Each February in the United States, the country comes together to celebrate Black History Month. VPM is celebrating Black History Month by showcasing a selection of must-watch TV shows and documentaries. See below for a list of Black History Month-inspired programming from VPM and PBS or visit VPM’s Black Excellence page for more information.
TV, Streaming & Documentaries
Launched in 2020, Racism: Challenging Perceptions is a discussion series dedicated to exploring the cultural, social and economic impacts of systemic racism on our communities while empowering communities to keep the conversations going. Through conversations with local experts and leaders, the series highlights the disparities racism creates within our systems, including education, wealth building and housing. Two new episodes premiered in Sept. 2024 and can be viewed on the show’s home page.
Birth of a Planet: Richmond on Paper details the story of how an African American-run newspaper arose from the heart of the Confederacy that shook the foundations of the Old South and beyond by providing coverage that shows why every voice matters. During the struggle against lynching, segregation, and voter suppression, the Richmond Planet and editor John Mitchell, Jr. exposed stories of brutality, racism, and injustice that remain very familiar today. Watch the documentary on the PBS App.
Using real-time footage and testimonials, Mending Walls: The Documentary details how 30 Richmond artists got to know each other through uncomfortable conversations about race, status and their personal experiences, how they created their mural concepts to reflect those conversations and how working together ultimately opened their eyes and their hearts to the differences, as well as commonalities among all of us. It also shows how our community responded to their efforts by engaging with the spaces the murals provided, volunteering to be a part of this community-wide effort and inspiring others to put aside their discomfort and fear to talk to each other about often difficult topics. Watch the documentary here.
Digital Content
Finding Edna Lewis follows host Deb Freeman on a journey to uncover the life of an American icon. Audiences hear from a different guest in each episode that cooks alongside Freeman, while also revealing an important aspect of Lewis’s life and legacy. Episodes are available here and on the VPM Culture YouTube channel.
Hidden History with Brian Bullock is a digital short featuring not-so-well-known Virginia locales and uncovers the remarkable hidden history found there. Episodes are available here.
In the Pen with Roscoe Burnems follows Virginia's first poet laureate Roscoe Burnems as he visits with several local spoken-word artists as they explore Richmond's history of Slam poetry, creating powerful content and addressing difficult topics through writing, youth poetry activism and how to get started in spoken-word. Episodes are available on the VPM Culture YouTube channel.
Sonic Threads is a digital series that explores the influence of African American music in various genres. Episodes are available on the VPM History YouTube channel.
Radio
Throughout February,Jazz Weeknights with Annie Parnell will highlight jazz albums with Black history themes, while The Undertow with Annie Parnell will celebrate Black indie rock musicians throughout history and into the present day.
PBS Content
Great Migrations: A People on the Move explores the transformative impact of Black migration on American culture and society. From the waves of Black Americans to the North—and back South—over the last century to the growing number of immigrants from Africa and the Caribbean today, the film shows how movement is a defining feature of the Black experience. Watch the documentary on the PBS App.
American Masters: “The Disappearance of Miss Scott” spotlights Hazel Scott, the most famous jazz virtuoso of her time and the first African American to have her own television show. A champion for racial equality before what we now consider to be the civil rights movement, Scott’s bright star dimmed when she was caught up in the Red Scare of the 1950s and refused to back down, testifying in front of the House Un-American Activities Committee to defend herself and her colleagues and was blacklisted as a result. The documentary premieres Feb. 21 at 9 p.m. on VPM PBS and can also be seen on the PBS App.
100 Years from Mississippi profiles the life of Mamie Lang Kirkland, who left Mississippi at seven years old to escape racial violence and would not return to the state until a century later. Watch the documentary on the PBS App.
Chautauqua at 150: Wynton Marsalis' All Rise celebrates the story and lasting impact of this iconic institution through inspiring stories of faith and democracy with a stirring performance of Marsalis' All Rise and appearances by Kathryn Hahn, Kwame Alexander, Misty Copeland and more. The documentary premieres on Feb. 11 at 10 p.m. on VPM PBS and can also be seen on the PBS App.
Journeys of Black Mathematicians is a two-part series that traces the cultural evolution of Black scholars, scientists and educators in the field of mathematics. The films follow the stories of prominent pioneers, illustrating the challenges they faced and how their triumphs are reflected in the experiences of today's mid-career Black mathematicians. Their mathematical descendants, in turn, are contemporary college students and K-12 children across the U.S. who are learning they belong in mathematics and STEM. Featuring more than 50 individuals, the series starts with the first Black Ph.D., Edward Bouchet (Yale, 1876), and W. W. S. Claytor, extraordinary exemplars from the early and mid-20th century who prepared the way for several of the trailblazers highlighted in the series. The role of HBCUs in producing Black mathematicians is a central theme. Watch the series on the PBS App.
American Experience: The Sun Queen tells the story of chemical engineer and inventor Maria Telkes, who applied her prodigious intellect to harness the power of the sun. She designed and built the world's first successfully solar-heated modern residence and identified a promising new chemical that, for the first time, could store solar heat like a battery. And yet, along the way, she was undercut and thwarted by her boss and colleagues - all men - at MIT. Despite these obstacles, Telkes persevered and, upon her death in 1995, held more than 20 patents. She is now recognized as a visionary pioneer in the field of sustainable energy. An unexpected and largely forgotten heroine, Telkes was remarkable in her vision and tenacity - a scientist and a woman in every way ahead of her time. Her research and innovations from the 1930s through the '70s continue to shape how we power our lives today. Watch the documentary on the PBS App.
You can see more Black History Month content from PBS here.