Film

Scottsboro: An American Tragedy

2000 · 1h 30m · Documentary

The case that sparked the civil rights movement

IMDb

7.3

Rotten Tomatoes

67%

Metacritic

74

A look at the infamous "Scottsboro Boys" case that occurred in Alabama in 1931, in which nine young black men were arrested, tried and quickly convicted in the rape of two white women, despite overwhelming evidence that showed their accusers had falsely accused them and the fact that one of the women later admitted that no rape had in fact occurred (although both had had sexual relations with their boyfriends on the day prior to the "rape"). The case was one of the first that shined a spotlight on what many called the "legal lynchings" that occurred in the South whenever blacks were accused of crimes, especially against whites and most especially against white women.

• Barak GoodmanProducer · Director
• Daniel AnkerProducer
• Margaret DrainExecutive Producer
• Buddy SquiresDirector of Photography
• Jean TsienEditor

Release date

January 31, 2000

Status

Released

Original language

English

Runtime

1h 30m

Genres

Documentary