Street Fight

Synopsis: STREET FIGHT chronicles the ferocious political clash in 2002 between Cory Booker, a 32-year-old Yale Law School graduate, and long term incumbent Sharpe James, for Mayor of Newark, N.J. Fought in Newark’s neighbourhoods and housing projects, the
battle pits Booker against a political machine that will go to any lengths to crush its opponents. City workers who do not support the mayor are demoted; "disloyal"; businesses are targeted; a campaigner is detained and accused of terrorism; and
disks of voters’ personal data are stolen. Even the filmmaker is dragged into the fray, and by election day, the climate has become so heated that the national government is forced to send in observers to watch for election fraud or even violence and intimidation.
Critically acclaimed and widely believed to be one of the most extraordinary political documentaries ever made, STREET FIGHT goes deep into the underbelly of democracy, where elections are not fought with spin-doctors, media consultants, let alone sound policies, but are won and lost on the streets.
Language: English
Country: United States
Year of release: 2008
Year of production: 2008
Availability: out of distribution
Subjects: Social Studies; Politics & government
Keywords: democracy; elections; local government; United States of America; political issues; political corruption

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British Universities Film & Video Council