It’s that time of year again! Every year since 1989, several movies (originally 10, now 25) are chosen for preservation in the Library of Congress’ National Film Registry because of their historical, cultural, or aesthetic significance. A wide variety of movies, including many Walt Disney movies and controversial films such as Gone with the Wind and The Birth of a Nation are already included in the registry.
Song of the South has not yet been added to the registry. Many consider the film to be culturally, historically, and aesthetically significant given the fact that it won 2 Academy Awards (including the first ever Oscar awarded to an African American man, James Baskett) and has been the subject of controversy over the decades.
However you feel about this movie, if you believe in preserving cinematic history, why not take a few minutes and nominate Song of the South today! Please note: If you have nominated Song of the South in previous years, nominations do not carry over to the next year, so you need to re-nominate each year. All you need to do is fill out this form. The deadline for 2022 nominations is August 15.
Inductions are typically announced in December, so stay tuned. And if you haven’t seen Song of the South recently, be sure to head over to Archive.org and watch it!