Northwest Film Forum

The new film Band of Sisters tells the story of the Catholic Church's bravest heros—the nuns of the 1960s and onwards who were inspired by the reforms of Vatican II and the great social movements of the 20th century to fight for social justice across the United States. Even when their actions provoked the anger of the Vatican, the graceful struggles of these sisters for civil rights and immigration reform persisted.  This poignant, funny and moving documentary by first-time director Mary Fishman shows us a forward-thinking portrait of religious women as citizens of the world and covers half a century of activism.

"The new pope grabs the headlines, but what about all those less-famous nuns? . . . there’s pretty much nothing nuns can’t do in Mary Fishman’s very admiring documentary. . .One can’t help but share Fishman’s esteem for these (mostly) older women; they’re practical Catholics working down in the trenches among the downtrodden." —Brian Miller, Seattle Weekly