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What Not to Watch: The War

Posted 09/22/2007 at 9:48 AM  |  2 comment/s

15 hours of World War II documentary and no Latino faces to represent the estimated half a million who served in that great war. This was and continues to be the concern of Latino activists with Ken Burns' new documentary, The War.

Burns, who has since capitulated to some activists' demands including just under a half-hour of new footage on Native Americans and Latinos to his 2 work-day long flick, claims no Latinos came forth to be interviewed in the communities highlighted and that the film was never intended to be a comprehensive history on World War II. His claims couldn't be more defensively dubious. The film is titled The War in typical Burnesian canonical fashion and all of the communities highlighted had negligible Latino populations. That the exclusion of Latinos didn't cross Burns' mind in the making of the epic documentary is dissapointingly telling of where he stands, a blindside for which he is unwilling to take full responsibility. So let's (those of us who actually watch PBS) stand in solidarity with sense and concerned members of the Latino community and boycott this film.

For further reading see:
"A Latino who went to 'War' "-Martin Miller, LA Times
"Saving Private Ramos: Ken Burns' World War II Documentary Continues to Incite Latino Protest"-Roberto Lovato, New American Media

For further viewing see:
The Borinqueneers

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