Film Poster for Ain't No Back to a Merry-Go-Round. A young girl with black hair and blue floral dress looking out a window towards a merry-go-round.

AIN'T NO BACK TO A MERRY-GO-ROUND - JEWISH STORY PARTNERS (FREE SCREENING)

Trailblazing Black students, bold Jewish allies, and a carousel: The remarkable true story of a community that came together to challenge segregation

AIN'T NO BACK TO A MERRY-GO-ROUND - JEWISH STORY PARTNERS (FREE SCREENING)

Name: AIN'T NO BACK TO A MERRY-GO-ROUND - JEWISH STORY PARTNERS (FREE SCREENING)
Brand: Trailblazing Black students, bold Jewish allies, and a carousel: The remarkable true story of a community that came together to challenge segregation
Availability: InStock

BEST DOCUMENTARY - DC Black Film Festival, San Antonio Black Film Festival | AUDIENCE AWARD - Boston Jewish Film Festival | BUILDING BRIDGES AWARD - Atlanta Jewish Film Festival | "an absolutely fabulous story, very well told" - Ann Hornaday, Washington Post Radio

Civil Rights Movement • Black-Jewish Solidarity • Student Activism • Community Organizing • Allyship • Nonviolent Protest • Youth Leadership • Interracial Coalition-Building • Nonviolent Action Group (NAG)

When five Black students sat on a segregated carousel at Maryland's Glen Echo Amusement Park in 1960, their arrests made headlines. Members of the neighboring Jewish community joined their protest, helping turn an act of student resistance into a history-making interracial campaign against segregation.

As the movement grew, students, families, union organizers, and community members stood together in the face of hostility and counterprotests. Their actions would help shape a new generation of activists, including future Freedom Riders like Stokely Carmichael.

Featuring never-before-seen footage and firsthand accounts from four living protesters, Emmy Award-winning director Ilana Trachtman's Ain't No Back to a Merry-Go-Round brings this little-known Civil Rights story to life and shows what can happen when people cross barriers, build coalitions, and take action together.

Ain't No Back to a Merry-Go-Round includes voiceover by noted actors Jeffrey Wright, Mandy Patinkin, Bob Balaban, Lee Grant, Peter Gallagher, Dominique Thorne, Alysia Reiner and Tracie Thoms.

Ann Hornaday, Film Critic, WPYR
"An absolutely fabulous story, very well told ... You're watching these young people have their consciousnesses changed. It's really thrilling."

Mondaire Jones, Former Congressman, Member of U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, and CNN Contributor
"This is one of the best, most compelling, and well-done documentaries I have ever had the pleasure of seeing. It is required viewing in these challenging times.”

Jamie Raskin, Congressman, Maryland's 8th District
“An important and landmark achievement . . stirring and thrilling”

Dana R. Fisher, Director, Center for Environment, Community, & Equity and Professor, American University
"...more relevant today than ever before. It shows solidarity in action and helps us understand how local struggles that build on community can have a huge impact."

Dr. Clarence Taylor, Professor Emeritus, Baruch College and The Graduate Center, City University of New York
"This little-known chapter in American history demonstrates the pivotal role those ordinary citizens played in the struggle for racial justice."

Victoria W. Wolcott, Professor, Department of History, University at Buffalo
“...we are engaging in a national project of racial reckoning. Uncovering the legacy of Black activism at Glen Echo ... fits well into this larger project. The film... will be invaluable in educating a public nostalgic about traditional amusement parks while largely ignoring their racial past.”

Ayanna Khan, President, Delaware Black Chamber of Commerce
"...a transformative centerpiece of our 2025 Juneteenth Celebration. The film’s emotional depth and historical insight sparked powerful conversations and left a lasting impact on our audience. It was an unforgettable experience that helped us honor the spirit of Juneteenth in every way."

Tracy Oliver-Gary, K-12 Social Studies Supervisor, Montgomery County Public Schools
“...a must-see documentary because of its historical and contemporary implications. The documentary shows the power of people uniting against hate to forge equality... Students, parents, and school system employees need to see it so they can understand... how individuals put aside their differences to help create a world in which everyone's humanity is respected."

Natalie Johnson, Middle School Cultural Studies Integrator, The Philadelphia School
“...connects and brings to life our 7th grade curriculum in a unique and beautiful way….Ain't No Back to a Merry-Go-Round was simply perfect. I'm confident our students won't forget it.”

Christian Sullivan, Head of School, Bullis School
"...a powerful story about our shared humanity, collective action, and the pursuit of human rights. Bringing it into our school community created an opportunity for teachers to reflect on their own pedagogy, while also giving students space to consider the challenges of today and the importance of working together. It was a meaningful reminder of the power of collective action and the strength that comes from alliances across communities.”

James L. Stowe, Director, Montgomery County Office of Human Rights
“...puts meaning to the nation’s vision of its democracy.”

Spoiler Free Reviews
"This is cinematic power"

Art New England
"Eye-opening and profound"

Baltimore Magazine
"Stirring... Enraging... Inspiring"

AWARDS
Building Bridges Award | Atlanta Jewish Film Festival
Audience Award | Boston Jewish Film Festival
Best Documentary Feature | DC Black Film Festival
Best Documentary | San Antonio Black Film Festival
Women in Film Award | St. Louis International Film Festival

For a list of public screenings, please visit the Screenings page: https://www.aintnoback.com/screenings

Jewish Story Partners Viewer Discussion Guide

llana Trachtman is an Emmy award-winning documentary director/producer. For over twenty-five years, she has created programs for numerous networks including PBS, HBO Family, ABC-TV, Showtime, Discovery, Lifetime, and the Sundance Channel. llana believes that true stories, carefully told, have unique power to inspire compassion, action, and community-building. Her topics have ranged from the legacy of slavery in Latin America (Black in Latin America with Henry Louis Gates, PBS) to Gulf coast shrimpers (Our Heroes, Ourselves, Lifetime), glassblowing for at-risk youth (The Arts Advantage, ABC-TV) to transgender parents (The Pursuit, PBS.) Other favorite prime-time directing credits include the independent feature Mariachi High and Texas Ranch House. llana supervised production on PBS' History Detectives and Sundance’s Big Ideas for a Small Planet. Through her production company Ruby Pictures, Ilana made the feature documentary Praying with Lior which played theatrically in over 60 cities in the US and abroad. The film garnered 6 Audience Awards for Best Documentary, the Grand Prix at the International Disability Film Festival in Moscow, and was a critic's pick of the New York Times, New York Magazine, Washington Post, and Philadelphia Inquirer.