Eminent Domain Documentary "Begging for Billionaires" Slates May 2 World Premiere Events

Minneapolis, MN, April 28, 2009 --(PR.com)-- The world premiere of Begging for Billionaires, a documentary about eminent domain, will kick off the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Film Festival “Best of Fest” week on Saturday, May 2, at the Oak Street Cinema, 309 Oak St. SE in Minneapolis. Advance seats are available to the public at www.beggingforbillionaires.com or www.mnfilmarts.org. A sellout is expected; as of Friday, April 24, there were 260 seats remaining. The world premiere screening and related events are sponsored by Reason Magazine, Grand Central Publishing, Americans for Prosperity Foundation and the American Property Coalition.

Event schedule

2:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. - Pre-screening fund raiser
(All proceeds to benefit the Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival and defray the cost of world premiere events.)
Oak Street Cinema Lobby

• Free copies of Reason Magazine will be available to all ticket holders.
• Hardcover 1st edition copies of Little Pink House: A True Story of Defiance and Courage by Jeff Benedict (Grand Central Publishing, 2009) will be on sale for only $10 - less than half the book’s cover price of $26.99. The book, described as “one woman’s historic battle against eminent domain,” chronicles Suzette Kelo’s battle to save her home, which ended with the U.S. Supreme Court’s controversial Kelo v New London decision that allows cities to take private property for private developments.
• Begging for Billionaires promotional merchandise.

3 p.m. to 4 p.m. - World premiere screening (57 minutes)
Oak Street Cinema

4 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. - Panel discussion on Begging for Billionaires and eminent domain abuse
Oak Street Cinema

Panelists:

Alan Cobb, National Director of State Operations, Americans for Prosperity Foundation (Washington, D.C.)

Lee McGrath, Executive Director, Institute for Justice Minnesota Chapter, (St. Paul, Minn.)

Jim Roos, affordable housing advocate, Sanctuary in the Ordinary (St. Louis, Mo.)

Don Parmeter, Executive Director, American Property Coalition (St. Paul, Minn.)

Richard Tolbert, eminent domain activist, (Kansas City, Mo.)

4:30 p.m. to 4:45 - Audience Q & A
Oak Street Cinema

5 p.m. to 7 p.m. - World Premiere Party
Stub & Herbs
227 Oak St., Minneapolis, Minn.

• All audience members are invited to celebrate.
• Live music by Phil Solem, who wrote and recorded the Begging for Billionaires theme song. Solem is one half of the Grammy-nominated pop duo The Rembrandts. He also known for recording the theme to the hit NBC-TV sit-com “Friends.” He today performs solo and with alt-rock trio Thrush.
• Door prizes.
• Full dinner menu.
• Cash bar.

Panelist Biographies

Lee McGrath
Executive Director
Institute for Justice Minnesota Chapter
St. Paul, Minn.

McGrath was instrumental in lobbying the Minnesota Legislature to reform the state’s eminent domain laws in 2006 and deregulate intrastate household goods movers in 2008. McGrath litigates constitutional cases protecting economic liberty, school choice, private property, freedom of speech and other individual liberties in both federal and state courts in Minnesota and nationally. Minnesota Lawyer recognized McGrath as an “Up and Coming Attorney” in 2006. His previous work includes executive positions at Jostens and H.B. Fuller in the Twin Cities.

Alan Cobb
National Director of State Operations
Americans for Prosperity Foundation
Washington, D.C.

Cobb’s involvement in Americans for Propsperity began a the local level as the director of the Topeka, Kansas office. In addition to heading his own public affairs consulting firm, he has managed the Shallenburger for [Kansas] governor campaign in 2002, was a director of Kansas public affairs for Koch Industries, and served as Deputy State Director for U.S. Sen. Bob Dole and U.S. Sen. Sheila Frahm.

Jim Roos
Executive Director
Sanctuary in the Ordinary
St. Louis, Mo.

Roos, a Lutheran minister whose story appears in the film, founded the non-profit group Sanctuary in the Ordinary with a mission of providing clean, safe and affordable housing for the poor. Again and again since 1990, he has watched in dismay as St. Louis city officials have taken his affordable housing properties and replaced them with private, high-end housing. In all, more than 45 Sanctuary in the Ordinary buildings have been taken. Unable to make his voice heard, Roos painted a two-story protest mural on one of his buildings in a highly visible area of St. Louis. City officials responded with brazen demands that he take down the mural – or else.

Richard Tolbert
Property rights activist
Kansas City, Mo.

Biography not available.

About Begging for Billionaires

In 2005, a divided U.S. Supreme Court gave state and city governments the authority to take private homes and businesses by eminent domain simply for the purpose of transferring ownership to private developers to build non-essential, privately owned buildings including shopping centers, corporate office towers, luxury condominiums and professional sports arenas. The community economic development benefit of these projects qualified them as being for “public use” under the 5th Amendment's "takings clause" the court decided. Reversing more than 200 years of private property rights, the court ruled that essentially anyone can take your property – as long as they can claim the prized "economic development" status from the city leaders whose campaigns they fund. The ruling sparked public outrage and is broadly criticized as a gross misinterpretation of the constitution.

Through a mix of guerrilla journalism, expert interviews, and the stories of those who have been forced out of their homes and family businesses; Begging For Billionaires reveals the fallout of the Kelo case, exposing how some city governments brazenly seize property from the powerless and give it to the privileged for pettiest of non-essential “economic development” projects often subsidized with taxpayer money. Meanwhile, poor and disadvantaged families are forced from their homes. Everyday citizens watch helplessly as their family histories are bulldozed to smithereens. In some cases, homeowners scramble to save their life’s possessions as demolition crews pulverize the walls around them, and Centuries-old neighborhoods are wiped from existence despite rich histories and beautifully maintained homes. Begging for Billionaires begs the question: are we losing sight of the balance between individual property rights and those of the community?

Begging for Billionaires begs the question: are we losing sight of the balance between individual property rights and community economic development?

Note to Minnesota Outlets: Although most of the film was shot in St. Louis and Kansas City, Mo. – cities that watchdog groups rate as some of the worst abusers of eminent domain – the film's editing, production, post-production, audio mix and HD mastering were all done in Minnesota by Minnesota filmmakers and producers. Minneapolis singer-songwriter Phil Solem of the Grammy-nominated Rembrandt – who is best known for recording the theme to the hit NBC-TV sit-com “Friends” – wrote and recorded the Begging for Billionaires theme. Even the movie's Web site and promotional graphics are the work of Minnesota designers.

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