Barbara Kopple's Oscar-winning documentary depicted a group of coal miners' prolonged and frequently dangerous strike against the Brookside Mine in Harlan County, Kentucky in June, 1973.
Eastovers refusal to sign a contract (when the miners joined with the United Mine Workers of America) led to the strike, which lasted more than a year and included violent battles between gun-toting company thugs/scabs and the picketing miners and their supportive women-folk. In addition to raising awareness of the miners' fight for safer working conditions and appropriate wages, Kopple likely prevented an outburst of violence simply by having her cameras on the scene.
Director Barbara Kopple puts the strike into perspective by giving us some background on the historical plight of the miners and some history of the UMWA.
For $5 a month, you'll gain access to over 50 patron-exclusive documentaries while keeping us ad-free and financially independent. We need 350 more Patrons to grow our team in 2024.
Subscribe here
Our 6000+ video library is 99% free, ad-free, and entirely community-funded thanks to our patrons!