A Turning Tide Production
78 minutes • DVD or VHS Video

Purchase THE PEACE PATRIOTS

Watch Excerpts From The Film

2005 Film Festival Screenings
Boston Independent Film Festival
Plymouth Independent Film Festival
Northern Lights Documentary Film Festival
Camden International Film Festival
7 Islands International Film Festival (Mumbia, India)
Vermont International Film Festival
Northampton Independent Film Festival
Global Peace Film Festival

Film Available As A Fundraiser For
Community Activist Groups

Now Booking For Winter/Spring 2006
College Speaking/Screening Tour
(See details below.)

• Purchase THE PEACE PATRIOTS
• Watch Excerpts of THE PEACE PATRIOTS
• Download Peace Patriots Flyer (PDF)
• Download Leppzer Speaking Tour Flyer (PDF)
(PDF Format - requires free Adobe Acrobat Reader.)

     On March 20, 2003, the United States launched a military invasion of Iraq. A month before, over 15 million people around the world demonstrated against this impending war in an unprecedented day of global protest. In the U.S., grassroots opposition to this war grew at a larger and faster rate than during the Vietnam anti-war movement of the 1960s.

      Filmmaker Robbie Leppzer chronicles the story of people living in one area of New England—the Connecticut River Valley in western Massachusetts—who oppose the U.S. invasion and military occupation of Iraq.

      Narrated by actress and Air America Radio host, Janeane Garofalo, this feature-length documentary film follows a diverse group of individuals, ranging in age from 13 to 74, including middle and high school students, college students, teachers, clergy, and war veterans from Korea, Vietnam and the Persian Gulf, as they take part in vigils, marches, theater performances, and civil disobedience sit-ins to protest the war.

      THE PEACE PATRIOTS is an intimate portrait of American dissenters reflecting on their personal participation as engaged citizens in a time of war.

     The film features contemporary music by 2005 Grammy Award winner Steve Earle, Pete Seeger, Ani DiFranco, Billy Bragg, Jonatha Brooke, Stephan Smith, Saul Williams, DJ Spooky, and original music by John Sheldon.

• Purchase THE PEACE PATRIOTS on DVD or VHS
• Watch Excerpts of THE PEACE PATRIOTS

  

REVIEWS

     “THE PEACE PATRIOTS takes the word ‘patriotism’ and gives it a rich positive meaning, removing it from the ugliness of war and nationalism, and restoring it’s original idea as ‘love of country.’ It does this by showing us true patriots—those people who, with artistry and imagination, as well as deep moral commitment, have spoken and acted to end the war in Iraq. In a time of sadness, thinking of the dead and maimed on both sides, this film gives us hope and inspiration. I hope it will be shown widely.”

     Howard Zinn
     Author of A PEOPLE'S HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES

    “THE PEACE PATRIOTS proved to be both inspirational and educational for our audience. The documentary left our audience feeling inspired that there were like-minded activists working for peace and justice in other communities around the United States. I wholeheartedly recommend this film for anyone who is interested in learning about the peace movement.”

     Paul Lachapelle
     Students for Peace and Justice, University of Montana

PRESS ARTICLES (pdf format)

• BOSTON GLOBE 7/24/05: A Filmmaker Unafraid To Go Against The Tide
• DAILY HAMPSHIRE GAZETTE 9/21/05: Documentary Filmmaker Focuses On Area 'Peace Patriots'
• PATRIOT LEDGER 7/21/05: Leppzer Focuses On Social Change
• GREENFIELD RECORDER 9/17/05: Pioneer Valley Activists Featured in Anti-War Film

Fair Use Notice For Press Articles on This Website

FILM AVAILABLE AS A FUNDRAISER FOR COMMUNITY GROUPGS

     Turning Tide Productions is seeking to partner with grassroots peace and social justice groups to distribute the DVD of THE PEACE PATRIOTS. Community organizations can benefit by selling DVDs (available in bulk quantities for a 25 - 50% discount) which can be re-sold to your members at the retail home video price . In addition, groups can receive a percentage of on-line sales made through our website, generated by members of your organization who click on a weblink posted on your website or in an email sent by your organization.

     Individual activists are encouraged to show the film at house parties. Groups are encouraged to host large-event premiere screeings of THE PEACE PATRIOTS in your community or on college campuses, in conjunction with a national speaking tour conducted by filmmaker Robbie Leppzer (see below). These screenings can serve as a benefit fundraising event for the sponsoring organization, as well as, be a public forum on grassroots activism and the future of the U.S. military occupation of Iraq.

FILM SCREENING AND SPEAKING TOUR

      A presentation of THE PEACE PATRIOTS will provide an educational and organizing opportunity for student activist groups to highlight the Iraq war issue. As the film highlights student participation in the anti-war movement, it is a powerful inspiration about the role students can play in grassroots social change.

   The presentation could be built around a teach-in or it could be it’s own special event where local student, community, and faculty activists could speak at the event to encourage participation in grassroots activists efforts.

      Leppzer will lead discussions after the film highlighting the importance of grassroots citizen activism in a participatory democracy. He will also critique mainstream media coverage of the anti-war protests and the on-going U.S. military occupation of Iraq and underscore the importance of independent "un-embedded" media. In addition, he will talk about the grassroots peace movement in the context of an expanding world-wide movement for global justice.

      Leppzer is available to spend one or several whole days on a college campus and screen retrospective selections from his previous documentaries chronicling social change movements over the past three decades.

      For more information on Robbie Leppzer's speaking presentations, visit our speaker info page.

   To inquire about scheduling availability, email Robbie Leppzer at robbie@turningtide.com or call Turning Tide Productions toll-free:
1-800-557-6414.

• Download Peace Patriots Flyer (PDF)
• Download Leppzer Speaking Tour Flyer (PDF)
(PDF Format - requires free Adobe Acrobat Reader.)

HELP US REACH A WIDE AUDIENCE

      Your financial support can help us reach the widest possible audience. You can make secure on-line tax-deductible donations at the website our non-profit fiscal sponsor Documentary Educational Resources. Click here and then scroll down the page to "The Peace Patriots" description.

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THE PEACE PATRIOTS
78 minutes • DVD or VHS