Athens, Ga. – In observance of Black History Month, the Peabody Awards Collection at the University of Georgia Libraries will screen recent, relevant Peabody recipients on four successive Tuesday nights during February.
Each of the programs will be shown at 7 p.m. in Room 348 of the University of Georgia’s Miller Learning Center. The free screenings are open to students, faculty, staff and the general public. Each program will be followed by a guest speaker and/or audience-participation discussion.
Independent Lens: Sisters in Law (Feb. 3) is a documentary that takes us behind the scenes of a small-town courthouse in Cameroon where two dynamic, wisecracking, larger-than-life sisters–one the court’s president, the other its state prosecutor–are helping women stand up to abuse.
Dateline NBC: The Education of Ms. Groves (Feb. 10) chronicles the experience of Monica Groves, an idealistic Teach for America volunteer from an upper middle-class background who was assigned to a tough middle school in Atlanta. Disturbing family situations and the hardships of poverty bring problems to her classroom that she never experienced or imagined. Though it ends on a triumphant note, the Dateline NBC report also serves as a sobering reminder of work yet to be completed.
Out of Control: AIDS in Black America (Feb. 17) illuminates a stunning statistic: African Americans, who make up only 13 percent of the U.S. population, account for 50 percent of all new cases of HIV infection. ABC News’ powerful report explores the underlying causes, including traditional conservatism within black communities regarding sexual practices, the ignorance of government officials, and policies that overlook major contributing factors. Out of Control makes it clear that every community shares responsibility for stopping this epidemic.
The Boondocks (Feb. 24), like the Aaron McGruder comic strip on which it’s based, throws edgy, irreverent comment at some of the thorniest issues of our time. In “Return of the King,” an especially bold and imaginative episode, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wakes from a 32-year “coma” only to be branded a terrorist sympathizer when he speaks out against the current state of social affairs.
For more details about these and other Peabody winners, see www.peabody.uga.edu. For more information about the screenings, contact Noel W. Holston, 706/542-8983, nholston@uga.edu, or Mary Miller, 706/542-4789, mlmiller@uga.edu.
