Children of the Revolution (2011)

• 76%
• 2011
• Documentary
• Shane O'Sullivan
• Mei Shigenobu
• Bettina Rohl
• Masao Adachi

CHILDREN OF THE REVOLUTION tells the stories of Ulrike Meinhof and Fusako Shigenobu - two women who emerged from the student revolutions of 1968 to become the leading female revolutionaries of their time. Appalled by the killing in Vietnam, they set out to destroy capitalist power through world revolution, as leaders of the Baader Meinhof Group and the Japanese Red Army. Both groups headed to the Middle East to train with Palestinian freedom fighters and attack imperialism. Authors and journalists Bettina Röhl and May Shigenobu explore the lives of their mothers, Ulrike and Fusako, providing a unique perspective on two of the most notorious "terrorists" in contemporary history. On the run or kidnapped when their mothers went underground, May and Bettina emerged from difficult childhoods to lead their own extraordinary lives. May is half-Japanese, half-Palestinian. She grew up in Lebanon and hid her identity for 28 years for fear of assassination. With capitalism once more in crisis and revolution again sweeping the Arab world, Bettina and May face up to their mother's actions: what were they fighting for and what have we learned?