THE GOLDEN DOOR (1972)

Series: american-insights

Year Published: 1972

Sound: a-12-minute-1972-documentary-from-the-american-insights-educational-series-exploring-the-theme-of-immigration-and-the-promise-of-america-as-a-land-of-opportunity-the-film-opens-with-an-american-fla

Complete Record: A 12-minute 1972 documentary from the "American Insights" educational series exploring the theme of immigration and the promise of America as a land of opportunity. The film opens with an American flag flying over smiling faces, then uses historical photographs and re-enactments — including a scene depicting immigrants being processed by uniformed officials at what appears to be Ellis Island — to trace the waves of immigration that shaped the United States. The "Golden Door" of the title refers to Emma Lazarus's famous poem on the Statue of Liberty, and the film reflects on whether America's promise of welcome endures.