David Rae Morris, photojournalist and longtime New Orleans resident, will be screening his first film, Yazoo Revisited, at Loyola and Sugar Park this weekend.

Yazoo City was the hometown of Morris’ father, the writer Willie Morris, who did some important coverage of the racial conflict that boiled over in the ‘60s. The Supreme Court ruled in 1969 that Mississippi public schools must integrate, against the wishes of some of the city’s residents. There were rumors of violence, mass boycotts by white students, and a rush by parents to establish all-white private schools. Yet Yazoo City at least initially handled the transition admirably well, and for a time its schools were a model of racial integration. Willie Morris covered this for Harper’s magazine and his book, Yazoo: Integration in a Deep Southern Town was published in 1971.

David Rae Morris' "Yazoo Revisited" screens twice this weekend for free.

The younger Morris was inspired to revisit Yazoo after Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour noted in 2010 that “We didn’t have a problem with the Klan in Yazoo City”—a remark that was criticized from both sides of the political aisle, and led to his withdrawing from Presidential candidacy. “Being my father’s son, I wanted to explore the story myself, revisit the past and my father’s early writings,” Morris writes. “For the past year, I have researched Yazoo City’s recent history and conducted interviews with various teachers and graduates of the high school and community leaders. Now I have more than 20 hours of footage and a fascinating story is beginning to emerge.”

Morris previously brought his exhibit Do You Know What it Means?  The Aftermath of Hurricane Katrina to the Ogden Museum of Southern Art. Some of this work was reproduced in his book, Missing New Orleans. He will be in town to screen Yazoo Revisited at 2 p.m. this Saturday, July 20 in Room 332 at Bobet Hall, Loyola University (6363 St. Charles Ave); and 8:30 p.m. on Sunday in the patio at Sugar Park Pizza, 3054 St. Claude Avenue. Both screenings are free.

“Yazoo Revisited” Film Screening with Filmmaker, David Rae Morris
Date: Saturday, July 20
Time: 2:00 p.m.
Venue: Bobet Hall (Room #332) at Loyola University
6363 St. Charles Ave. (map)
Neighborhood:  Uptown
Admission: FREE

“Yazoo Revisited” Film Screening with Filmmaker, David Rae Morris
Date: Sunday, July 21
Time: 8:30 p.m.
Venue: Sugar Park Restaurant & Gallery
3054 St. Claude Ave. (map)
Neighborhood:  Bywater / St. Claude
Admission: FREE
More Info: www.davidraemorris.com