Chris Moore

As the final stop of college tour in the movie star capital of the world, the UCLA edition of the The People Speak must have started with a sigh of relief.  The paparazzi of photographers and fans that regularly line the streets of the surrounding college town of Westwood were notably absent that day.

Actor Josh Brolin (Milk, W., No Country for Old Men) and producer Christopher Moore (Goodwill Hunting, American Pie), though, were instead greeted by an appreciative but critical and diverse audience of academics, media figures and students.  Students from San Diego bused for over three hours in traffic. Groups like the local chapter of Amnesty International carpooled.  A local radio station manager missed work to attend.

Editor's Note: This post is by Antonia Lassar, a student at Boston University who attended The People Speak College tour event on her campus last week.

To my right is a boy in the most vivid red denim shirt I have ever seen. (Confession: I have never actually seen a red denim shirt before, regardless of the color saturation.) In front of me is a man with spectacularly gray hair wearing a t-shirt with a tiny green stoplight on the upper right shoulder. Next to me is a woman wearing a headscarf singing The Battle Hymn of the Republic. The whole situation seems bizarrely symbolic.

The night hasn’t even started yet, but there is a haphazard air - a frenetic buzz- to the Tsai Performance Center and looks are exchanged between strangers all acknowledging our common purpose. I grew up in Newton, Mass- a city so homogenously white and Jewish we have nicknamed it Jewton. This room is one of the most culturally diverse rooms I’ve ever been in. While there are many academics, there are also low-income high school students, wealthy entrepreneurs, impoverished veterans, and giggly Matt Damon fans; those were just the people I spoke with after the show. That being said, we’re kind of a choir. As in, one to preach to. We all love Howard Zinn, and we all agree with him. Prediction: we will all leave here feeling just as socially conscious as we did when we entered.

We start with a video clip, and the woman next to me is still humming. I learn to measure her response to things by the amount of time she is silent. By the time Howard Zinn climbs on stage, the battle march is dwindling. By the end of his raucous applause, either the war is over or her side has lost. While simultaneously listening to her and cheering far too loudly for Howard Zinn, I notice an interesting coincidence. Zinn’s A People’s History of the United States is widely touted as one of those few books that increases in popularity as times progresses. Like the book, the audience’s applause grows, building in intensity like some ritual only familiar to cave men and college students. Zinn has an elusive quality that makes people fall more and more in love with him as time goes on. More

The People Speak is a new documentary film premiering on HISTORY December 13th 8/7c. The film highlights the lives and experiences of ordinary Americans who spoke up for social change throughout history with dramatic performances from their letters, songs, diaries and speeches. Produced by Chris Moore, Matt Damon, Anthony Arnove and Howard Zinn, the film is based on Zinn’s books A People’s History of the United States and Voices of A People’s History. Featured artists include Matt Damon, Josh Brolin, Kerry Washington, Marisa Tomei, Danny Glover, Bruce Springsteen, and John Legend.

THE PEOPLE SPEAK COLLEGE TOUR is bringing the film's producers and cast members to eight universities across the country for live readings, clip screenings, and in-depth discussion! The college tour begins tonight at Boston University. We will be featuring blogs and videos from students on each campus right here. So be sure to check back in with us!

Watch the trailer!