kellyanderson&tamigold
THREE SONS
THREE WORLDS
THREE MOTHERS
UNITED BY A COMMON TRAGEDY
EVERY MOTHER’S SON: Women Speak Out Against Police Violence”
NATIONAL SPEAKERS TOUR
In the late 1990s, three victims of police brutality made headlines around the country: Amadou Diallo, the young West African man whose killing in a hail of 41 bullets sparked intense protest; Anthony Baez, killed in an illegal choke-hold; and Gary (Gidone) Busch, a Hasidic Jew shot to death outside his Brooklyn home. The award-winning film EVERY MOTHER’S SON profiles three New York mothers who find themselves united to seek justice after their sons are unjustly killed by police. The victims’ stories are tragic, and the courage shown by their mothers heroic. As one witness says, 'As long as there's a mother, we'll continue to fight.'
Winner of the Audience Award at the Tribeca Film Festival and a Cine Gold Eagle, EVERY MOTHER’S SON sparks passionate debate about civil rights, cultural difference, the criminal justice system, activism and the practice and potential power of documentary filmmaking. An appearance by the mothers featured in the film, or by filmmakers Tami Gold and Kelly Anderson, turns a screening of this powerful documentary into an unforgettable event.
Award-winning filmmakers, including Tami Gold and Kelly Anderson are dynamic speakers about the issues in their films and about the power and practice of independent media. Their works, which include Out At Work: Lesbians and Gay Men on the Job, Juggling Gender and Making a Killing: Philip Morris, Kraft and Global Tobacco Addiction, have been seen on HBO, PBS and at the Sundance Film Festival.
Every Mother’s Son: Women Speak Out Against Police Violence is a perfect film and lecture event for the entire campus community, and to build stronger coalitions amongst Jewish, African, African-American, Latino/a, women, and LGBTQ students.
We are drawn to intimate personal stories that speak to larger political issues ... when we realized this movement against police brutality was being led largely by mothers, there was something so poignant about it that we decided to tell the story through their eyes.
Kelly Anderson, filmmaker
The way to develop trust as a documentarian is to be a profound listener. Sometimes you just have to be with people in their homes, putting the camera down and just talking. If I'm asking people to tell me about their lives, I've got to share my life as well. I can't ask people to give me their lives if I can't give mine.
Tami Gold, filmmaker
" Most outstanding documentaries expertly record history; only a few extraordinary films have the potential for making history. Every Mothers Son is such a film. By documenting the tragedies of loss, as well as the triumph of courage and resistance, this film eloquently speaks to the transformative power of a mother's love. Every Mothers Son brilliantly illustrates the capacity human beings have to overcome our pain by bearing witness, by finding the power to speak out against police violence and misconduct. Every Mothers Son is a masterpiece of contemporary documentary filmmaking.
" With Every Mothers Son, Tami Gold and Kelly Anderson have created an impassioned portrait of women's courage and grassroots activism in urban America today. Iris Baez, Kadiatou Diallo and Doris Busch Boskey, whose sons were brutally killed by New York City police, are three very different women bound together by a common sorrow and injustice. By showing how three "ordinary" women turn anger and personal tragedy into fuel for social change, Gold and Anderson have given teachers of womens studies, race and ethnic studies and criminal justice a precious tool for inspiring our students in a harshly conservative climate. This is one of the most brilliant and unforgettable documentaries I have seen in these dark days.