Over the past two hundred years, names such as Frederick Douglass, Thurgood Marshall, Martin Luther King Jr., and Malcolm X, permeate our national consciousness. They along with other African-Americans, fought for American independence, the abolition of slavery, civil and equal rights.

Dixieland, swing, bebop, modal, free, avant-garde, these were some of the terms critics used during the 1960s to categorize the diverse manifestations of jazz music. As for the artists themselves, many were desperate for work and headed for Europe, including bebop saxophone master Dexter Gordon. At home, jazz sought relevance. During the Civil Rights struggle it became a voice of protest, while avant-garde explorer John Coltrane reached for a higher...

Muhammad Ali shocks the world by defeating George Foreman, winning back the heavyweight title and becoming the most famous man on earth. After retiring in 1981, he travels the world spreading his Islamic faith and becomes a symbol of peace.

In this program, Dennis Wholey continues a dialogue on the role of religion and faith in contemporary American culture with spokespeople from the InterFaith Conference of Metropolitan Washington; Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good; the Washington Buddhist Peace Fellowship; the Islamic Society of North America; the Agudas Achim Conservative Jewish Congregation of Alexandria, Virginia; and the Sri Siva Vishnu Temple in Lanham, Maryland. Topics...

Criticism of the 99th's overseas combat record was instantaneous and virulent. After only a few months in combat, the Commander of the 12th Air Support Command assailed the performance of the Black pilots. "Officers of all professions” he said, felt that "the Negro type has not the proper reflexes to make a first-class fighter pilot.” Time magazine questioned the 99th's performance and asked: "Experiment Proved?" After a stateside controversy...

Gain an unprecedented look at the experiences and accomplishments of African Americans in the military, and learn why such a group of heroic men and women would fight for the freedom of others that they themselves weren't able to enjoy. Hosted by Halle Berry with an introduction by Colin Powell, and features the voices of Morgan Freeman, Bill Cosby, Danny Glover, John Travolta, and many more.

An African American girl describes the joys of all different kinds of shoelaces.

This program takes a look at the early 1940s for Blacks in film. Many black roles took on a more dignified humanitarian trend, spearheaded by the NAACP. The War Department during this pre-war period funneled thousands of dollars into the production of films that displayed the dedication and character of the black soldier. Unfortunately, for the black independent film industry, the pre-war rationing of film to the larger companies, coupled with the...

Although a classmate says that she cannot play Peter Pan in the school play because she is black, Grace discovers that she can do anything she sets her mind to do.