Paul Findley: Courage to Speak Out

Filmmaker Stewart Nestor presents a portrait of an unsung American hero: Paul Findley, a moderate Republican congressman from Illinois who played a major role in some of the most significant legislation and advocacy of the late 20th century. After formative experiences—including denouncing a minstrel show while still a teen, and being an eyewitness to the devastation in Nagasaki following the nuclear blast in 1945—Findley ran for Congress in the early 1960s, energized by John F. Kennedy's presidential campaign. A supporter of Lyndon Johnson's Great Society programs but a dove on Vietnam (he worked at rescinding the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution), Findley inserted the names of all American servicemen and servicewomen killed in Vietnam into the Congressional Record, making the point that real lives were being lost. Findley also bucked prevailing wisdom by championing the Civil Rights movement and Voting Rights Act, and was also responsible for the burial of Martin Luther King Jr. at Arlington cemetery and for selecting the first African-American page in Congress. Findley wrote the Famine Prevention Act and co-wrote a bill, signed by Jimmy Carter, prohibiting age discrimination in the workplace. He also had a hand in a nuclear non-proliferation treaty in South America, and called for diplomatic relations with China, leading to a thaw. Perhaps most impressively, Findley put his ideals on the line to support Palestinian rights, drawing rebukes and causing lasting damage to his political career. Featuring interviews with Findley and a number of past colleagues from both major parties, this political profile of courage offers a timely history lesson. Highly recommended. Aud: C, P. (T. Keogh)