THE FIVE DEMANDS (2023) is a documentary film directed by Greta Schiller and Andrea Weiss about the student strike that changed the face of CUNY (and higher education) forever. In April 1969, a small group of Black-Puerto Rican students shut down the City College of New York, the then-elite public university located in the heart of Harlem. Fueled by the revolutionary fervor sweeping the US, the strike soon turned into an uprising, leading to the extended occupation of the campus, classes being canceled, students being arrested, and the resignation of the college president.
Through archival footage and modern-day interviews, the documentary follows the students’ struggle against the institutional racism that, for over a century, had shut out racialized and minoritized people from this and other public universities.
Context
.Allan Ballard initiated the S.E.E.K. program at City College, which was supported by black Puerto Rican legislators. The program aimed to provide equitable educational opportunities for students of color, primarily from Harlem, by employing radical and influential instructors like Audre Lorde and Toni Cade Bambara.
.The Black-Puerto Rican student takeover at City College, inspired by movements like the Black Panthers and the Young Lords, was part of a broader wave of student-led protests demanding the inclusion of their contributions and history in academia.
.Despite its significant impact, including establishing the groundbreaking “Open Admissions” policy that democratized higher education, the radical changes brought by the City College protests have been largely forgotten and overshadowed by other student protests of the era.
Annotations
Instructions:
.As you watch the film, annotate ideas, quotes, scenes, sequences, and questions that arise.
.Share your annotations with a partner.
.Each pair will summarize their discussion to the rest of the group.
Watch The Five Demands here.
Group Discussion
.In the movie, we witness archival footage of a Black elementary school where a white teacher is frustrated to the point of abuse. This scene illustrates how the least experienced teachers are assigned to the most poorly-equipped students and how “ghetto children” were tracked into vocational programs rather than prepared for college. What do these scenes, and the testimonials from City College alumni, show about the education that Black-Puerto Rican students received?
.Equity and equality are two systems that promote the concept of fairness. Equality means treating everyone the same; it assumes that a diverse group begins at the same level and has the exact needs. Equity considers the specific needs of individuals and what they require to succeed. Reading these definitions, what were the student protestors at City College asking for in their demands? Explain your response.
.In the film, it was mentioned that City College’s security guards were all Black, and would not agree to carry out the order from the institution
to clear student protestors. What motivated this decision? Discuss this as an example of solidarity, or unity, between people coming together. What other examples of solidarity between people do you see in the film? How does the film address the solidarity between the Black-Puerto Rican students?
.In the film, student papers are shown on screen, simple xeroxed flyers, pamphlets, and papers assembled on typewriters from the Black
and Puerto Rican student organizations Onyx and PRISSA (Puerto Rican Students Involved in Student Action). What was the role of underground media in these movements? Why was it used as a tactic for political organizing?
.Newspaper headlines pepper the film. What makes a catchy headline? Where is bias baked into the language used to describe a scene? How does the media use sensationalism, and to what end? Who does this “catchy language” harm? For example, consider and deconstruct the language in these archival newspaper headline in THE FIVE DEMANDS, paying particular attention to the following words:
NEGROES HOLD HIT-RUN RAID AS CCNY OPENS
10 ATTACK CAMPUS BUILDING AS STUDENTS RETURN