We’re enthusiastic to share our next series of emails: updates from the National Funeral Consumers Alliance Biennial Conference, here in Raleigh! On Thursday night, we watched The Burial together. Below, you can read the opening remarks from our President, Sara Williams. You too can watch The Burial at home, it’s streaming on Amazon Prime.
Click below to watch the trailer:
The Burial premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2023, and is based on the real-life 1995 lawsuit between funeral home owner Jeremiah O’Keefe and the Loewen Group, a large corporation that acquired funeral homes and engaged in controversial business practices.
You will see how the Loewen Group took advantage of people in their most vulnerable moments, particularly Black and low-income individuals, through predatory practices and unfair schemes.
The movie was a natural choice with our conference theme of funeral poverty because it shines a light on race, privilege, and legacy, and examines the systemic disadvantages and historical injustices faced by Black people in America.
Of course, this is relevant for the Funeral Consumers Alliance because we strive continually to remind consumers of their rights and challenge corporate power.
Be sure to watch through the end of the film, to see compelling photos of the lifelong friendship between the real Willie Gary and Jerry O’Keefe.
-Sara Williams, FCA National President, July 26th, 2025