Film: “Stewart Udall: The Politics of Beauty”

Former Human Agenda board member John de Graaf has produced this widely acclaimed documentary on the life and times of Stewart Lee Udall, former Congressperson and Secretary of the Interior under John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Baines Johnson. Udall was the most prominent and effective Secretary of the Interior in American history.

In the words of John de Graaf: “No American political figure is as relevant to the issues we face today as a nation — learning to work together, achieving racial and environmental justice, improving international relations, enhancing beauty and the arts, alleviating climate change and moving toward sustainability — as Stewart Udall.”

This showing of the film “Stewart Udall: The Politics of Beauty” is hosted by Human Agenda, and co-sponsored by local environmental organizations including Green Foothills, Amah Mutsun Tribal Band, Amah Mutsun Land Trust, Acterra, 350 Silicon Valley, Our City Forest, the South Bay Progressive Alliance, the San Jose Peace and Justice Center, Fridays for Future, the Smart Yards Cooperative, and Smart Yards Education. There will be ample opportunity for dialogue with the filmmaker.

This feature documentary examines the trajectory of Udall’s life from his childhood through his Mormon mission, his World War II service, his student years at the University of Arizona, his time in Congress, and most significantly, his years as Secretary of the Interior and beyond. We see Udall evolve from a pro-power dam Arizona representative to the Interior Secretary who dealt the death blow to proposed Grand Canyon dams. It examines his long fight to win compensation for Navajo Indians and “downwinders” who got cancer from their exposure to radiation during the Cold War without being warned of the dangers. And we see the relevance of his concerns—he was the first public official to speak out about global warming, for example.

Admission is free. Wheelchair accessible. Please allow 15 minutes to find free parking on the street.