Neshoba: The Price of Freedom - Movie Review of Neshoba - 2008

The Need For Truth and Reconciliation

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By Jennifer Merin, About.com Guide

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Forty years after the 1964 murders of civil rights workers James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner, the State of Mississippi's indictment and trial of 80 year old racist preacher Edgar Ray Killen, the alleged mastermind of the killings, brings out dissension about whether the belated revelation of truth and consequent punishment will bring reconciliation to the community or ignite residual racial tensions.

The Divided Community, Past And Present

That there is any question about whether or not it is necessary that the truth about the murders on James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner be revealed and those guilty of killing them be punished is, in itself, an indication that the citizens of Mississippi -- and the nation, in general -- are still a community divided.

The filmmakers use archival footage, still photos and narration to give evidence of the circumstances surrounding the murders, and to remind us of the open expression of racist behavior and attitudes that drew civil rights workers like the three young victims to take action and protest.

The documentary is a thoughtful yet terrifying cautionary tale. There are clips of interviews with men and women on the street who state that their beliefs that those boys deserved to be killed for meddling in business that was not theirs, and footage of Ku Klux Klan members hiding behind their hoods and parading to show their power, and openly boasting about their aggressions against civil rights workers. And, we become very familiar with the mentality of Edgar Ray Killen, whole indictment and trial form the spine of this documentary. His arrogance is astonishing. But, the film allows you to judge him for yourself.

And the film forces you to revisit this ugly chapter in American history and question whether it is over and done with -- or not.

Forty Years Is Too Long

We also hear from the Chaney, Goodwin and Schwerner families, who've never quite recovered from the loss of their loved ones. We hear them speak of their anguish, of the frustration of waiting for justice through the years that passed without any punishment being imposed on those who were guilty of the murders. That they've had to wait for forty years before the state stood to punish Killen is a shocking reminder about just how tenuous justice can be. If forty years seems to long to wait for Killen's indictment, the film also makes it clear that there are others who were involved in the murders -- including the actual perpetrators -- who've not been indicted and are not likely to stand formally accused on their crimes. Ever.

And why? Ostensibly because there's too little evidence. But the film also asserts that there are too many in the community with kith and kin who were in some way culpable, and they don't want to have their family members forced to take responsibility -- and be subjected to civil and/or criminal prosecution. They say that Killen's indictment and trial will just increase tensions in the community, and that it would be best to just forget the past.

It's extraordinary that this film highlights the social debate about truth and reconciliation within the context of American society, where so many take the existence of civil liberties and rights, and justice for all, for granted.

Truth And Reconciliation in America?

Americans seem ready to endorse the truth and reconciliation process in South Africa and Rwanda (where the process has been so brilliantly chronicled in Anne Aghion's gripping My Neighbor, My Killer, but we don't seem to want to put the process into effect here, in the United States. Neshoba: The Price of Freedom raises questions about this, but doesn't answer them. So, prepare yourself for some vibrant discussions after you see the film. Like all worthwhile documentaries, Neshoba: The Price of Freedom tells you more than a story. It forces you to reconsider things you think you already know and things that you take for granted.