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2002 Annual Cemetery Cleanup
by Gunther Aron
About eighty people, including children from
Temple Beth Shalom (Santa Fe) participated in the NMJHS annual
cleanup of the Congregation Montefiore Cemetery in Las Vegas
on April 28. Local residents were joined by visitors from Albuquerque,
Santa Fe and Los Alamos, all of whom took advantage of a beautiful
sunny day to help restore the cemetery to its former dignity.
After a hard morning's work, the participants enjoyed a box
lunch provided by the Congregation Montefiore Cemetery Association.
The experience was enhanced by a visit from Marvin Taichert,
founder and president of the Association. Sadly, this was Marvin's
last appearance at the annual event, as he passed away on June
20 after a long illness.
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Congress, spent
six months in jail, and was forced out of the Directors Guild
of America. He'd been cited for his political ideology by members
of the film industry testifying before the House Un-American
Activities Committee (HUAC) in 1950. Sondergaard also refused
to testify about her political affiliations, thus jeopardizing
her career as well.
Blacklisted by the Hollywood studios, Biberman resolved
to fight back, and in 1953 he directed "Salt of the Earth,"
a remarkably vibrant and moving true account of striking miners
and their families in Silver City, New Mexico. It depicted the
terrible living con- |
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ditions and constant
intimidation and used the actual men and women in the film.
Because of the Hollywood blacklist, it was shown in only
one New York theater (to rave reviews), but was a great success
and received awards where it was seen in Europe. It wasn't in
general release in the U.S. until 1965, but Biberman's work was
vindicated in 1992 when it was among the first 100 films to be
placed in the Library of Congress.
"One of the Hollywood Ten" has been shown at film
festivals on the East and West Coasts and stars Jeff Goldblum,
Greta Scacchi, and Angela Molina. |
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Adding to the
uniqueness of the screening will be the appearance in person
of director Karl Francis, made possible through a generous grant
from NMJHS Board member Marjorie Weinberg-Berman.
Also scheduled to make a rare appearance at the screening
of "Salt of the Earth" is Virginia Chacón, who
became a leader of the strike when the women took over the picket
line. The strike then also became a landmark in the struggle
for equal rights for women. Mrs. Chacón still lives in
the Silver City area and has remained an activist through the
years. |