Renowned scholar Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. explores the vibrant cultural and social spaces at the heart of the African American experience.
Making Black America: Through the Grapevine, Pts. 1 & 2 of 4, airs Saturday, January 20 at 8 p.m. on WXXI-WORLD.
Making Black in America chronicles the vast social networks and organizations created by and for Black people beyond the reach of the “White gaze.” The documentary series recounts the establishment of the Prince Hall Masons in 1775 through the formation of all-Black towns and business districts, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, destinations for leisure and the social media phenomenon of Black Twitter. Gates sits with noted scholars, politicians, cultural leaders and old friends including Charles M. Blow (journalist and commentator), Angela Davis (political activist, scholar and author), André Holland (actor), Fab 5 Freddie (hip-hop pioneer and visual artist), Jason King (chair of the Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music), Killer Mike (rapper and activist) to discuss this world behind the color line and what it looks like today.
Pts. 3 & 4 airs Saturday, January 27 at 8 p.m. on WXXI-WORLD.
Photo: Title card • Provided by PBS