Here is some of the notable TV programming airing in recognition of Black History Month 2014. All times are Eastern; please check back for updates and additions.
PBS Black Culture Connection (BCC) — Ongoing. Along with its on-air programming commemorating Black History Month 2014, PBS.org offers the BCC online extension, featuring black films, stories and discussion. It’s a digital partnership with the Because of Them, We Can campaign, which aims to educate and connect a new generation to heroes who paved the way.
Black History Month on BIO.com — Ongoing. BIO.com has a number of videos on its site celebrating Black History Month, including more than 25 original short-form videos set around key events, locations and biographies of the Civil Rights movement in Alabama. In addition to this new series of videos, BIO features original videos that give accounts of the murders of Medgar Evers and Emmett Till, and how they impacted the Civil Rights movement. BIO says that, in total, it has over 150 short videos in its Black History collection.
The Gabby Douglas Story — Feb. 1 at 8pm on Lifetime. This original movie tells the inspiring true story of the international gymnastics phenomenon who overcame overwhelming odds to become the first African-American ever to be named Individual All-Around Champion in artistic gymnastics at the Olympic Games. Regina King, S. Epatha Merkerson, Imani Hakim, Sydney Mikayla and Gabby Douglas herself star.
Beyond the Headlines: The Gabby Douglas Story — Feb. 1 at 10pm on Lifetime. This one-hour special looks at the real-life characters who were chronicled in Lifetime’s original movie. It’s an inside look at Gabby Douglas’ life as a 16-year-old, two-time Olympic gold medalist and national phenomenon who became the first African-American to win All-Around Gold in gymnastics.
First to Fight: The Black Tankers of WWII — Feb. 3 at 6am on History. A group of African-American men who fought and died for the country that discriminated against them, during World War II, the 761st Tank Battalion made history as the first all-black tank unit to see combat. Over the course of 183 days on the front, the 761st helped liberate more than 30 towns under Nazi control. More than 30 years after coming home, the 761st was finally recognized with the prestigious Presidential Unit Citation. Through the stories of a select group of surviving veterans, this program examines the history of the battalion — how they came to be; the racism they faced; their battles to be allowed to fight; and their courageous service in the European Theater.
42 — Premieres Feb. 8 at 8pm on HBO and airs throughout the month. Chadwick Boseman (pictured at top) stars as sports legend Jackie Robinson, who broke Major League Baseball’s color barrier, in this critically acclaimed biopic that also stars Harrison Ford.
POV: “American Promise” — Feb. 3 at 10pm on PBS (check local listings). American Promise spans 13 years as Joe Brewster and Michèle Stephenson, middle-class African-American parents in Brooklyn, N.Y., turn their cameras on their son, Idris, and his best friend, Seun, who make their way through Manhattan’s Dalton School, one of the most prestigious private schools in the country. Chronicling the boys’ divergent paths from kindergarten through high-school graduation, this provocative, intimate documentary presents complicated truths about America’s struggle to come of age on issues of race, class and opportunity. The film won the U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival.
American Masters: “Alice Walker: Beauty in Truth” — Feb. 7 at 9pm on PBS (check local listings). Most famous for her seminal novel The Color Purple, writer/activist Alice Walker celebrates her 70th birthday this year. Born Feb. 9, 1944, into a family of sharecroppers in rural Georgia, she came of age during the violent racism and seismic social changes of mid-20th-century America. Her mother, poverty and participation in the civil rights movement were the formative influences on her consciousness, becoming the inherent themes in her writing. The first African-American woman to win a Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, Walker continues to shine a light on global human rights issues. In this episode, Walker’s dramatic life is told with poetry and lyricism, and includes interviews with Steven Spielberg, Danny Glover, Quincy Jones, Howard Zinn, Gloria Steinem, Sapphire, and Walker herself.
Independent Lens: “Spies of Mississippi” — Feb. 10 at 10pm on PBS (check local listings). View the story of a secret spy agency formed during the 1950s and ’60s by the state of Mississippi to preserve segregation and maintain white supremacy. Over a decade, the Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission employed a network of investigators and informants, including African-Americans, to help infiltrate the NAACP, Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). They were granted broad powers to investigate private citizens and organizations, keep secret files, make arrests and compel testimony. The program tracks the commission’s hidden role in important chapters of the civil rights movement, including the integration of the University of Mississippi, the trial of Medgar Evers and the KKK murders of three civil rights workers in 1964.
Stories From the Road to Freedom — Feb. 16 at 10am on H2. This two-hour special, narrated by Deon Cole, gives a fresh perspective of the black movement in America, from emancipation to the civil rights era. The special uses firsthand accounts, rare audio recordings, never-before-seen archival footage, and home movies to chronicle African-American life as lived by regular people, in their own words, through 150 years of social upheaval.
45th NAACP Image Awards — Feb. 22 live at 9pm on TV One (tape-delayed PT). BET and CBS lead the nominees in the TV categories, with 19 and 16 nominations respectively, as the annual celebration of the accomplishments of people of color in television, music, literature and film moves to TV One. In the recording category, RCA leads with 10 nominations, and in the motion picture category, The Weinstein Company leads with 17 nominations. The two-hour ceremony will be preceded at 8pm by live red-carpet coverage (tape-delayed PT).
Honor Deferred — Feb. 23 at 8am on H2. African-Americans have fought bravely for America throughout our history. But sadly, until recently, they didn’t receive deserved commendations. This is the story of seven men who deserved the Medal of Honor for their valor during World War II, but only recently received their medals, after six had already died.
Miracle Rising: South Africa — Feb. 23 at 10am on H2. This is the story of South Africa’s transition to democracy, a singular achievement that astounded and inspired the world. Includes personal anecdotes from world leaders, local and global celebrities who tell of their small, but valuable, contributions to the liberation of South Africa and its people.
Our Generation: “Martin Luther King Assassination” — Feb. 23 at 12pm on H2. Steve Gillon tells the stories of the unforgettable events surrounding the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Double Victory — Feb. 23 at 12:30pm on H2. A documentary about the training, battles, and lives of the Tuskegee Airmen. Narrated by Cuba Gooding Jr., this special includes original wartime footage and is interspersed with the words of living Tuskegee Airmen.
Dogfights: Tuskegee Airmen — Feb. 24 at 6am on History. In the face of bigotry and ignorance, the Tuskegee Airmen, an all-black fighter squadron, shattered racist stereotypes. Their exploits became the stuff of legend. Watch as pilots Wendell Pruitt and Lee Archer, the “Gruesome Twosome,” score their highest victory in a single day over the skies of the Po River valley in Northern Italy. Then, pilot Charles McGee knocks down an Fw190 near Pardubice, Czechoslovakia. Finally pilot Roscoe Brown and the Tuskegee Airmen take down three Me262 jet fighters in a wild engagement just south of Berlin. Firsthand accounts, rare archival footage and original shooting supplement the computer graphics in this episode.
BET Honors 2014 — Feb. 24 at 11pm on BET. Celebrating its seventh year, this event celebrates and recognizes the gifts and contributions of exceptional African-American leaders. Honorees this year are Aretha Franklin, Berry Gordy, Kenneth Chenault, Carrie Mae Weems and Ice Cube. Wayne Brady hosts the ceremony, which will be taped in early February in Washington, D.C.
Civil War Journal: “Frederick Douglass” — Feb. 27 at 7am on History. A look at the life of the great abolitionist who escaped slavery in 1838 and used his talents as a writer and orator to fight for emancipation. Douglass edited an abolitionist newspaper, recruited black regiments during the Civil War, and advised President Lincoln.
________________________________
42: © 2013 Legendary Pictures Productions LLC. Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Alice Walker: Beauty in Truth: Courtesy of Brenda Lawley