Resistance is Rural tells the remarkable story of the American Grange Movement, a grassroots development that emerged from the ashes of the Civil War to become one of the most influential forces in American agricultural and political history.
Founded in 1867, the Grange gave farmers a collective voice in an era of rapid industrialization, inequality, corruption, and indeed, exploitation. Through expert interviews, archival photographs, and compelling narratives from Grange members, past and present, the film documents how ordinary rural Americans organized to fight corporate monopolies, advocate for education, and pioneer progressive reforms that would shape the nation for generations. I am an award-winning documentary filmmaker based in rural Washington. My two previous projects have been Twisp: The Power of Community, which was selected for half-a-dozen film festivals, and The Doctrine of Recovery, which, among other laurels, won Feature Documentary Award at the 2023 Dreamspeakers Film Festival and the Indigenous Futures Award at the 2022 Social Justice Film Festival. I’m also a member of the Twisp Valley Grange, a hardy “little engine that could”-nonprofit that hosts everything from candidate forums to contra dances in my hometown. And I’m fortunate that the president of the national Grange organization, Christine Hamp, is a lifelong Washingtonian (and multi-generational Grange member) who lives in Spokane and has already been of invaluable assistance.
~Leslee Goodman
