Prize Winners

2022 PRIZE FINALISTS

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  “Bella!” - WINNER

  Directed by Jeff L. Lieberman

  In 1970, Bella Abzug entered Congress ready for a fight. With her trademark hat and Bronx swagger, the first elected Feminist upended the Washington patriarchy, battling for women’s equality, civil rights, and LGBTQ+ protections. Despite Nixon and the FBI’s attempts to silence her, Bella persisted – revolutionizing the blueprint for America.

  • See the struggle for women's suffrage in song, both for and against, in the digital collection Women's Suffrage in Sheet Music.
  • Explore protest images of Bella Abzug in the Bernard Gotfryd Collection.
  • Images of Bella Abzug's congressional career can be seen in the CQ Roll Call Collection, the U.S. News & World Report Collection (Finding Aid, digital items), 
  • Watch and listen  to Bella Abzug as a guest on public broadcasting programs made available via the American Archive of Public Broadcasting.

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  “Philly On Fire” - WINNER

  Directed by Ross Hockrow, Tommy Walker

  On May 13, 1985, the Philadelphia Police dropped a bomb on a row house, burning down an entire neighborhood. 11 people died, five of them children. 61 homes were destroyed, 250 people became homeless. How could this have happened?

  • Learn more about the history of policing in the United States including community relations, misconduct, and militarization with this research guide.
  • Watch this October 18, 1985 episode of the MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour from the American Archive of Public Broadcasting, which discusses the inquiry into the bombing. 

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  “Cannabis Buyers Club” - FINALIST

  Directed by Kip Andersen and Chris O’Connell

  Cannabis Buyers Club tells the unknown story of one of the most important LGBTQ+ rights struggle of the 20th century. How a neglected group of people suffering the horrors of the AIDS pandemic in San Francisco were led by a Gay Vietnam Vet/renegade pot dealer to legalize medical marijuana.

  • Explore historical reporting on marijuana in the United States with Chronicling America.
  • Discover LGBTQIA+ holdings across the Library including resources on AIDS activism with this guide.
  • Read about legal approaches to narcotics in 16 countries on the Law Library's Blog: In Custodia Legis

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  “Imagining The Indian: The Fight Against Native American Mascoting” - FINALIST

  Directed by Aviva Kempner and Ben West

  Imagining the Indian: The Fight Against Native American Mascoting aims to inform and educate about the use of Native American names, logos, and mascots in sports and beyond, which has had damaging effects on the self-esteem of Native people. It is a comprehensive examination of the long-standing movement against mascoting.

  • Explore examples of Native American mascoting in historical trademarks.
  • Research images documenting the history and culture of Indigenous North America.
  • Read about research on Native American Cultures at the Library. https://blogs.loc.gov/now-see-hear/2019/07/thinking-like-a-librarian-reflections-of-a-junior-fellow/

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  “Raymond Lewis: L.A. Legend” - FINALIST

  Directed by Ryan Polomski (Dean Prator, Co-Director)

  Raymond Lewis: L.A. Legend tells the true story of the mythical basketball phenom from Watts, California — who many say was blackballed from the NBA in the early 70’s for demanding equality — and the never-told-before tale of his unlikely and heartbreaking journey towards becoming a hoops legend.

  • Watch interviews with civil rights activists as part of the Civil Rights History Project. 
  • Explore the Library's online exhibit Voices of Civil Rights.

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  “Virgil Thomson: Creating The American Sound” - FINALIST

  Directed by John Paulson

  Dubbed “father of American music” by Aaron Copland, composer/critic Virgil Thomson (1896-1989) is largely unknown to the public. This biography, featuring new and archival music performances, establishes Thomson’s originality, versatility and influence not only as creator of the American classical sound but as an insightful critic of our cultural scene.

  • Read more about Virgil Thomson in this essay on his opera, “Four Saints in Three Acts,” upon its induction to the National Recording Registry
  • Learn more about Thomson by exploring this archived website
  • View photographs of Thomson in the Library's digital collections
    • Including this photograph of Thomson with Aaron Copland, Walter Piston, and Herbert Elwell in Nadia Bounger's home
    • Including this photograph of Thomson with Aaron Copland and Roger Sessions at the Whitney Museum in 1981
    • Including this photograph of Thomson with conductor Andre Kostelanetz from the early 1940s
  • Read more about Thomson in this letter from composer Leonard Bernstein to Helen Coates in 1943
  • Read more about Thomson in this letter to him from conductor Andre Kostelanetz from 1941
  • Robert Sherman interviews Andre Kostelanetz. Topics include: Virgil Thomson's Mayor LaGuardia Waltzes (21:00)
  • Read this article about The Plow that Broke the Plains, a documentary film for which Thomson provided the film score
  • Read this article about The River, a documentary film for which Thomson provided the film score
  • Virgil Thomson composed scores for several films. Learn more about the Library's related film music collections  

Next Generation Angels Awards

2022 Next Generation Angels Awards – Student Filmmakers External link