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Jackson State University and Mississippi Public Broadcasting will host a free public preview screening of the feature documentary “Tell Them We Are Rising: The Story of Black Colleges and Universities” at 3 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 25, in the Mississippi e-Center@JSU.
The event, also co-hosted by JSU’s Department of Journalism and Media Studies, will feature multiple Emmy Award winner and National Humanities Medalist documentarian Stanley Nelson and other distinguished guests such as JSU President Dr. William B. Bynum Jr. The screening will be followed by a reception and Q&A session with the filmmaker.
will feature multiple Emmy Award winner and National Humanities Medalist documentarian Stanley Nelson and other distinguished guests such as JSU President Dr. William B. Bynum Jr. The screening will be followed by a reception and Q&A session with the filmmaker.
“Tell Them We Are Rising” explores the rich history of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and how they have influenced the course of the nation for more than 150 years.
PBS.org reports that HBCUs were a “haven for black intellectuals, artists and revolutionaries” and have been instrumental in paving a path toward the American dream. However, the institutions remain largely unknown, even though they are credited for impacting social, political and economic progress.
Furthermore, PBS says, “These institutions have nurtured some of the most influential Americans of our time – from Booker T. Washington to Martin Luther King Jr., W.E.B. Du Bois to Ralph Ellison, Toni Morrison to Oprah Winfrey, Alice Walker to Spike Lee to Common.”
As a result, “Tell Them We Are Rising” aims to capture the story of Americans who refused to be denied higher education.
Nelson, co-founder of the nonprofit production company Firelight Media, has directed and produced more than 12 documentary features. These works include “Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution,” “Freedom Summer,” “Freedom Riders” and “The Murder of Emmett Till.”
To learn more about “Tell Them We Are Rising,” click PBS/MPB.
To view a clip of “We Are Rising,” visit FILM.
Attendees to the screening are urged to tweet and share photos of the event by tagging #HBCURising. Also, follow @HBCURising on Twitter and Instagram.
Registration for the screening is required, so click HERE. For additional information, call 601-432-6298.