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Title on Reel (transcribed from original)
March to State Capitol from VA Union, #1, from VA Union to Capitol
Date Created
1965-03-15
Reel Format
16mm
Reel Description
This reel contains footage of some 300 individuals marching from Virginia Union University to the Virginia State Capitol in support of voting rights legislation. Footage is filmed on VUU campus, Lombardy Street, and Broad Street. An object covers the top right corner of the frame throughout most of the footage. This appears to be a group of racially diverse participants.
Timestamp Description
00:00:09 Footage begins. Footage filmed from a distance of a long winding line of individuals marching down a concrete path with trees surrounding it, this appears to be the Virginia Union University campus. Cars can be seen driving between the marchers and the camera. The camera pans back and forth along the line.
00:00:42 Footage of the marchers filmed from above, as marchers walk down a protected pedestrian path to the left of a large road. This appears to be Lombardy Street between Leigh Street and Broad Street. Most individuals walk in twos. A few individuals carry signs, some are not legible due to overexposure. One legible sign says "Remember Reeb." A second legible sign depicts a drawing of Jesus Christ on the cross with the cross drawn as half black and half white, with individuals kneeling on either side, black and white in correspondence with their side of the cross, sign text reads "Segregation Separation". Other legible signs read: "End Violence", "The Church Is Concerned", and "Sympathy for Selma".
00:02:16 Footage filmed of the march walking east on Broad Street, filmed from across Broad. They pass 800 West Broad, this is likely the corner of Broad and Gilmer Street. There are several cuts showing marchers waiting at the crosswalk before continuing on Broad Street.
00:02:42 Zoomed in footage of marchers walking past 800 West Broad, a storefront reading "Foster Window and Jalousie Co." Several individuals wearing nun habits or clerical collars are visible. New sign: "Secure Voting Rights".
00:03:02 Footage of the march filmed at the intersection of Broad Street and Adams Street, with the individual filming standing to the right of the marchers as they walk from the right to left side of frame. Vehicle traffic on Broad Street is visible in the background.
00:04:24 Footage ends.
Event Description
On March 15, 1965, 700 individuals staged marches in four Virginia cities--Richmond, Farmville, Hopewell, and Norfolk--calling for equal voting rights and "sympathy for the Rev. James Reeb, the white Unitarian minister slain in the civil rights movement in Alabama last week" (Richmond Times-Dispatch, March 16, 1965). Reeb was a member of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) who went to Selma, Alabama, to join marches for equal voting rights for Black Americans. On March 9, 1965, Reeb and two other ministers were attacked by white supremacists. He died of his injuries on March 11 (Wikipedia).
In Richmond, about 300 people, identified as "mostly students" by the Richmond Times-Dispatch, walked from Virginia Union University to the State Capitol, where there was a service of prayers and songs. The march was organized by VUU student C.J. Malloy and Union Theological Seminary student Dan West. Marchers were given handouts at VUU which instructed them to observe crosswalks, stay on the sidewalk, avoid loud talking and laughter, and asked men to wear coats and ties. The Times-Dispatch reported that there were about 30 to 40 white individuals in the group, with the majority of marchers being Black individuals. Another 200 individuals joined the marchers at the Capitol. There were some plainclothes officers at the Capitol.
Runtime
00:04:47
Corporate Name Subject
Virginia Union University (Richmond, Va.)
Topical Subject
Civil rights demonstrations; Civil rights movements; Civil rights movements--United States; Crowds; Demonstrations; Student protesters; Students--Political activity; Youth movements; Suffrage; African Americans--Suffrage; Nuns; Clergy; Police; Police patrol--Surveillance operations; Electronic surveillance; Video surveillance
City/Location
Richmond (Va.)
Genre
color films (visual works)
Local Genre
moving image
Type
Moving Image
Digital Format
video/mp4
Language
eng
Rights Statement URL
Rights
This material is in the public domain in the United States and thus is free of any copyright restriction. Acknowledgement of Virginia Commonwealth University Libraries as a source is requested.
Collection
Richmond Police Department Surveillance Collection
Source
Voting Rights March from in Richmond, Film Reel #01, 1965 March 15
File Name
VCU_M571_142.mp4
Disciplines
African American Studies | Cultural History | Film and Media Studies | Other Film and Media Studies | Political History | Public History | Social History | United States History | Women's History