Presented by the St. Louis chapter of Democratic Socialists of America, this free May Day screening will feature a discussion on the issues of organized labor raised by the film.

During the blacklist, a number of filmmakers decided to band together and form their own company: the Independent Productions Corporation. The experiment was unfortunately short-lived thanks to pressure from the major studios, which prevented their work from being shown anywhere outside New York. Directed by Herbert J. Biberman, written by Michael Wilson, and produced by Paul Jarrico, Salt of the Earth follows a labor strike by predominantly Chicano miners over poor safety conditions, all the way through to their eventual, hard-won success. Their triumph lies not only in victory over white, corporate interests, but also in the feminist renegotiation of the balance of power within their own community. Initially, the miners treat their wives’ demands as insignificant in the greater scheme of things, fighting against their oppressors while reproducing sexist structures in their own homes. It’s only when the men find no other option than to cede the picket line to their wives that the power dynamics of the community begin to shift. Roles are reversed: the women prove themselves just as able, if not more, to hold and organize a picket line, while the men discover the difficulty of housework and childcare. The neorealist film was partially shot on location in New Mexico with a cast of mostly nonprofessional actors, the majority of them actual miners. This radical film is not just a denunciation of sexism, racism and corporatism, but a sensitive, rousing illustration of the process of overcoming them. (Film Comment)

Runtime: 94 min.