TWO TOWNS OF JASPER
A Texas Murder in Black & White
In Jasper, Texas, in 1999, and for the first time in history, a white man was sentenced to death for killing a black man. This film is about the historical events before and during the trial, with two separate crews recording the white and the black residents of Jasper.
Two Towns of Jasper is about one of the most vicious, racially motivated murders ever committed. This shocking murder case is the reason why, for the first time in history a white man was sentenced to death for killing a black man. On June 7, 1998, in Jasper, Texas James Byrd Jr, an African American was chained to a truck and dragged behind it for three miles until his body disintegrated.
Three white men from Jasper, with ties to white supremacist groups, were arrested and later convicted of the crime.Over the course of three separate murder trials from January through to December 1999, two producers documented the town of Jasper. Two stories unfold as a black crew film the black residents exclusively, and a white crew films the white residents. Find out if justice is done? Go behind the producers lens and see a group and segregation most of us do not have access to – Decide for yourself whether difference is based on race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, or religion.
- Release year:
- 2002
- Director:
- Marco Williams & Whitney Dow
- Running length:
- 72 minutes
- Production company:
- Two Tone Productions
- Prizes:
- Shortlisted for the Oscars 2003.
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