Reel South, Independent Lens
A Town Called Victoria
On January 28, 2017, a mosque in South Texas erupted in flames. Now, this quiet community must reckon with the deep rifts that drove a man to hate.
Strange Fruit
"Strange Fruit," a song first recorded by Billie Holliday in 1939, has become an enduring anthem of American civil rights.
- Series
- Independent Lens
- Premiere Date
- April 8, 2003
- Length
- 60 minutes
- Funding Initiative
- Open Call
Producer
Joel Katz
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The Film
Radio stations banned it, but when Billie Holiday sang "Strange Fruit" the whole world listened anyway. Sprung from the pen of a Bronx schoolteacher, the hit continues to mesmerize musicians and civil rights advocates alike with its chilling vision of a lynching. Strange Fruit shows how a little-known Jewish songwriter and an African American icon created a song that changed America.
