Community & Government
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Seven Black thought leaders continue to illuminate Black American experiences. As they look toward the future, they offer clear-eyed discussion to challenge how you think about race and racism in America—and where we go from here.
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Topics include: Part 3: The Future
Lessons from Influential Black Voices
Seven preeminent Black thought leaders share their insight on the reckoning with race in America in three parts: past, present, and future.
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[MUSIC PLAYING] WOMAN: Roll sound. Roll camera. - . Common mark. [SOUND OF CLAPPERBOARD] - Astoundingly, the more you think about it, racism and white supremacy seem like silly, simple, simplistic ways of looking at the world. But they are actually astoundingly complex social phenomena. If they were really simple, they'd be really easy to remove. I think the thing that's important to remember is that Black love is a gravitational force within the Black community. Any time we've seen societal change, it's been because a large number of people were making small contributions in their own way-- - No justice! - No peace! - No justice! - No peace! - --until the tides shifted. And they were able to make large societal change. And I'd say you can be one of those people. [MUSIC PLAYING] - In this specific class, you will learn, as Americans, we don't get to pick and choose which part of the legacy we claim. [INTERPOSING VOICES] - So if you want to claim the great legacy of America, you also have to take on this nation's debt. - Because when people have told you for 400 years certain lies, those lies have effects. And that's why love is always a form of death. There can be no Black love without the attempt to promote the death of White supremacy inside of Black people. KIMBERLE WILLIAMS CRENSHAW: Our telling our stories is the key to bettering this United States of America. If we don't tell our stories, we won't have the opportunity to fix the wrongs that have been done. - But we have to get past this idea that the most glorious thing that a Black person can present themselves as is as a victim. Focusing on obstacles as the most interesting and charismatic thing that we as Black people can dwell upon gets us nowhere. - And we're coming hard. We're coming strong. We're coming in power! - We have to exercise every bit of power that we have at every opportunity. We can't afford to leave any power on the table. - Our goal is to recreate hope generation after generation after generation. - I invite each and every one of you-- have the courage to say, hmm, let me see what this wrestling with White supremacy and Black love is all about. See what we got to say to you. - I'm Nikole Hannah-Jones. - I'm Sherrilyn Ifill. - I'm Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw. - I am Cornel West. - I'm Angela Davis. - I'm John McWhorter. - I'm Jelani Cobb. And this is MasterClass.
About the Instructor
From critical race theory to the 1619 Project, Black intellectuals are reshaping conversations on race in America. Now seven of those preeminent voices share their insight on the reckoning with race in America in three parts: past, present, and future. Gain a foundational understanding of the history of white supremacy and discover a path forward through the limitless capacity and resilience of Black love.
Featured MasterClass Instructor
Angela Davis, Cornel West, Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw, Nikole Hannah-Jones, Sherrilyn Ifill, Jelani Cobb, and John McWhorter
Seven preeminent Black thought leaders share their insight on the reckoning with race in America in three parts: past, present, and future.
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