Dare Not Walk Alone

This documentary is an emotional march from past to present combining rarely seen news footage from 1964 with present day testimony to tell the true story of troubled times in the historic tourist town of St. Augustine, Florida. See African-Americans and their allies in the white community put their lives on the line to force the President of the United States to sign the first Civil Rights Act. The film also takes a look at the aftermath of desegregation and the challenges that it presents to all Americans. In the end we see signs of hope and reconciliation and are challenged to take the next step forward.

DARE NOT WALK ALONE was conceived in 2003 by artist Jeremy Dean, who was then living and working in the Florida tourist town of Saint Augustine, "America's oldest city." When Dean volunteered to help restore the stained glass windows in an historically black church he learned of the events of 1964, the protests, the beatings, and the brilliant campaign of civil disobedience that led to the passage of the first civil rights act. While Dean felt honored working to preserve a place where Dr. King had once stood side-by-side with Jackie Robinson to rally supporters, he was stunned that he had never heard of these events before, so he set about researching them. He uncovered archive footage that had never been aired. He sat down with the people who were there, who put their lives on the line in the fight for equality and freedom from segregation. Waiting tables to finance the film, Dean created the first cut of the film in 2005 and it was first shown to the public in 2006.

“It's the most gritty version of civil rights history I've ever seen. There's a sort of glamorous patina that sometimes gets cast over the legends of the movement, this one feels hot and painful and like reality . . . those hip-hop kids are heartbreaking.” (Peter Miller, Co-producer, Ken Burn's Jazz)

“Brave filmmaking.” (San Jose Mercury News)