4 Little Girls

• The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till
• The Rosa Parks Story
• When the Levees Broke - A Requiem In Four Acts (Documentary)
• Disney's Ruby Bridges
• Once Upon a Time...When We Were Colored
• Miss Evers' Boys
• A Woman Called Moses
• The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman
• Malcolm X
• Selma, Lord, Selma

There are interviews with the girls' family, friends, teachers. It is a moving documentary and is appropriate for students grades 6 and up. The HBO documentary about bombing of a church in Birmingham, Alabama begings with a touching song about each of the 4 girls that were killed. Spike Lee uses actual film footage from the era to help viewers have a deeper understanding of what things were like during that era.

Lest we forget. This is not his story and nor is it told like it is. This story is the story of the families (and communities) unnecesseary, unspeakable loss that should be told again again. Civil rights has come a long way, but still has a long way to go.

As a parent, share it with your children. Any history teacher worth their grain of salt and honesty, should be showing this movie. It will grip your heart. With a huge amount of our population born prior to 1955, you best believe that these memories are alive a well as if it happened yesterday.

Set aside any feelings about Spike Lee. This is a must see for any person who truly believes in equal opportunity for all Americans. It is shocking that people can be so cruel and ignorant and insensitive in such a time of conflict and sorrow.

It is a tribute to a tragedy that became a catalyst in the Civil Rights Movement, as well as the eventual prosecution of Robert Chambliss, one of three racists responsible for the bombing. This horrific crime motivated people to become more involved in activism, out of a sense of obligation, also to speak out against racially motivated violence, such as the bombing. Jesse Jackson and Bill Cosby add their perspective to the mix. When the elderly politician presents his African American "right hand man" as his best friend, a chill ran up my spine. Secondly, the film presents this tragic event in a very beautiful and respectful way. This included young children as young as twelve years old (the same age, relatively as the four young girls who were murdered). Don't miss out on this film.

The story speaks for itself and this is not an ego trip on the part of the filmmaker in any way. It's great to see that Lee knows how to make a great statement without resulting in exploitative tactics or manipulation of his audience. This is a really important documentary to see for several reasons. One of the most chilling parts of the film, for me, was an unsettling clip of the late Governor George Wallace, a notorious advocate for segregation.

What's more, Coretta Scott King (late widow of Martin Luther King, Jr)., Rev. Director Spike Lee does a beautiful job of integrating film reel footage from the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, along with segments featuring family, friends, and religious leaders connected with the victims, recalling the events that lead up to the tragedy.

This was the day that four innocent young girls died in a racially motivated bombing at an African American Baptist church. This was a time when people of all ages were getting involved in the civil rights movement.

For starters, I believe everyone should be aware of what took place on that fateful day in Birmingham. Spike Lee is a tremendous storyteller and this piece is very understated, and, yet profound.

Denise McNair, Carole Robertson, Cynthia Wesley and Addie Mae Collins were innocent casualties in a race war that raged on in the Southern United States, as well as the rest of the country. September 15, 1963 is a date that remains imprinted in the minds of manyparticularly, those from Birmingham, Alabama.

We read The Watsons Go to Birmingham which focuses on segregation in the south but it was not until watching the documentary that it really became real for my students. It is very informational and is also done very well so that it keeps even a 12 year olds attention. I am a middle school teacher and used this documentary to help my students visualize what segregation looked like in the 1960s. Not being completely familiar with segregation in Brimingham myself, this documentary also hit home for me.

Good Movie, but, needs more substance. Sequence of events also needs to be more organized.