Harlan County USA

Editor's Take

Barbara Kopple's film embeds with striking Kentucky coal miners and their families through the bitter 1973 dispute over safety and pay. It stays close to the picket line as threats and violence mount, refusing the safe distance of narration. The result is a landmark of observational documentary, an intimate record of American labor history captured from inside the conflict.

Harlan County USA documents the bitter 1973 coal miners' strike in Harlan County, Kentucky, as workers battle their company for safety and dignity. Barbara Kopple's Oscar-winning film embeds with the strikers and their families through picket lines, threats, and violence. It is a raw, intimate record of American labour history and the courage of ordinary people standing firm. Powerful and enduring, it remains one of the greatest documentaries ever made about work and struggle. Free to watch in HD on Dr Documentary.

Courtesy of Welsh Underground Network on YouTube. Watch on YouTube ↗

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