White House Request Led to AIDS Documentary

WASHINGTON — Rory Kennedy was originally moved to make her Appalachia documentary, “American Hollow,” by concern about the 1996 welfare reform law cutting aid to recipients who fail to get jobs.

According to her mother, Ethel Kennedy, Rory was so concerned about the new law’s potential impact on poor families and those in places such as Appalachia, where jobs are scarce, that she wrote a letter to President Clinton taking him to task for signing the bill. Clinton’s response?

A five-page handwritten letter explaining his position.

And, somewhat later, an urgent request came from the White House asking Kennedy to make another documentary, this time about children in Africa who are dying from AIDS.

After a hurried consultation at the White House, her mother said, Rory packed her gear and flew to Africa.

The result is her latest film, which is now being shown to selected audiences in Washington--including senators involved in budgeting U.S. funds for AIDS victims. After seeing the film, they are pushing for a major increase in funding the elder Kennedy said.