Harlan County U.S.A.
This film documents the coal miners’ strike against the Brookside Mine of the Eastover Mining Company in Harlan County, Kentucky in June, 1973. Eastovers refusal to sign a contract (when the miners joined with the United Mine Workers of America) led to the strike, which lasted more than a year and included violent battles between gun-toting company thugs/scabs and the picketing miners and their supportive women-folk. Director Barbara Kopple puts the strike into perspective by giving us some background on the historical plight of the miners and some history of the UMWA.
Genre: Documentary
Director: Barbara Kopple
Actors: Basil Collins, Bessie Lou Cornett, Florence Reece, Houston Elmore, Lois Scott, Mary Lou Fergerson, Norman Yarborough, Phil Sparks, Sudie Crusenberry