Imagine a documentary made with the cameras of hundreds of people that dramatically shows the abuses committed by the authorities against individuals in the streets of Seattle during the 1999 WTO protests. Now imagine that documentary actually being shown on nationwide television. In the United States, you might as well keep on imagining because it isn't going to happen anytime soon. But if you're in Canada, you'll have two chances to see this on Monday.

"This Is What Democracy Looks Like" is a 70 minute documentary co-produced by the Independent Media Center and Big Noise Films. (2600 hosts the IMC's New York headquarters.) The film is a turning point in the collaborative efforts of independent and alternative media. Much like the collage aired on the December 6, 1999 edition of "Off The Hook" which came from independent sources on the Internet, this documentary brings diverse voices together in a clear departure from the sanitized and often blatantly incorrect news reporting of the mass media.

Viewers in Canada will get a chance to see it for themselves without commercial interruption Monday evening on the CBC at 10:00 pm and 1:00 am ET as part of a program called "The Passionate Eye." Maybe someday viewers in the United States will be treated with enough respect that they will have the opportunity to see this film and come to their own conclusions, rather than have the official media/government version of events spoonfed to them. We'll continue to wait patiently.

CBC program listing

Official site for the film

The Independent Media Center