Connecticut Humanities and America 250 | CT Commission Select John Brown Project to Represent 250th Anniversary
Three documentary films on race, law, and American identity to premiere statewide
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 05/18/2026 | Contact: Daniel Morrison | dan[at]johnbrownproject.org
TORRINGTON, CT— The John Brown Project has received a $34,731 Implementation Grant from Connecticut Humanities for Pushing the Rock: Three Questions About Race, Law, and the American Experiment, a docuseries examining pivotal chapters in American history. In a separate designation, the America 250 | CT Commission has chosen to co-brand the project, selecting it as a representative of what Connecticut’s commemoration of the nation’s 250th anniversary should mean. The first film will premiere in late 2026 as part of CT America 250.
The America 250 | CT Commission designates affiliate organizations whose work aligns with Connecticut’s four 250th themes: Doing History, For the Common Good, Power of Place, and Tell Inclusive Stories. Pushing the Rock was selected as a project that embodies all four.
“These films help us clarify American history through some lesser-known, and sometimes unlikely heroes,” said Daniel Morrison, director and executive producer. “During this 250th year of reflection, it is important to elevate the founding ideals of all people created equal.”
Pushing the Rock consists of three standalone ~45-minute films:
“When Did It End?”: A fact-check pairing Tuskegee Airman Brig. General Enoch Woodhouse with the unlikely de-segregator of the US Army, Dave Brubeck, on lived experience.
“Krow”: Answering a question that most Americans cannot (What does Jim Crow mean?) Exploring the origin of the name and how it punished Americans for more than a century.
“Before the Battle Hymn”: The Battle Hymn of the Republic was written to whitewash John Brown. “It was intended as the institutional replacement of the John Brown song,” says historian and John Brown biographer Dr. Louis A. DeCaro Jr. DeCaro is the scholarly advisor to Pushing the Rock.
The series builds on the John Brown Project’s award-winning prior work. The documentary His Truth Is Marching On received the AASLH Leadership in History Award (2024) and the CLHO Award of Merit (2023) and was screened at Black History Film Festivals in Washington, D.C., and Atlanta.
The John Brown Project is a Torrington-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit media organization dedicated to truth in history. JBP produces and distributes culturally significant content for the public good.
Connecticut Humanities (CTH) is an independent, nonprofit affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. CTH connects people to the humanities through grants, partnerships, and collaborative programs, supported by state and federal matching funds, community foundations, and private sources. Learn more at cthumanities.org.
