Videos on Politics

American drug war The last white hope c2008

Kevin Booth, Tom Chong, Sacred Cow Productions, and SCP Enterprises

This documentary follows director Kevin Booth as he investigates the world of illegal drugs, from street-corner dealers to high level kingpins, from narcotics officers to powerful judges. Approaching his subject matter with a skeptical eye, Booth questions the effectiveness of the drug war, and the motives of those who continue to fuel it from all ends. Through research and investigation, Booth asserts that there might well be just as much greed, crime, and corruption on either side of the narcotics battle, as the drug war is steeped in issues of race and class. 1 videodisc (118 min.):

MEDIA 10-1783

 

Boyz 'n the hood 1998

John Singleton, Steve Nicolaides, Larry Fishburne, Ice Cube, Cuba Gooding, and Morris Chestnut

For three young men growing up in South Central Los Angeles, the "hood" is a place of drive-by shootings, unemployment, drugs and pain. But their reactions to the world around them vary- one is an unambitious drug dealer, his brother is a college bound teenage father, and the brother's best friend is guided by a strong father who hopes for a better life for his son. 1 videodisc (112 min.)

MEDIA 10-45

 

Grass c2002

Film utilizes footage from U.S. Government propaganda films and animation from underground artist Paul Mavrides. 1 videodisc (78 min.)

MEDIA 10-4595

 

Hooked illegal drugs and how they got that way c2008

Tom Yaroschuk, Barbara Rosenblat, Tera Media (Firm), History Channel (Television network), and Arts and Entertainment Network

There has been a "drug culture" since the dawn of civilization. HOOKED explores the world of illegal drugs, meeting with pharmacologists and scientists to learn exactly what effect they have on us and exploring the social and legislative changes that have transformed (and, some would argue, created) the drug culture of the 20th century. Outspoken advocates on both sides of the "war on drugs" illuminate this polarizing issue, and fascinating accounts and artifacts illustrate the role of drugs throughout history. 2 videodiscs (ca. 200 min.)

MEDIA 10-1288

 

The house I live in 2013

For over 40 years, the War on Drugs has accounted for more than 45 million arrests, made America the world's largest jailer, and damaged poor communities. Yet for all that, drugs are cheaper, purer, and more available today than ever before. Filmed in more than 20 states, it captures heart-wrenching stories from individuals at all levels, the dealer to grieving mother, the narcotics officer to the senator, the inmate to the federal judge, revealing profound human rights implications. 1 videodisc (108 min.)

MEDIA 10-4560

 

Organized crime a world history 2002

Roger Mudd, Miguel Ferrer, History Channel (Television network), Arts and Entertainment Network, and A & E Home Video (Firm)

As recently as the 1950s FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover claimed there was no such thing as organized crime. Today the agency he founded battles criminal cartels around the globe. Filled with remarkable footage and probing interviews with highly-placed officials including the former Colombian minister of justice, the police commissioner of Bombay, India, and FBI, DEA and ATF agents, this series explores the past and exposes the operations of notorious outlaw syndicates. In addition prison interviews with gangsters like "Tarzan," who brokered a deal to sell a Russian submarine to Colombian drug dealers, provide a behind-the-scenes look at how these groups really work. 2 videodiscs (250 min.)

MEDIA 10-314 v.1 10-314 v.2

 

The other drug war c2003

Jon Palfreman, Barbara Moran, Will Lyman, PBS Home Video, PBS DVD Video, and WGBH (Television station : Boston, Mass.)

"FRONTLINE examines the battle between major pharmaceutical companies and American consumers fed up with paying the highest drug prices in the world. Through interviews with consumers, legislators, scientists, top industry leaders and analysts, "The Other Drug War" examines the efforts of states like Maine [Maine Rx] and Oregon to control escalating drug costs in the face of strong opposition from the pharmaceutical industry. The program also explores the tension between the high cost of scientific innovation and society's need to keep drugs and health care affordable"--PBS. 1 videodisc (60 min.)

MEDIA     MEDIA 10-226          2-7039

 

Scarface 1983/2006

Martin Bregman, Brian De Palma, Al Pacino, Steven Bauer, Michelle Pfeiffer, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Robert Loggia, Universal Pictures (Firm), and Universal Studios Home Entertainment (Firm)

Inspired by the 1932 classic of the same title, Scarface follows the violent career of a smalltime Cuban refugee hoodlum who guns his way to the top of Miami's cocaine empire. 2 videodiscs (170 min.)

MEDIA            DANA 10-1110             42

 

Tulia, Texas a film c2008

Cassandra Herrman, Kelly Whalen, Independent Television Service, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and California Newsreel (Firm)

In 1999, undercover narcotics agent Thomas Coleman executed one of the biggest drug stings in Texas history.  Of forty-six people indicted for dealing cocaine, thirty-nine were black.  Thirty-eight defendants took plea bargains; eight who fought the charges were all convicted and sent to prison.  After three years, attorneys finally won a hearing before the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.  On June 16, 2003, thirteen Tulia defendants were released from prison.  After the Governor pardoned all the convicted defendants, the settlement of a civil suit, the arrest and conviction of Coleman on a felony charge that bars him from ever working in law enforcement again, Tulia seemed to return to normal.  What is 'normal' when this is the price paid by small town Americans for the war on drugs? 1 videodisc (54 min.)

MEDIA.  10-1571

 

The wire : the complete first season  c2008

Nina Kostroff-Noble,  David Simon, Edward Burns, Dominic West, John Doman, Idris Elba, Frankie Faison, Larry Gilliard, Wood Harris, Deirdre Lovejoy, Wendell Pierce, Lance Reddick, Andre Royo, Sonja Sohn, Clark Johnson, Peter Medak, Clement Virgo, Ed Bianchi, Joe Chappelle, Gloria Muzio, Milcho Manchevski, Steve Shill, Brad Anderson, George P Pelecanos, Blown Deadline Productions (Firm), Home Box Office (Firm), and HBO Entertainment (Firm)

Follows a single sprawling drug and murder investigation in Baltimore. Told from the point of view of both the police and their targets, where easy distinctions between good and evil are challenged at every turn. 5 videodiscs (775 min.)

MEDIA 10-1602

 

20th century with Mike Wallace drugs and the war to stop them 1996

Mike Wallace

Depicts the increase in public awareness of drug abuse in America and discusses the development and impact of America's "war on drugs.". 1 videocassette (50 min.)

DANA 1320

 

American drug war The last white hope c2008

Kevin Booth, Tom Chong, Sacred Cow Productions, and SCP Enterprises

This documentary follows director Kevin Booth as he investigates the world of illegal drugs, from street-corner dealers to high level kingpins, from narcotics officers to powerful judges. Approaching his subject matter with a skeptical eye, Booth questions the effectiveness of the drug war, and the motives of those who continue to fuel it from all ends. Through research and investigation, Booth asserts that there might well be just as much greed, crime, and corruption on either side of the narcotics battle, as the drug war is steeped in issues of race and class. 1 videodisc (118 min.):

MEDIA 10-1783

 

Bluegrass, blackmarket 1994

Hans Luxemburger

Explores how attempts to prevent the cultivation and marketing of marijuana in eastern Kentucky have been complicated by the involvement of some local law enforcement officials in drug trafficking. 1 videocassette (28 min.)

MEDIA 2-2530

 

Boyz 'n the hood 1998

John Singleton, Steve Nicolaides, Larry Fishburne, Ice Cube, Cuba Gooding, and Morris Chestnut

For three young men growing up in South Central Los Angeles, the "hood" is a place of drive-by shootings, unemployment, drugs and pain. But their reactions to the world around them vary- one is an unambitious drug dealer, his brother is a college bound teenage father, and the brother's best friend is guided by a strong father who hopes for a better life for his son. 1 videodisc (112 min.)

MEDIA 10-45

 

Coca Mama the war on drugs 2001

Jan Thielen

Presents national anti-drug control activities in Bolivia, Peru and Colombia. Also tells the story of the farmers who are paid by drug cartels to grow the coca and then attacked by drug patrols using fumigation planes. 1 videocassette (52 min.)

MEDIA 2-5739

 

Colombia's guerilla war 1999

Jan Thielen

This program combines newsreel and documentary footage of life and death in Colombia's rural districts, cities, and guerrilla camps with interviews to explore the roots and results of the 20th century's longest guerrilla war. Members of Bogota's Institute of Political Studies, the Red Cross, the Church, army officers, guerrillas, politicians, and some of the 1.5 million refugees air their views on the terror and the tragedy of a nation divided. 1 videocassette (53 min.)

MEDIA 2-5575

 

Drug traffic 1986

Discusses strategies used by the government and local law enforcement agencies to control drug trafficking. Focuses on Operation Pressure Point on the Lower East Side of Manhatten. 1 videocassette (VHS) (29 min.)

MEDIA 2-393

 

Drug wars 2000

Martin Smith, Brooke Runnette, Oriana Zill , Lowell Bergman, and Will Lyman

Pt. 1. Reviews the origins of the War on Drugs in the Nixon administration, and the rise and fall of Colombian drug cartels. Pt. 2. Looks at Mexico's role in supplying illegal drugs to the United States. 2 videocassettes (240 min.)

MEDIA. MEDIA 2-5613 cassette 1 2-5614 cassette 2

 

Drugs and crime 1988

Focuses on how New Jersey residents and police are fighting the war on drugs.  Includes interviews with residents and police officers.  Also features a discussion with Cary Edwards, former Attorney General of New Jersey, Frank Graves, state Senator and Mayor of Patterson, and Herbert Tate, Jr., Essex County Prosecuter. 1 videocassette (30 min.)

DANA 139

 

Drugs military interdiction 198-?

John Vogt and James Q Wilson

Shows how the Texas National Guard is working with U.S. Customs officials in border searches for drugs.  The featured guest panel debates military involvement in drug interdiction, some related legislation, and explore the different roles of the military in this situation.  Guests on this segment are Michael Wermuth, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Drug Policy ; and Peter Reuter, Senior Economist, the RAND Corporation. 1 videocassette (ca. 30 min.)

MEDIA 2-1149

 

Drugs youth gangs 198-?

John Vogt and James Q Wilson

Some law enforcement officials say gangs are establishing satellite drug distribution systems in other cities, assasinating members of other drug dealing gangs, and permeating neighborhoods with drug selling bazaars.  Looks at Los Angeles, home of the Crips and the Bloods and looks at efforts to reduce crime and drug dealing by big-city youth gangs.  Guests on this segment are Steve Valdivia, Executive Director, Community Youth Gang Services, Los Angeles; Lorne Kramer, Commander, Los Angeles Police Dept.; and Malcolm Klein, Professor of Sociology, University of Southern California. 1 videocassette (ca. 30 min.)

MEDIA 2-1154

 

The French connection 1984

William Friedkin, Gene Hackman, Fernando Rey Martínez, Roy Scheider, and Robin Moore

"Popeye" Doyle (Gene Hackman) and his partner Buddy Russo (Roy Scheider) are two New York City narcotics detectives who have a small candy store owner under police surveillance with the hope that he may be the link that will break a narcotics smuggling ring. 1 videocassette:

MEDIA 2-463

 

The heroin wars c1996

Adrian Cowell, Carlton Television, WGBH (Television station : Boston, Mass.), Channel Four (Great Britain), and Bullfrog Films, inc

Filmed over the period 1964-1996, this 3 part program examines the origin and growth of the opium trade in Burma and S.E. Asia, efforts made by Burmese and USA governments to control it, and political, military, and social consequences for the countries involved. 3 videocassettes (ca. 50 min. each)

MEDIA. MEDIA. MEDIA 2-6438 pt.1 2-6439 pt.2 2-6440 pt.3

 

Hooked illegal drugs and how they got that way c2008

Tom Yaroschuk, Barbara Rosenblat, Tera Media (Firm), History Channel (Television network), and Arts and Entertainment Network

There has been a "drug culture" since the dawn of civilization. HOOKED explores the world of illegal drugs, meeting with pharmacologists and scientists to learn exactly what effect they have on us and exploring the social and legislative changes that have transformed (and, some would argue, created) the drug culture of the 20th century. Outspoken advocates on both sides of the "war on drugs" illuminate this polarizing issue, and fascinating accounts and artifacts illustrate the role of drugs throughout history. 2 videodiscs (ca. 200 min.)

MEDIA 10-1288

 

Mi vida loca My crazy life 1994

Allison Anders, Angel Avilés, Seidy Lopez, Jacob Vargas, Panchito Gómez, Jesse Borrego, Daniel Hassid, and Carl-Jan Colpaert

"Gang members Sad Girl and Mousie, once best friends, are now enemies as they have both become pregnant by the same man, Ernesto, a local drug dealer.  But when Ernesto is murdered by a rival gang-leader, the balance of power on the street brutally changes and it's time to take sides.  As the Echo Park boys deal with Ernesto's murder by searching for revenge, the Echo Park girls arm themselves for another kind of struggle--the struggle to survive"--Container. 1 videocassette (100 min.)

DANA 479

 

New Jack City 1991

Mario Van Peebles, T. Ice, Wesley Snipes, Judd Nelson, Doug McHenry, George Jackson, Thomas Lee Wright, and Barry Michael Cooper

Gangster film about a young, rich, smart drug baron who thinks he's untouchable, and the tough, street-smart cops determined to bring him down. 1 videocassette (101 min.)

MEDIA 2-2761

 

Organized crime a world history 2002

Roger Mudd, Miguel Ferrer, History Channel (Television network), Arts and Entertainment Network, and A & E Home Video (Firm)

As recently as the 1950s FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover claimed there was no such thing as organized crime. Today the agency he founded battles criminal cartels around the globe. Filled with remarkable footage and probing interviews with highly-placed officials including the former Colombian minister of justice, the police commissioner of Bombay, India, and FBI, DEA and ATF agents, this series explores the past and exposes the operations of notorious outlaw syndicates. In addition prison interviews with gangsters like "Tarzan," who brokered a deal to sell a Russian submarine to Colombian drug dealers, provide a behind-the-scenes look at how these groups really work. 2 videodiscs (250 min.)

MEDIA 10-314 v.1 10-314 v.2

 

The other drug war c2003

Jon Palfreman, Barbara Moran, Will Lyman, PBS Home Video, PBS DVD Video, and WGBH (Television station : Boston, Mass.)

"FRONTLINE examines the battle between major pharmaceutical companies and American consumers fed up with paying the highest drug prices in the world. Through interviews with consumers, legislators, scientists, top industry leaders and analysts, "The Other Drug War" examines the efforts of states like Maine [Maine Rx] and Oregon to control escalating drug costs in the face of strong opposition from the pharmaceutical industry. The program also explores the tension between the high cost of scientific innovation and society's need to keep drugs and health care affordable"--PBS. 1 videodisc (60 min.)

MEDIA     MEDIA 10-226          2-7039

 

Prince of the city 1982

Sidney Lumet, Robert Daley, Treat Williams , and Jerry Orbach

Detective Danny Ciello, Special Investigating Unit, Narcotics Division, New York City Police Department--one of the elite, handpicked cops whose power and priviledge earned them the nickname "princes of the city".  He busted the dope kings.  He split the take.  He told the truth about it.  And in the end, he did what no cop believes he could ever do.  He betrayed his partners. 2 videocassettes (167 min.)

MEDIA. MEDIA 2-659 cassette 1 2-660 cassette 2

 

Scarface 1983/2006

Martin Bregman, Brian De Palma, Al Pacino, Steven Bauer, Michelle Pfeiffer, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Robert Loggia, Universal Pictures (Firm), and Universal Studios Home Entertainment (Firm)

Inspired by the 1932 classic of the same title, Scarface follows the violent career of a smalltime Cuban refugee hoodlum who guns his way to the top of Miami's cocaine empire. 2 videodiscs (170 min.)

MEDIA            DANA 10-1110             42

 

Super fly 1992

Ron O'Neal, Phillip Fenty, Sig Shore, Gordon Parks, Carl Lee, Julius W Harris, Sheila Frazier, and Charles MacGregor

Tale of a Harlem drug dealer, Priest, who wants out of cocaine-dealing but a drug kingpin does not want Priest to stop. He sets up one last big drug deal before he retires, but is thwarted by double-crossers, murder and revenge. 1 videocassette (93 min.)

MEDIA 2-3185

 

Training day 2002, c2001

Jeffrey Silver, Robert Newmyer, David Ayer , Antoine Fuqua, Denzel Washington, Ethan Hawke, Scott Glenn, Tom Berenger, Harris Yulin, Raymond J Barry, Cliff Curtis, D. r. e. Dr., Snoop Dogg, Macy Gray, Warner Bros, Village Roadshow Pictures, NPV Entertainment (Firm), Outlaw Productions (Firm), and Warner Home Video (Firm)

Jake Hoyt, a fresh-faced rookie in the Los Angeles Police Department, gets a chance to join the elite narcotics squad headed up by 13-year veteran Detective Sergeant Alonzo Harris. Jake is to prove himself during a one-day ride-along. As the day wears on, it becomes increasingly clear that Detective Harris has blurred the line between right and wrong to an alarming degree, enforcing his own code of ethics and street justice. Eventually, Hoyt begins to suspect that he is, rather than having the opportunity to join the squad, being set up to take the fall. 1 videodisc (122 min.)

DANA 122

 

Tulia, Texas a film c2008

Cassandra Herrman, Kelly Whalen, Independent Television Service, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and California Newsreel (Firm)

In 1999, undercover narcotics agent Thomas Coleman executed one of the biggest drug stings in Texas history.  Of forty-six people indicted for dealing cocaine, thirty-nine were black.  Thirty-eight defendants took plea bargains; eight who fought the charges were all convicted and sent to prison.  After three years, attorneys finally won a hearing before the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.  On June 16, 2003, thirteen Tulia defendants were released from prison.  After the Governor pardoned all the convicted defendants, the settlement of a civil suit, the arrest and conviction of Coleman on a felony charge that bars him from ever working in law enforcement again, Tulia seemed to return to normal.  What is 'normal' when this is the price paid by small town Americans for the war on drugs? 1 videodisc (54 min.)

MEDIA.  10-1571

 

Who'll stop the rain 1988, 1978

Nick Nolte, Tuesday Weld, Michael Moriarty, Karel Reisz, Robert Stone, Judith Rascoe, and Laurence Rosenthal

Drug smugglers and thieves fight for the possession of heroin. 1 videocassette (127 min.)

MEDIA 2-5106

 

The wire : the complete first season  c2008

Nina Kostroff-Noble,  David Simon, Edward Burns, Dominic West, John Doman, Idris Elba, Frankie Faison, Larry Gilliard, Wood Harris, Deirdre Lovejoy, Wendell Pierce, Lance Reddick, Andre Royo, Sonja Sohn, Clark Johnson, Peter Medak, Clement Virgo, Ed Bianchi, Joe Chappelle, Gloria Muzio, Milcho Manchevski, Steve Shill, Brad Anderson, George P Pelecanos, Blown Deadline Productions (Firm), Home Box Office (Firm), and HBO Entertainment (Firm)

Follows a single sprawling drug and murder investigation in Baltimore. Told from the point of view of both the police and their targets, where easy distinctions between good and evil are challenged at every turn. 5 videodiscs (775 min.)

MEDIA 10-1602

 

Witness 1985, 1999

Edward S Feldman, Peter Weir, Harrison Ford, Alexander Godunov, Kelly McGillis, M. Josef Sommer, and Lukas Haas

When a young Amish woman and her son get caught up in the murder of an undercover narcotics agent, their savior turns out to be hardened Philadelphia detective John Book, who runs head-on into the non-violent world of a Pennsylvania Amish community. 1 videocassette (112 min.)

DANA 1651