JxJ Festival

Sapiro v. Ford: the Jew Who Sued Henry Ford

Dates : May 12, 2026 — May 13, 2026

A San Francisco Jewish lawyer Aaron Sapiro singlehandedly takes on the automobile magnate Henry Ford, challenging Ford’s virulent antisemitic attacks. From his humble beginnings in San Francisco to leading a nationwide movement empowering farmers, Sapiro’s life was a testament to courage, vision, and justice.

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Sapiro v. Ford: the Jew Who Sued Henry Ford

Sapiro v. Ford tells the riveting true story of Aaron Sapiro, a young Jewish lawyer who took on one of America’s most powerful men—and most notorious antisemite—Henry Ford. In the 1920s, as Ford’s anti-Jewish publications incited hatred across the nation, Sapiro filed an unprecedented libel suit, challenging the limits of hate speech long before such laws existed.

From his humble beginnings in San Francisco to leading a nationwide movement empowering farmers, Sapiro’s life was a testament to courage, vision, and justice. Portrayed by actor Ben Shenkman, Sapiro’s words are presented in their entirety, filmed as if speaking directly to a modern audience. At the same time, historical experts illuminate the stakes of his confrontation with Ford.

In a David-versus-Goliath showdown, Sapiro forced the industrial titan to back down, issue an apology, and shutter his hate-filled newspaper, leaving a legacy that resonates today. As antisemitism rises and the struggle to balance free speech with protection against hate continues, Sapiro v. Ford examines the enduring question: how can societies confront power, prejudice, and propaganda while upholding justice?

Q&A with director Gaylen Ross and producer Carol King following all screenings.

Matt Nosanchuk, Learner Family Associate Dean of Public Interest and Public Service Law at George Washington University Law School, will moderate the May 12 screening at Bethesda Row.

Documentarian Aviva Kempner will moderate the May 13 screening at the EDCJCC.

Sapiro v. Ford’s credits include originating director Michael Rose (1952-2020)

Presented with generous support from The Anti-Defamation League.

Mathew S. Nosanchuk is the Lerner Family Associate Dean for Public Interest and Public Service Law and Professorial Lecturer in Law. In this role, he leads the Public Interest and Public Service Law Center, working to deepen the law school community’s engagement with and commitment to public interest and public service. Throughout his career – in the executive branch, the Senate and House, and in the non-profit and private sectors – Matt has worked on a wide range of key domestic, national security, and foreign policy matters. This includes work to counter antisemitism and LGBTQ+ discrimination, including most recently as Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Office for Civil Rights in the U.S. Department of Education during the Biden administration. Matt also served during the Obama Administration as President Obama’s liaison to the American Jewish community in the White House Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs and on the National Security Council staff.
Matt’s non-profit experience includes serving as a co-founder and the inaugural executive director of the New York Jewish Agenda, which works to ensure that the Jewish communal and political discourse in New York are deeply rooted in and guided by liberal Jewish values. Matt maintains a strong interest in film and served as the Co–Executive Producer of the
award-winning documentary “Sabbath Queen,” a featured presentation of the JxJ Festival in 2025. Matt grew up in the Detroit area and attended Stanford University and Stanford Law School, where he was a Harry S. Truman Scholar and the Senior Note Editor on the Stanford Law Review

Washington, DC based filmmaker Aviva Kempner has written, produced, and directed award-winning documentaries about underknown Jewish heroes for 44 years and is an original cofounder of the Washington Jewish Film Festival.

Her films range from A Pocketful of Miracles: A Tale of Two Siblings, chronicling the astonishing story of siblings who survived the Holocaust and reunited after the war; The Fight Against Native American Mascoting, to The Spy Behind Home Plate, about baseball player and OSS spy Moe Berg.

A member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Kempner is a voting rights and statehood advocate for Washington, D.C. and proudly serves on the board of DC Vote.