The Birth of a Nation - American History, 1493-1945

Instructions for house managers showing The Birth of a Nation

ca. 1915

View the instructions for house managers for the showing of The Birth of Nation in the resource

This seemingly innocuous document was written to accompany the release of D. W. Griffith’s 1915 film, The Birth of a Nation. In amongst technical instructions to tune the piano, oil projection machines and deliver unused paper to the office manager, these instructions ask theatre managers to bear in mind that ‘NEGROES MUST NOT BE ADMITTED TO “THE BIRTH OF A NATION” under any circumstance.’ The release sparked such protest nationwide that riots erupted in nearly every major city that screened it and many would ban the adaptation all together at the behest of a fledgling civil rights organisation. Formed just a few years earlier, the NAACP mobilised swiftly in an attempt to ban the film, organising marches and protests throughout the country.

Griffith’s film was an adaptation of Thomas Dixon Jr.’s novel, The Clansman: A Historical Romance of the Ku Klux Klan, which had been published in 1905 against a backdrop of increasing violence towards the African-American population in the South. Swift and violent reprisals to transgressions, real or imagined, seemingly stemmed from a visceral desire amongst White citizens to stamp out growing political power in the African-American community.

Focusing on the romance between two politically opposed families, initial scenes of antebellum harmony between enslaved person and master soon give way to rising tensions and it is implied that the mere presence of the enslaved people has brought about war. The first half of The Birth of a Nation stirringly depicts the carnage of the Civil War and portrays the South as the victim of greedy northern politicians. The second, meanwhile, radically misremembers the Reconstruction era as a land of triumphant and abusive Black soldiers who stuff ballot boxes gleefully in a bid to steal political office. While Black characters are portrayed (by White actors in Black face) as vicious, lascivious animals, the heroes of the piece are the noble men of the Ku Klux Klan. So popular was the film that it would prove a powerful recruitment tool for the Klan, which had almost died out.

Though controversial since its release, Griffith’s film has been hailed as one of the most important in the history of cinema, introducing a wealth of exciting and innovative cinematic techniques that dazzled audiences and inspired filmmakers. Upon release, The Birth of a Nation had the longest run time of any movie and until Gone with the Wind (another adaptation that has garnered criticism for its skewed portrayal of southern history) was released 21 years later, remained the highest grossing film in history. This enduring popularity helped to establish perceptions of African-American inferiority and White southern supremacy that would persist far into the twentieth century.

The emotionally charged narrative left a lasting impression on viewers. Over time, this tale would be interwoven with the popular “Lost Cause” ideology that lionised southern white heroism in the face of northern tyranny and black barbarism. The Birth of a Nation is considered one of the most influential releases in film history, and its impact upon American race relations is well documented, but this sober set of instructions to house managers provides a valuable insight into the political storm that was raging outside the cloistered auditoriums of America’s early movie theatres.