"Harlan County USA" An interview with Barbara Kopple

We interview two time Academy Award winner Barbara Kopple about her Oscar winning film "Harlan County USA" "Harlan County USA" looks at a 13-month coal miners' strike that took place between 1973 and 1974 in Harlan County, KY. Kopple lived among the miners and their families off and on during the four years the entire story played out. Kopple's camera focuses on the desperate plight of people still living in shacks with no indoor plumbing and working dangerous jobs with little security and few safety rules. The miners are determined to join the United Mine Workers, and the company is determined to break the strike with scabs, who are even more desperate than the men with jobs. The miners eventually win a new contract, though it turns out that some of the benefits they had fought for were not included in the final deal.

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Google Video | January 5, 2007

Tags:. .united. .still. .place. .men. .four