time.
Welcome, welcome.
Glad y'all here.
Welcome now.
Welcome.
I know, baby. I know you don't
want to get back on that wagon.
But we just got
one more day, okay?
And then
we'll be all right.
I love you.
[female voice
sings slow song]
a Wandering road lead me a
a To finding my own a
I got here as soon as I could.
a Place that Was meant For me a
So glad you came.
a I'm not alone a
You okay?
Yeah.
a A darkness is parting a
a How far we've come a
a A new hope's arising a
a Leading us on a
[no audible dialogue]
a Wandering road behind me a
a Finding my stride a
a Struggle and pain, sorrow a
a Till arms open wide a
a The darkness has parted a
a No turning back a
a A new hope's arising a
a Leading us on a
[cheering continues]
Now this is what
I'm talking about.
[drumming]
[cheering continues]
Power.
This is a great day
in the history of
black people in Raleigh.
[cheering,
drumming]
ln North Carolina.
(crowd)
Yeah!
Everywhere.
Right now,
Ben Chavis and Henry
Marrow's widow, Willie Mae,
they're going to go have
a meeting with the Governor.
[crowd cheers]
Yeah!
This is a day for us to
come together for justice.
(crowd)
Yeah!
[knocking]
Jesus rode
into Jerusalem
on the back
of a donkey.
Ain't nobody
in there.
Willie Mae and her two
beautiful daughters...
I thought you said Mr.
Frinks contacted the Governor.
That's what he said.
That's what he told me.
So many long, hot miles.
50 long, hot miles to
bring us right here today.
(crowd)
Yes!
All those
people who walked
thought we were talking to the Governor.
My girls rode
all the way here.
For what?
What?
Please, just get
me out of here.
Come on.
Okay.
(Frinks) We will not stop
till we have justice! No!
And because blood
done signed our names.
Come on!
[cheering]
The blood
of Martin Luther King.
Blood of Malcolm X.
(many)
Yes!
The blood of Medgar Evers.
The blood of Dickie Marrow
brought us here today.
Wait, they're back. Let's
hear what they got to say.
Tell us what
the Governor said.
Ben Chavis is going to tell us
what Governor Scott has said.
(man)
Brother, speak!
[clears throat]
Governor Scott has chosen
not to meet with us today.
(many)
What?
Come on, man.
Neither he nor the
Lieutenant Governor
nor any of their staff, though
they were told we were coming,
chose to make
themselves available!
What the Governor just
told us by his absence
is that to the
white power structure,
Dickie Marrow's just
another nigger dead!
(crowd)
No!
Well, Governor, you mark
this day on your calendar.
Because the day for
begging for black people
in North Carolina is over!
And you will never
forget this day again!
[cheering
and drumming]
[female voice
sings slow song]
a Let us praise
God together a
a On our knees a
a Let us praise
God together a
a On our knees a
a When I fall on my knees a
a With my face
To the rising sun a
a O Lord a
a Have mercy on me a
(Frinks) So you see what
we accomplished today?
If we stick together and stand together,
there's nothing
we can't do.
See you on the bus.
You told Willie Mae that we was
going to meet with the Governor
when you knew he wouldn't
see us, didn't you?
I told her the truth.
I told her I notified his
office that we were coming.
You let her and her girls
ride on top of that fake coffin
for 50 miles, knowing that
meeting wasn't gonna happen.
That don't bother you?
You think Dickie
Marrow's murder
is the worst civil rights lynching ever?
It doesn't even come close
to the things I've seen.
And you think her pain is any different
from the pain of
those other families?
Now, what's special
about his death is
that it gives us an opportunity
to make things better.
Who do you
think I am?
I'm not Dr. King.
I'm not one
of his golden boys.
I'm a stoker, man.
You understand?
They send me in to the
towns to keep things hot.
That's my job.
I'm just a stoker.
(anchorman over TV)
In Raleigh today,
groups of blacks
marched in protest
over the killing of a
Negro Oxford man last week.
Governor Scott's refusal
to meet with black leaders
has reportedly angered
many of the marchers.
Local police in Oxford
continue to claim
that the situation there
is under control.
Shit, man, put that damn thing out.
Okay, now
we sync watches.
Sync on five,
four,
three,
two, one.
(driver) We got a call. Come on.
[siren wails]
Let's go.
[glass smashing]
(Eddie)
Go, go, go, go. Go!
Come on.
Hurry up. Hurry up!
Eddie, what
you doing, man?
Wait, wait, wait, wait.
Something's wrong.
Maybe it didn't catch.
Just give it a second.
Shit. It didn't catch.
Eddie!
Eddie.
[creaking]
I think it worked.
[distant siren wails]
Daddy?
It's big.
Daddy, is it
coming here?
(Vernon)
Oh, no, honey.
It's okay.
Ain't nothing gonna
happen unless you make it.
I've presided over several
racially charged cases.
I harbor no prejudice
against Negroes.
I was raised
in a mainly black county.
I ate with them.
I played with them.
We had an instinctive
love for the Negro race.
(crowd)
Black power!
My secretary is black.
That should show you
how I feel about them.
I have heard the arguments
that this community is
too turbulent for a trial.
But I do not feel
they present
an adequate reason for
moving these proceedings.
[all talking at once]
Does it concern you that only
9 of the 100 juror candidates
examined for this
trial were black?
No. Why would
that concern me?
Because Warren County, from
which the jury pool is drawn,
is in fact more than 2/3 black.
This is a fair
and impartial jury.
And it'll be a fair
and impartial trial.
Mr. Burgwyn, is the
prosecution ready?
Yes, we are,
Your Honor.
We call Dr. Page Hudson to the stand.
The deceased had two serious
fractures of the skull,
one on the top of his
head, the other on the back.
He also had bruises and
abrasions all over his body,
both.410 and 12-gauge shotgun
wounds on the backs of his legs,
as well as a.22-caliber bullet
wound in the center of his forehead.
I'd been hanging
with the fellas
in the shed at the old fish market.
Suddenly I hear Dickie
and a white man arguing.
That's when I
saw Mr. Teel
come out the store
with a shotgun.
And what did you do?
I ran!
I mean, we all ran.
I heard about two
or three shots.
And, uh, then
I came back.
I saw Larry Teel
standing over Dickie
with a shotgun.
I...yelled at him.
"Stop before you
kill that boy."
Finally, I
heard the shot.
Who was holding the rifle, Mrs. Downing?
Who was
holding the gun
that fired
the final shot?
Him there.
Larry Teel.
I was on my way
to find everybody
when Willie and Jimmie
and them flew by me.
Then I heard
a shotgun blast.
And after they beat him, what happened?
There was
one more shot.
Sounded like
a cap pistol.
[gunshot]
No further questions,
Your Honor.
Boo, have you ever been in any trouble?
Legal trouble?
Yeah. But I
ain't on trial.
What kind
of trouble?
Stuff.
Receiving stolen goods,
breaking and entering?
That kind of stuff?
Yeah, but I ain't
killed nobody.
I'm sorry. I didn't say you did.
Did you serve time
for those crimes?
Yeah.
In fact, you're on
probation right now,
isn't that correct?
Yeah.
Mr. Chavis,
do you see the man
that fired the shot that
killed Dickie Marrow?
Yes.
Will you get up and
go over and touch him?
Yeah, sure.
Please.
Touch him.
Thank you.
That's all.
[general murmuring]
(judge) Is the defense
ready, Mr. Watkins?
Yes, we are,
Your Honor.
What did Dickie Marrow say to you?
He said,
"Hey, white girl."
"Hey, white girl."
Huh.
Had you said
anything to him?
No, sir.
And then
what happened?
And then Larry told him, "Don't
be speaking to her like that."
And then he came at Larry with a knife,
and I screamed
for help.
(Larry Teel) He said, "Hey,
white girl. Hey, you bitch."
I said, "Don't talk
to my wife like that."
And he said, uh, "Come
on, I'm a soul brother."
Then he pulled
his knife on me.
After he went down,
what happened?
I hit him
with my fists,
took the knife away
from him, then stood up.
The rifle that
shot him.
Were you holding
the rifle?
No, sir.
Did you see who
was holding it?
No. I was looking down
at him on the ground.
Did you recognize
the other men?
It was
happening so fast.
The boy attacked me.
And I ran
after him...
Larry...
did you recognize
the other men?
My father was there.
I recognized his voice when he said,
"I'm gonna call an
ambulance and the police."
And what about
the other man?
I didn't know
who he was.
(anchorman over TV) ln a surprise
move here Thursday, Larry Teel,
son of a local barber, Robert Teel,
took the witness stand in
Granville County Superior Court
and denied that he shot and
killed a local Negro man.
(Watkins) Were you holding the rifle?
(Larry)
No, sir.
(Watkins) Did you see
who was holding it?
So tell me, Roger, one
more time, what happened.
I heard Judy
call for help.
I ran after
my father.
When I got to the other
side of the fish market,
I saw him and Larry
and joined them.
Did Larry Teel at any time that night
have a gun
in his hand?
No.
Then how could that last
shot have been fired?
Roger?
I was holding it.
Someone bumped my shoulder,
and the gun went off.
[weeping]
I didn't mean
to kill anybody.
It was
an accident.
No further questions,
Your Honor.
(attorney) lf this was an accident,
why did you let
your father and brother
stand trial for
first-degree murder?
'Cause my lawyers told
me not to say nothing.
Do you mean to
tell this jury
that you let
them sit in jail
without the privilege
of bond for three months,
and didn't tell anybody
that you shot this man
or that it
was an accident?
Your father and your brother
were on trial for their lives!
For their lives!
And you have not set
foot in this courtroom
until today!
My attorney told me not to come.
That boy lay
on the ground
begging for his life,
helpless, Roger.
Did you kick him?
We was all
kicking him.
And did
you beat him
with the stock
of that rifle, Roger?
His skull
was fractured.
Did you hit
him with it?
I refuse to answer on the grounds
that it may incriminate me.
Who told you
to say that?
Who told you to plead
the Fifth Amendment?
My lawyers.
Mr. Watkins.
And did they tell you that
all the witnesses had testified
that Larry was holding the gun?
And that if you said
that you shot the rifle
and that it
was an accident,
that your father and brother
might not have to go to prison?
I refuse to answer on the...
Your brother shot that
boy, didn't he, Roger?
And you and your daddy
helped kill him, didn't you?
They let you stay home with
your wife and your baby.
Now you're supposed
to help them
and say that
you shot him
because they know there
isn't a witness anywhere
that can testify
to that effect.
Nobody but your wife
and your attorney,
and neither one of them
can testify against you.
But I'm sure they told you
that, too, didn't they, Roger?
No further questions.
[hubbub of voices]
(female voices)
Lieutenant Williams,
why wasn't the third man indicted?
There was a
third party mentioned
from time to time
during the investigation,
but none of my witnesses
were able to make
a positive identification
of a third person,
and they all saw the defendant,
Larry Teel, fire the fatal shot.
[clears throat]
Three men beat
Dickie Marrow
while he helplessly
begged for his life,
more than a hundred feet
off of their property.
First they shot him
as he was running away,
and then, when he was
flat on his back,
they beat him,
and they kicked him.
And they stomped him
and hit him in the
head with a shotgun butt
over and over.
Then they put a bullet in his head,
just like you or I
would kill a snake,
and they called it
self-defense.
Then, after the state
proved beyond any doubt
that this killing
was by no stretch
of the imagination
an act of self-defense,
they came up
with a new story.
An accident.
Or what
they might call...
accidental self-defense.
Of course, there is no such
category, ladies and gentlemen,
and nothing remotely
like that happened.
This case is one of
the most serious cases
ever to be tried
in this state.
And the outcome will affect
events in this community,
the state of
North Carolina,
and across the nation.
We cannot tell the world
that we have one system
of justice for Negroes
and another for whites.
We must face the truth
and we must act upon it
or be damned
by our lies forever.
[baby crying]
(female voice)
Shh shh shh.
[baby gurgles quietly]
I...I hear that baby cry,
and I can't help but
think about a little girl
going to have
to grow up now
without knowing
her father.
And I can't help
but hear that cry
as a cry from
Dickie Marrow,
saying, "Don't
let them kill me...
"and just tell the world
it was an accident.
Please!...Don't let
them do that to me."
And if you do,
ladies and gentlemen,
well, you may as
well hang a wreath
on the courthouse door on the way out,
because you just as
clearly say to the world
that justice is dead...in
Granville County.
[indistinct music
on jukebox]
[sigh]
What's your plan, Ben?
What's my plan?
M m-hmm.
You mean
for tomorrow?
The day
after tomorrow.
I haven't really thought about it. Why?
There's been a killing
down in Louisiana.
Young girl. They need
a stoker down there.
That's not what they
need here anymore.
After tomorrow...
they need a leader.
The jury's coming back!
[excited chatter]
(girl)
Hey!
[organ]
(judge)
Mr. Foreman,
has the jury reached
a unanimous verdict?
We have, Your Honor.
[organ]
[church bell tolling slowly]
Will the defendants
please rise?
We, the members
of the jury,
unanimously find the defendant
Larry Teel not guilty...
[indistinct angry shouting]
[gavel
pounding continuously]
[shouting, pounding continues]
Let us pray.
Father, we have
been tempted
to love things
and use people.
When we have
been called
to love people
and use things.
We ask Your forgiveness
for our complicity in these sins
and in the evils
of our own time.
And pray Your healing
upon our hearts.
Amen.
[female voice
sings in choir]
a You've got
To know a
(choir) a You've got To know a
a Well a
a It may be hard a
a You may be poor a
a You may be rich a
a Now when we all a
a Get ready a
a You gotta move a
a You've got
To move a a
[sigh]
Why?
Why?
Why?
[murmuring]
No, not...not... not
why did this happen,
'cause we know
the answer to that.
Yes, that's right.
Why do we do
what we do?
Every day
in this town.
(man)
We know better.
[chattering]
Why do we watch movies
at white-owned theaters
where we still must
sit in the balconies
and enter and exit
through a side door?
Why do we spend our money
in stores where blacks
are only welcomed as customers
and never as employees.
That's right.
That's right.
And why do we put our money into banks
that refuse to hire
blacks except as janitors,
and are loathe to give us loans
for anything except automobiles.
Why is there only one
African-American on the police force
and none on the
fire department?
[indistinct],
grocery store workers...
Yet we make up 40% of the
population of this county.
Why?
Why do we
do what we do
every day
in this town?
Fear?
Tradition?
No, that's not good enough, not anymore.
Power concedes nothing without a demand,
and we need to start
demanding some things, people.
And I'm not talking about
sometime in the future,
it's a change that needs
to happen right now.
Right now.
Until that change comes,
we need to take
our money elsewhere.
(woman) He started the change.
That took strength.
That took a
lot of strength.
The women held
it together.
Mostly, we shopped
out of town.
Went to Henderson.
Yes. Durham.
Durham.
It took a while.
About three months.
Yeah, about
three months.
It worked.
Because we took dollars away from here
and took them
somewhere else.
Exactly.
After the tobacco
warehouses was destroyed,
the tobacco market
moved on down to Kinston.
And everybody felt it,
especially the white people.
(Vernon) Dick? What you doing out here?
Hey vErnon.
Vernon.
Gray.
C'mon in.
Close the
door, please.
That's a right good-size hole
you're digging there, brethren.
Yeah. We're digging a hole
big enough so we can bury
every sorry sumbitch
in Oxford.
(man) Well, that's the stupidest
damn thing l've ever heard of.
Who's going to be left
to cover us all up?
[laughs] That's good. That's real good.
(Vernon) And they have
sand dunes in Wilmington.
White, white sand dunes.
Where it's the ocean
in the distance there.
And we're gonna run
over them sand dunes
and we're gonna
run in the water.
And we're gonna just go
crazy. You in? You in?
You in? Yeah?
[sniffles]
[sigh]
[openly sobs]
Hey, $5.00, please, and
can I borrow that air gauge?
C'mon, pumpkin.
Thank you.
Daddy?
Did we get run
out of town?
Of course not.
We've been offered a
new church in Wilmington.
It's a good church, too.
Some of the kids
at my school
said that you were the reason
that everything happened.
They said their parents
are glad that you're gone.
I imagine some of them'll be
crowing about now, that's true.
But you know, the rooster
crows and the sun comes up
and that old rooster thinks
he done it all by himself.
But the Lord sees it
a little bit differently.
I did what I had
to do, little buck.
Let's go.
Everybody in the car.
We're on an adventure.
Thank you.
(male voice) Did you
ever hear Golden Frinks?
Yeah, I heard Golden Frinks preach once.
Long time ago
at a funeral.
He flat rang the bells of heaven, too.
Who's Golden Frinks?
[soft music]
[female voice sings softly]
a Wandering road lead me a
a To finding my own a
a A place that was
Meant for me a
a I'm not alone a
a A darkness a
a ls parting a
a How far we've come a
a A new hope's arising a
a Leading us on a