KFAI's MinneCulture Presents

The Invention of Race from the Center for Documentary Studies  ~ Tonight, we trace the development of racial, and racist, ideas, from the ancient world -- when "there was no notion of race," as historian Nell Irvin Painter puts it -- up to the founding of the United States. Our country was fundamentally a nation of and for white people despite the "all men are created equal" language found in the Declaration of Independence. We'll also hear from National Book Award-winning historian Ibram Kendi and the Racial Equity Institute. Host and reporter John Biewen ultimately tells us a storied history of racism and names names: The Portuguese writer who was commissioned in the 1450s by the slave-trading leaders of his country to literally invent blackness and whiteness. The enlightenment scientist who first divided humanity into five "races." The runaway indentured servant in 17th century Virginia whose capture, and sentencing to lifelong servitude, mark...

Going Black: The Legacy of Philly Soul Radio from Mighty Writers ~ Starting in the 1950s, Black radio stations around the country became the pulse of African-American communities, and served as their megaphone during the Civil Rights and Black Power movements --  at a time when the mainstream media wasn't covering stories from a Black perspective .  "Going Black" examines the legacy of Black radio, with a special focus on the legendary WDAS in Philadelphia. Hosted by Sound of Philadelphia ( TSOP ) music producer and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Kenny Gamble . It's the story of great radio personalities, leaders, and music that would have gone undiscovered otherwise. We'll also learn about the many ways the radio medium  landscape has changed in the last half century.

Driving While Black from the Doc Project ~ One evening in 2015, Montrealer Kenrick McRae was pulled over by police. The officer told him his license plate lights weren’t bright enough. He looked into it and, despite the dealership verifying his lights were working just fine, Kenrick installed an additional light. He simply wanted to ensure he would never be given that same reason again for a traffic stop -- he still was. In fact, no matter how scrupulous he is, Kenrick seems to continually and continually get stopped  Montreal police . After being handcuffed and detained during later traffic stop in 2017, Kenrick lodged a formal complaint with Quebec's police ethics committee. He was now determined to prove that what is happening to him is due to nothing other than the color of his skin. This is his personal and even ongoing story of being racial profiled by police -- but it also speaks to much broader issues and larger problems in our society. 

A Fiery Unrest: Why Plymouth Avenue Burned  by Nancy Rosenbaum ~ During the  Long Hot Summer  summer of 1967,  Plymouth Avenue  in North Minneapolis went up in flames. Frustrations about racial discrimination and a lack of opportunity for black Americans were  erupting  on city streets across the country. Here in Minnesota,  those tensions  came to a head between July 19-21 on Plymouth Avenue. It was the commercial heart of a racially and ethnically mixed neighborhood; home to the city's largest concentration of African-American residents as well as many Jewish-owned businesses. For some black Minnesotans, Plymouth Avenue was a brick and mortar reminder of racial inequality that could no longer be silently tolerated. In this hour-long documentary, producer  Nancy Rosenbaum  examines what happened, why, and how people in Minneapolis responded.