[Chicago Crossings: Bridges and Boundaries, reel 21; Edith Altman]

In the second part of an interview with Kartemquin Films as part of their 1994 documentary, "Chicago Crossings: Bridges and Boundaries," artist Edith Altman talks a great deal about the Lubavitchers as well as the role of children in her upcoming piece.

0:44Copy video clip URL Edith Altman talks about the Lubavitchers and recent instances of antisemitism and violence between Blacks and Jews.

3:42Copy video clip URL Altman admits that she feels as if the artists have not been open with one another. “I still feel like we haven’t been talking to each other in this group… I felt like we were afraid to speak [in our meeting],” she says, disappointed.

5:55Copy video clip URL Altman expresses her hopes that the kids she is working with can see past the stereotypes that society ingrains in their minds. “One of the children said ‘I think my mother’s more afraid [than I am],’ so how do we get beyond that?” Altman posits.

8:30Copy video clip URL Altman begins talking about her rabbi’s son, displaying a number of photographs whilst explaining a number of Lubavitch rituals. She then goes on to talk about the role of children in her upcoming piece, “How Shall we Teach our Children?”

10:58Copy video clip URL A member of the Kartemquin crew references the similarities between the Lubavitchers and the Nation of Islam, to which Altman responds with a story about the shared experiences of religion in the form of a conversation between her and artist Kerry Marshall.

15:35Copy video clip URL Altman explains the origin of her connection to the Lubavitchers, as well as her admiration for them. “They’re very open, they’ll talk about anything, they’re not closed off, they’re out there… of course they want us all to be more like them, but their belief system is not imposed on me,” she raves.