Producer: Jacqueline Olive

In Development

Between 1868 and 1968, tens of thousands of ordinary whites attended the lynchings of more than 4,000 African Americans. Always in Season is a hour-long documentary that examines the impact this form of racial terrorism still has on Americans while revealing how lynchings were used to terrorize the African American community, the social climate that made them possible, and the wall of denial that inevitably followed the violence. With rare, intimate accounts from spectators, their descendants, and the relatives of lynching victims— Always in Season asks whether it really has been easy for blacks and whites to forget a past that is not ancient history and includes racial violence.

As the film highlights personal accounts along with the lynching postcards and photographs to reveal the choices and circumstances that led to the eruption of such unveiled brutality in seemingly innocuous towns across the country, viewers will not only get a seldom seen look at the victims’ humanity but also even rarer insights into the ordinary people who participated in lynchings. By examining how the damage has been passed down through generations and exploring innovative approaches to restorative justice that tailor international efforts towards truth and reconciliation to the needs of American communities, Always in Season provides tools to strengthen diverse communities in the Untied States and around the world and, ultimately, a message of hope.

At a time when discussions of the racial divide are too often reduced to sound bytes and shouting matches, Always in Season presents complex characters who challenge the silence around lynching with cross-racial dialogues and thoughtful steps towards reconciliation.