Forever Activists

In 1936 some three thousand American men and women joined the Spanish Republic in its struggle for democracy against Franco's fascist uprising. For many of them the Spanish Civil War was their introduction to the battlefield. Later these activists played important roles in World War II, the trade unions, the McCarthy era, as well as the Civil Liberties, disarmament and peace movements.
In October of 1986, now in their seventies and eighties, they returned to Spain to commemmorate the fiftieth anniversary of the Spanish Civil War. The veterans were filmed when they entered the battlefields of yesterday, returning to the roots of their lives full of idealism and action. The film explores the long term effects of their commitment, showing that the voice of these 'ordinary' men and women is still heard after more than half a century.

Forever activists, stories from the veterans of the abraham lincoln brigade was a 1990 'Best Documentary' Oscar nominee.