"When Did It End?" is the first film in Pushing the Rock: Three Questions About Race, Law, and the American Experiment, a documentary series from the John Brown Project

"When Did It End?" is the first film in Pushing the Rock: Three Questions About Race, Law, and the American Experiment, a documentary series from the John Brown Project.

Some people say systemic racism ended with the Civil War. Others point to the Civil Rights Act, or the election of Barack Obama. This film answers the question directly, pairing Tuskegee Airman Brig. Gen. Enoch Woodhouse's own account of discrimination during his service with "Remember Who You Are," the Dave and Iola Brubeck song sung by Louis Armstrong about jazz musicians sent abroad to spread democracy, then denied it at home. Same country, same hypocrisy, decades apart. The film walks that throughline forward, decade by decade, until it reaches its answer.

Push the Rock with Us

CT Humanities and CT: America 250 believe in us

The series was selected by Connecticut Humanities and the America 250 | CT Commission to represent Connecticut's 250th anniversary, chosen for embodying all four of the state's core themes: Doing History, For the Common Good, Power of Place, and Tell Inclusive Stories. It builds on the John Brown Project's His Truth Is Marching On, winner of the AASLH Leadership in History Award (2024) and the CLHO Award of Merit (2023).

Scholarship and music come from Sule Greg Wilson, the film's cohost, Dr. Kathy Bullock, Dr. Louis A. DeCaro Jr., and Dr. Manisha Sinha, alongside a recording by Louis Armstrong and Dave Brubeck and a new performance from Ysanne Marshall. Dave's son, Darius Brubeck, appears to speak about his father's part in this story.

Your pledge funds the finishing work on this film and helps unlock the John Brown Project's Connecticut Humanities Implementation Grant, which requires a full match, half of which must be cash. Backing this campaign gets you a seat at the premiere, seating placement tied to pledge level, a place on the Wall of Honor, and a hand in bringing the next two films, Krow and Before the Battle Hymn, to life.

What the money goes toward

Location shooting: $3,000.
Editing and audio mixing: $6,000.
Post-production finishing: $2,000.
Promotion: $3,000.

Total: $14,000

This goal counts directly toward the required cash match on the John Brown Project's Connecticut Humanities Implementation Grant.

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Risks and Challenges

Post-production and premiere logistics can shift timelines. More importantly, this campaign's cash goal counts toward the required match on our Connecticut Humanities grant, funding not just this film but the two that follow. We're committed to delivering this film and honoring every pledge, on schedule and in full.

Other Ways to Join In

Share this campaign on your social media.
Email this campaign to friends who care about systemic racism and American history.
Follow us on our social platforms.
Come to the premiere on November 19th.
Wish us good luck!

Thanks!

Thank you for pushing the rock with us. Campaign ends December 5th.

Creator bio

Dan Morrison is founder and executive director of the John Brown Project, and director and executive producer of Pushing the Rock. A veteran digital media journalist by day, he's an abolitionist filmmaker by night.

He's won a dozen national editorial awards over the past decade, but more importantly, his debut filmmaking project, His Truth Is Marching On, was featured at the Black History Film Festivals in Washington, DC, and Atlanta, GA, and won the AASLH Leadership in History Award (2024) and the CLHO Award of Merit (2023).

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Supporting education and equality through the power of documentary storytelling