WHEN: Tuesday, May 21, 7pm
WHERE: Albany Library, Edith Stone Room, 1247 Marin Avenue, Albany CA
ADMISSION: Free + free popcorn!
Not rated. 26 minutes.
Join us for Bay Area filmmaker Pam Uzzell’s documentary Welcome to the Neighborhood (2018), the story of South Berkeley activist Mable Howard and her daughter, artist Mildred Howard, and the changing neighborhoods of Berkeley and Oakland. In Uzzell’s words, this film illuminates “both [the] personal power to create possibilities in adversity and the broader issue of gentrification and a housing crisis that threatens a community’s diversity.”
“Nearly fifty years after Mable Howard’s lawsuit against BART, the Howards’ neighborhood has become one of the “hottest” areas for new home buyers due, in part, to its proximity to BART. Home and rental prices have soared beyond the means of most, including many African Americans still reeling from the 2008 financial meltdown. The response of many in South Berkeley has become increasingly fierce, resulting in grass-roots demands that the city prioritizes affordable housing to prevent the further shrinking of the African American population in the city.”
Since screening at Albany FilmFest in 2018, Welcome to the Neighborhood aired as part of KQED's Truly CA's 2018 season, won "Best of Festival for Short Documentary" at the Berkeley Video Film Festival, and has had multiple screenings, followed by panel discussions, throughout the Bay Area regarding the effects of the housing crisis, as well as celebrating the leadership of Mable Howard. The Berkeley City Council voted unanimously in support of changing the name of the Ashby BART station to Mable Howard Station. However, due to BART obstacles regarding station name changes, it's hard to know when or if that name change will happen.
Pamela Uzzell is an award-winning documentary producer, director, and editor. Her feature-length dococumentary, Unearthing the Drea, featured on Arkansas Public Television as part of their independent producer series, won Best Documentary at the Arkansa Black Independent Fil Festival, as well as an Indie Award of Merit. Uzzell has also worked on more than 20 feature films in post-production, including Godfather III, Terminator 2, and Dead Poets’ Society. She is a member of the Bay Area Video Coalition as well as the The San Francisco Film Society.
Please stay after the film for a lively Q&A with filmmaker Pam Uzzell.
A co-presentation of Albany Library and Albany FilmFest