Some of us men seldom talk about love in their lives, especially in relation to other men. I don't have a lot of friends, and the friends I do have, well sometimes we wonder why, but those things that make us TRUE friends hold us together. What I have learned to say is I love the friends I have. Filmmaker St Clair Bourne was one of those friends. My friend died December 15, 2007 of a pulmonary embolism following surgery to remove a brain tumor.

St Clair Bourne made over 40 films in a career of almost as many years. Long before we ever heard of Ken Burns, St. Clair was on a crusade to document African American culture in a serial manner. He gave heart and passion to the stories of our existence, struggles and survival in this society. His films included magnificent works such as Paul Robeson: Here I Stand (1999); Langston Hughes: The Dream Keeper(1986); John Henrik Clark: A Great and Mighty Walk (1996) (financed by Wesley Snipes); Making Do The Right Thing (1989); Big City Blues (1986); In Motion: Amiri Baraka (1982); Half Past Autumn: The Life and Art of Gordon Parks.

Like so many African American greats, St. Clair Bourne was born in Harlem. Being born in a place has its value, but it really starts with family. His father was the renowned journalist, St. Clair Bourne, a writer for the Amsterdam News. His mother, Gwendolyn Bourne was a nurse and medical social worker. As much as I love my folks I am almost envious of this familial influence, because this is really where our potential greatness begins.

St. Clair first studied at Georgetown University Foreign Service School. In 1963 he was arrested for participating in a civil rights sit-in. Threatened with expulsion, he became disenchanted with school. St. Clair was in ROTC at the time and this event changed his life and career aspirations forever. He used his time off to join the Peace Corps where he was posted to Peru and he was the publisher of a small newspaper in a poor community outside Lima.

His time in the Peace Corp allowed him to hone his journalistic and photograhic skills and showed him how the news could have a political effect on society.  His team was so successful with the newspaper in effecting social change in the area that he was snatched up by officials from the US Embassy and accused of interfering in local affairs.  This experience had the effect of solidifying his commitment to social change.

It was while watching news films about the Civil Rights Movement on TV in Peru that St Clair decided to become a filmmaker. The lack of any black point of view or commentary disturbed him greatly and filled him with a determination to make this happen.

He returned to the states and graduated from Syracuse University in 1967 with a degree in journalism. While continuing his education at Columbia University studying filmmaking in 1968, he was arrested and expelled for more political activity protesting the Vietnam war. While he was in jail, his film professor recommended him for a position at the new PBS series, Black Journal. Here again, St. was still starting "stuff." Billed as a progressive TV series "by and about black people" there were no black producers, so St Clair participated in a walkout with 11 other staff members to demand a black executive producer. They won. William Greaves became the first black executive producer of a black news series on television.