To bring the untold story of Hy Thurman and the Young Patriots to the screen, documenting how a "Revolutionary Hillbilly" helped unite the Black Panthers and the Young Lords. We seek to honor a legacy of bridge-building that proves unlikely alliances are the only way to achieve dignity and self-determination for all.

In 1967, a 17-year-old from Tennessee stepped off a bus in Chicago’s Uptown neighborhood - poor, Southern, and searching for purpose. That teenager was Hy Thurman.

Surrounded by displaced Southern families, Hy could have given into anger and division. Instead, he chose solidarity. He co-founded the Young Patriots - poor Southern white youth who rejected racism and organized free health clinics, breakfast programs, and campaigns against police brutality.

Then came something even more powerful. Hy helped build the Original Rainbow Coalition—uniting the Young Patriots with the Young Lords and the Illinois Black Panther Party. In one of the most divided times in American history, they proved that poor and working people, across race and culture could stand together for dignity and self-determination.

It was bold. It was dangerous. And it changed the world.

Hy continues that work through the North Alabama School for Organizers. His memoir, Revolutionary Hillbilly, started the conversation. Now, we are bringing the full, cinematic story to the screen in the documentary feature: The Rainbow And the Machine.

This isn’t just a movie about the past. It’s a roadmap for the present. We are filming interviews, gathering rare archival footage, and documenting a legacy of bridge-building that the world desperately needs right now.

We live in an era of unprecedented division, where the lines between communities feel harder to cross than ever. But Hy Thurman’s story reminds us that these walls are not permanent. In 1969, in a Chicago just as fractured as the world today, the Original Rainbow Coalition proved that the most 'unlikely' alliances are actually the most powerful. We are making this film now because the world doesn't just need a history lesson, it needs a roadmap for unity that has already been tested and proven to work.

Your contribution does more than fund a film; it safeguards a legacy of solidarity that the world is in danger of forgetting. By supporting The Rainbow And the Machine, you are directly enabling:

• Preservation: Digitizing rare archival footage and recording firsthand accounts from the original organizers of the Rainbow Coalition.
• Education: Providing a cinematic "roadmap" for the North Alabama School for Organizers and similar grassroots movements worldwide.
• Vision: Showing a polarized public that the most unlikely alliances—across race, culture, and class—are not only possible but necessary for self-determination.

Every dollar moves us closer to our $80,000 goal, ensuring this story is told with the scale, dignity, and cinematic power it deserves.

A Thank you from the Director, MICHAEL AKU RODRIGUEZ:

To our fellow organizers and supporters,

Thank you for standing with us.

In 1969, the Young Patriots proved that when we reject division, we gain the power to change the world. By contributing to The Rainbow And the Machine, you have officially joined that lineage of bridge-builders.

Because of your generosity, we are one step closer to bringing Hy Thurman’s story and the blueprint of the Original Rainbow Coalition to screens everywhere. We are honored to have you in this movement for unity over hate.

Onward in solidarity,

POWER TO THE PEOPLE


MICHAEL AKU RODRIGUEZ is a producer, director, writer, director of photography who has brought many films to life such as "Desert Doc", "Tommy Gun", "The Great Fallacy" and more. Being Mescalero Apache and Zapotec heritage he was taught and inspired by the traditions of his culture. His interest in film, music, and art began at a young age and with the challenges and experiences from his life and career he has developed the skills to evolve in to the individual that he has become today.