Tacoma Meaningful Movies is pleased to co-present an in-person screening of Riotsville, USA, with The Grand Cinema. Welcome to RIOTSVILLE, U.S.A., a turning point in American history where the protest movements of the late 1960s came into conflict with increasingly militarized police departments.

Focusing on unearthed military training footage of Army-built model towns called “Riotsvilles,” where military and police were trained to respond to civil disorder in the aftermath of the Kerner Commission created by President Lyndon B. Johnson, director Sierra Pettengill’s kaleidoscopic all-archival documentary reconstructs the formation of a national consciousness obsessed with maintaining law and order by any means necessary. Drawing insight from a time similar to our own, RIOTSVILLE, U.S.A. pulls focus on American institutional control and offers a compelling case that if the history of race in America rhymes, it is by design.

This is a paid ticketed event through our community partner, The Grand Cinema. Join us for a riveting film and meaningful discussion to follow!