Wednesday, July 03, 2019
Outrage as University Strips Name of Lillian Gish from Campus Theater
www.thevintagenews.com: The “First Lady of American Cinema” Lillian Gish has had her name removed from a university theater and it’s not sitting well with many movie buffs. More than 50 film industry leaders ranging from Martin Scorsese to Helen Mirren to James Earl Jones are protesting the decision of Ohio’s Bowling Green State University to remove the name of actress Lillian Gish from a campus theater because she appeared in the 1915 film The Birth of a Nation.
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In a world that is changing faster than most of us can even keep up with, there are constant moves being made to make our world more inclusive and diverse, particularly at the college level. While this is no doubt for the best, it can contribute to a landscape that is divided and at odds. The removal of the Gish sisters as the namesake of an Ohio college's theater is emblematic of some of the issues that come with judging a historical figure under a modern light. Lillian Gish made countless contributions to the American film industry, and was a powerful actress who participated in films that celebrated diversity, but also films that were dangerously and horrifically racist. But it is important to understand the context of this film. "Birth of a Nation" was released in 1915, and in that time it was an accepted film. Without question, anyone looking at the film now would agree that it is racist, but we are looking at this film in 2019. We are judging a film (and in turn a person) that is over one hundred years old with modern ethics, morals, and values. As we move toward a more inclusive society, we must accept our history and learn from it, but also acknowledge that history is not the present, and there is a reason we work to evolve as a people.
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