PAST FORWARD: Conversations with American Experience
PAST FORWARD is a monthly virtual conversation series with historians and experts that explores enduring themes across the American Experience film archive. These conversations seek to illuminate hidden or less understood history still playing out in today’s America, and tackle the tough questions that connect our past to our present.
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Professor of history Jefferson Cowie and cultural historian Ayana Contreras speak with UCLA professor of musicology Timothy Taylor about how music is commodified, and if anything is lost in the process.
National director of Education Innovation and Research for the NAACP Dr. Ivory Toldson and executive director of the Education and Civil Rights Initiative Dr. Adrienne Dixson speak with professor of education leadership at Teachers College, Columbia University, Sonya Douglass about the state of educational equity in America nearly seventy years after Brown vs Board of Education.
Director and co-producer of the ground breaking Netflix Documentary DISCLOSURE Sam Feder and director of the Transgender Media Lab and Transgender Media Portal Laura Horak speak with activist, author and media strategist Raquel Willis about the history and effects of transgender representation in media.
Professor of Architecture Daniel A. Barber and Vice President of Strategies at Communities First Stephanie Gidigbi Jenkins speak with energy reporter Ivan Penn about the history and future of sustainable energy policies in the U.S.
Professor Eve Dunbar and writer and historian Jonathan Square speak with historian Adriane Lentz-Smith about the intersection between studying and stealing culture.
Historian, public speaker and author Danielle McGuire PhD and journalism professor and author Allissa Richardson speak with the Gen-Z historian Kahlil Greene about the role of the media in shaping public perception around the murders of Black Americans.
Professor of Law Renée Landers and Professor of Law and Theology Cathleen Kaveny speak with Historian Adriane Lentz-Smith about the history of reproductive rights and future of bodily autonomy in a post Roe v. Wade America.
Epidemiologist Ian Lipkin speaks with reporter and author Marilyn Chase about what pandemic books, movies and TV shows get right, and wrong, about real pandemics.
Environmental scientist Peter Gleick and CEO of the U.S. Water Alliance Mami Hara speak with historian Jessica Marie Johnson about access, availability and conflicts around clean water in the United States.
Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer for the U.S. Department of State Gina Abercrombie Winstanley and former U.S. diplomat Christopher Richardson speak with historian Adriane Lentz-Smith about the history and present day diversity problem in the State Department.
Historian and author Tanisha Ford and Dean of Fashion at Parsons School of Design Ben Barry speak with fashion historian Cassidy Zachary about how fashion has contributed to many of the most influential social movements in American history.
Fertility rights advocate and America’s first IVF baby Elizabeth Carr, and university professor at Rutgers University Margaret Marsh speak with historian Monica Muñoz Martinez about the evolution of fertility science—from a niche opportunity to an accepted norm.
Co-founder and board chair of the Black Veterans Project Richard Brookshire, and deputy director of the VA Center for Women Veterans Elizabeth Estabrooks speak with historian Adriane Lentz-Smith about the experiences of Black, Indigenous, People of Color and Women Veterans returning home from service.
Musical director of the Fisk Jubilee Singers Paul Kwami, and producer and director of Jubilee Singers: Sacrifice and Glory Llewellyn Smith speak with historian Lerone Martin in a conversation celebrating the 150th anniversary of the Fisk Jubilee Singers.
CEO of the Center for Public Integrity Paul Cheung and historian Andie Tucher speak with Senior VP of the Poynter Institute Kelly McBride about the rise of fake news—from its roots in yellow journalism to the present.
Journalist Kimberly Robinson and author Evan Thomas speak with Historian Monica Muñoz Martinez about the power of the Supreme Court in shaping the nation’s laws.
Historian Roger Launius, executive director of the SciAccess Initiative Anna Voelker and co-creator of Yuri’s Night Loretta Whitesides speak with creator and host of The Humanity Archive Jermaine Fowler about the history of space exploration, and what the future of space travel and tourism might look like.
Historian Amira Rose Davis and sports columnist William C. Rhoden speak with creator and host of The Humanity Archive Jermaine Fowler about the intersection of sports and politics in the Olympics.
Screenwriter Carmen Fields and historian Karlos K. Hill speak with historian Jessica Marie Johnson about the centennial of the Tulsa Massacre and the story of Greenwood’s resilience and resurgence.
Historians Anthea Butler and Kevin Kruse speak with religion reporter at The Washington Post Michelle Boorstein about the connection between religion and politics in America.
Filmmaker Barak Goodman and author Jess Walter speak with historian Adriane Lentz-Smith about the rise of the American militia movement—from the events at Ruby Ridge to now.
Historian Erica Lee, actor Hoon Lee, and filmmaker Li-Shin Yu speak with executive director of the Center for Asian American Media Stephen Gong about America’s history of discrimination against Asian Americans, and ways that the AAPI community, their allies, and elected officials can work to put an end to racial violence and discrimination.
Opera singer Angela Brown and professor Kira Thurman speak with professor Jessica Marie Johnson about the excellence and power of Black women as they navigate and conquer traditionally white spaces and industries.
Author Jason Fagone and CODE-EQUAL co-founders Valeria and Kyara Torres-Olivares speak with professor Adriane Lentz-Smith about pioneering women in STEM—from Elizebeth Smith Friedman, to groups like CODE-EQUAL.
Author Deborah Blum and culinary historian Sarah Lohman speak with “Origin of Everything” host Danielle Bainbridge about the history of food regulations, how industries are regulated today, what role if any the government should play in ensuring a safe food supply chain, and what consumers can do to protect themselves.
Author Martha Jones and fellow historian Marcia Chatelain discuss the savvy political maneuvering of Black women from the fight for women's suffrage to the present, through the lens of Martha’s book Vanguard: How Black Women Broke Barriers, Won The Vote and Insisted on Equality for all.
Filmmaker Stanley Nelson and American Experience Executive Producer Cameo George discuss three of Nelson's Civil Rights films, how these stories shaped and advanced the ongoing civil rights movement, and how public media can help elevate filmmakers of color in telling diverse stories.
Wampanoag historian Linda Coombs and Narragansett Knowledge Keeper Cassius Spears speak with filmmaker Yvonne Russo about the experiences of Native populations at the time of European settlers’ arrival in New England 400 years ago, and what is actually known about the first Thanksgiving.
