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JANESVILLE — As the United States celebrates the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, a
Janesville organization will present four films looking at a part of that history, from the 1940s.
The free event is set for 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 14, at the UAW Local 95 Hall, 1795 Lafayette St., Janesville. Doors open at 6. A cash bar and free refreshments will be available.
The short films, which would play before feature films in theaters of those days, are the property of Ken Regez of Janesville, a collector of historical films and documents. (Whom longtime residents might remember as a former host of WCLO radio’s morning talk show.)
The films are part of an event called Freedom is Everybody’s Job. They deliver messages of civic virtue and national pride in diversity. They also reflect concerns about American democracy 80 years ago, when American leaders worried that fascism could take hold in the United States as it did in Germany and Italy.
The presenting organizations, led by the Town Hall Coalition of Janesville, hope the presentation will get people to consider messages they hear today about who is an American and what patriotism means.
Organizers will encourage civility and respectful engagement during discussions of the films.
The first two shorts were released in 1942.
The United States had just joined World War II, after the attack on Pearl Harbor. The first is a series of images promoting patriotism and military might as voices sing the National Anthem.
The second, called “California Junior Symphony,” stresses the fact that child musicians in the orchestra were both native- and
foreign-born, with a message of national unity.
The second two films were released just after the war and reflect the aforementioned concerns about fascism, even as the USA and its allies were celebrating their victory over fascists.
“American soldiers were coming home to housing shortages, labor strikes and racial tension, which included lynchings of returning soldiers who demanded civil rights in the South,” Regez said. “Leaders that included President Harry Truman worried about citizens’ apathy and lack of dedication to responsibilities of citizenship.”
The film “Our American Heritage” includes an appeal to citizens to participate in their government and decries negativity about the future. It was used to promote the Freedom Train, which traveled across the country in 1947-49, presented documents and artifacts about the foundations of the United States.
The Freedom Train was an effort initiated by the U.S. Department of Justice to spread a message of unity and understanding of our laws and civic responsibility.
Copies of some of those Freedom Train documents will be displayed at the July 14 event. Some local leaders in the South called for segregation of Freedom Train audiences, fearing “unhealthy” jostling of white and black residents.
Communities that insisted on segregation were struck from the train’s schedule, prompting many to travel to other train
stops.
The train’s theme was “Freedom is Everybody’s Job,” a name that this event’s organizers adopted.
The last film, “The House I Live In,” was released in late 1945. It features a young Frank Sinatra, portraying himself in a fictional setting as he encounters a group of boys who are chasing another boy they didn’t like, because of his religion.
Sinatra lectures them about what it means to be an American, no matter from what religion, race or national origin.
The event will include information about how to register to vote.
Documents on display also will include Martin Luther King Jr.’s original “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” Thomas Jefferson’s rough draft of the Declaration of Independence, the Gettysburg Address and the lesser-known 1796 Treaty of Tripoli.
Co-sponsoring organizations for the event include Indivisible of Rock County, NAACP of Beloit, Diversity Action Team of Rock County and the Beloit and Janesville League of Women Voters chapters.