Crash Course Black American History realease date, trailers, images and where to stream

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EP19 Reconstruction Sep 24, 2021

EP20 Ida B. Wells Oct 08, 2021

In this video, we'll learn about the life story of journalist, orator, teacher, suffragette, and anti-lynching activist Ida B. Wells-Barnett. Ida B. Wells made her name writing and speaking and working to improve the lives of Black Americans. She wrote for a number of outlets, and covered a wide array of issues.

EP21 Plessy v Ferguson and Segregation Oct 15, 2021

The United States' Constitution is not a very detailed document. It lays out the basic structure of government, and the details are filled in with legislation, and clarified and reinforced by court decisions. One of the most consequential Supreme Court decisions was the 1896 case of Plessy v Ferguson, which set the precedent that segregating people by race was acceptable. This meant that every public accommodation had the right to refuse to serve Black Americans, and that even public institutions like schools could be segregated. While the decision did stipulate that the segregated accommodations be "separate but equal," the equal part of that equation was often left out.

EP22 Booker T. Washington and W.E.B DuBois Oct 23, 2021

As the 19th century gave way to the 20th, Black Americans were searching for ways to think about how and where they would fit into a post-slavery society. There were several competing schools of thought. Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Dubois were essential to some of the most prominent ideas in this arena.

EP23 The Black Women's Club Movement Oct 29, 2021

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Black American Women were struggling with both racism and misogyny as they fought for their rights. Black Women formed clubs and organized to make sure civil and political rights were extended to ALL Black people, not just Black men. These clubs were grass-roots organizations of middle-class women who were often only one generation removed from slavery. Today we'll learn about the origins of these clubs and some of the notable women who drove this movement.

EP24 The Great Migration Nov 06, 2021

In 1910, 90% of Black Americans lived in the South. By 1940, around 1.5 million Black Americans had left their homes, and 77% lived in the South. By 1970, 52% of Black Americans remained in the South. People moved away for many reasons, including increased opportunity in the more industrial North and West. They sought a relatively safer life away from the lynchings and violence that were concentrated in the South. This Great Migration shaped 20th century America in countless ways, but we're going to try to count some of them in this video.

EP25 The Red Summer of 1919 Nov 12, 2021

During the Red Summer of 1919 violence against Black people broke out across the United States. Black people and neighborhoods were attacked in Washington DC, Chicago, Tulsa, and many other cities and towns across the country. Post-war tension over jobs and civil rights and populations shifts like the Great Migration led white Americans to lash out.

EP26 Arts and Letters of the Harlem Renaissance Nov 19, 2021

The Harlem Renaissance was one of the richest, most vibrant, and most culturally generative artistic periods in American history and the work that emerged from that period continues to shape the landscape of American arts and letters today. In this episode, we’re going to explore some of the writers, artists, and musicians who turned Harlem into a world-renowned hub of art and culture, and delve into the factors that brought them all together in the first place.

EP27 Political Thought in the Harlem Renaissance Dec 04, 2021

When we think about the Harlem Renaissance, the arts come immediately to mind. But new political theories were also blossoming during this time. We'v talked about Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois, but today we'll get into some other thinkers with different ideas about civil rights, fair labor practices, and Black nationalism.

EP28 The Great Depression Dec 11, 2021

During economic crises, marginalized communities are more susceptible to the harms and struggle that come with these downturns. Today we'll talk about the Great Depression, which lasted from 1929 until the US entered World War II. This depression profoundly changed the US economy, and we'll focus on how the depression impacted Black Americans.

EP29 The Tuskegee Experiment Dec 24, 2021

From 1932 to 1972, the United States Public Health Service and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention operated an extremely unethical medical experiment on the effects of outcomes of untreated syphilis. Hundreds of poor Black men from Macon County, Alabama were enrolled in the study, and treatment for syphilis was withheld from them. Even after antibiotics became available that could cure syphilis, these men were left to suffer from the disease and to expose their families to syphilis as well. Today we're learning about the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment, a shameful example of racism in American medicine, and a tragedy that still impacts how many Black Americans think about healthcare today.

EP30 Zora Neale Hurston Jan 08, 2022

The Harlem Renaissance produced many remarkable artists, writers, and thinkers. Today we'll talk about one of the most interesting minds of the time, Zora Neale Hurston. Hurston was an anthropologist by training, and spent much of her career studying and documenting the lives of Black people in the southern US. She later went on to write several remarkable novels, including Their Eyes Were Watching God, which we discussed in Crash Course Literature.

EP31 World War II Jan 15, 2022

Black Americans have long fought in America's wars, very often fighting for a country that doesn't always fight for them. Today we'll learn about the experience of Black Americans in World War II. We'll look at the ways Black men and women served in the armed services during the war, and look at life on the homefront.

EP32 Randolph, Rustin, and the Origins of the March on Washington Jan 28, 2022

The March on Washington of 1963 is an enduring and widely-known event of the Civil Rights movement. But the March has its roots in an earlier planned March on Washington that didn't happen. In 1941, labor leader A. Philip Randolph began planning a gathering aimed at many of the same goals as the eventual 1963 March. Today we'll learn about Randolph, Bayard Rustin, the march they planned, and the movement it inspired. We'll also talk about how the dream of the 1941 march was ultimately deferred for more than 20 years.

EP33 School Segregation and Brown v Board Feb 11, 2022

In 1955, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that public schools should be racially integrated, and overturned the separate but equal doctrine established in Plessy v Ferguson decades before. This was made possible by a concerted legal effort spearheaded by the NAACP. Beginning in the 1930s, the NAACP's legal defense fund (led by Thurgood Marshall at the time of the Brown Decision) pursued a strategy of bringing cases to court that would expand the civil rights of Black Americans. This multi-decade effort culminated in the Brown decision, with many other victories along the way.

EP34 Emmett Till Mar 12, 2022

In 1955, a 14 year old boy named Emmett Till was brutally murdered in Money, Mississippi. The white men who murdered him killed him for being Black. Emmett Till's mother chose to have an open casket funeral, and show the world what had been done to her son. Despite the killers being acquitted in court, the story of Emmett Till and the jarring images of his funeral shocked the nation and were a vital catalyst in turning the civil rights movement into a nationwide phenomenon.

EP35 The Montgomery Bus Boycott Mar 26, 2022

For 381 days in 1955 and 1956, the Black citizens of Montgomery, Alabama boycotted the city bus system. Black riders had been mistreated on public transit all over the country for decades, and the national coverage of the Montgomery Bus Boycott intensified the public conversation about Civil Rights. By the time the Supreme Court decided that discrimination on busses was a violation of the 14th amendment, boycott leaders like Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr were household names and the Civil Rights movements was on the national stage.

EP36 Martin Luther King, Jr Apr 09, 2022

Today we're going to learn about perhaps the best-known leader in the Civil Rights Era, Martin Luther King, Jr. From his rise to notoriety during the Montgomery Bus Boycott in 1955, his leadership of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the March on Washington in 1963, his work toward the Civil Rights and Voting Rights Acts of the mid-1960s, and his assassination in 1968, Dr. King is very broadly known. But maybe he isn't that well understood. Like many extremely famous people, Martin Luther King can sometimes be drawn as a bit of a flat character, and his ideas can be reduced to platitudes. Today we'll try to give you a fuller picture of the man and leader he was.

EP37 Student Civil Rights Activism Apr 23, 2022

A wide range of Americans contributed to the Civil Rights Movement in the 1950s and 1960s. Students and young people were a prominent group of activists within the movement. Today, we'll learn about the Little Rock Nine, the Greensboro Four, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, and the Freedom Riders. These groups undertook protests and worked to integrate schools and public accommodations by riding segregated buses, demanding service at lunch counters, and even by simply attending school.

EP38 Malcolm X and the Rise of Black Power May 10, 2022

In the late 1950s and the early to mid-1960s, a Muslim minister named Malcolm X rose to prominence in the United States during the struggle for Civil Rights. Malcolm X was a member of and spokesperson for the Nation of Islam, and he was a vocal advocate for Black empowerment. His views differed significantly from a lot of the well-known Civil Rights activists of the day, and his views evolved during his ministry. Today, we’ll learn about Malcolm X’s origins, his work with the Nation of Islam, his break from that organization, and his eventual assassination.

EP39 The Black Panther Party May 24, 2022

Many organizations have made it their mission to expand the rights of Black Americans. The NAACP and the Urban League are examples of influential organizations with long histories. But a long history or extensive membership isn't always necessary to have an impact. Today, we'll learn about the Black Panthers. They were a relatively small, relatively short-lived political party that had an outsized impact on US history.

EP40 Women and the Black Power Movement Jun 14, 2022

Women have been a powerful (and largely underappreciated) force in the movement for Black equality in the United States. The Black Power Movement is no exception to that trend. Today, we'll learn about how women contributed to several organizations, including the Black Panthers. We'll also explore how the Black Arts Movement served as a way for women to empower Black People through creative output.

EP41 Marsha P. Johnson and the Stonewall Rebellion Jun 30, 2022

Today we’re learning about Marsha P. Johnson and the Stonewall rebellion. Serving as a pivotal moment in the modern Gay Rights Movement, Stonewall began on June 28th, 1969, and lasted six days in New York City’s Greenwich Village. And even though the rebellion lasted less than a week, the reverberations lasted for generations. Out of Stonewall emerged the establishment of one of the first gay pride parades, increased activism and organizing on behalf of gay people, and greater attention paid to the rights and needs of LGBTQ+ communities.

EP42 The War on Drugs Jul 13, 2022

The War on Drugs is a decades-long United States policy intended to curb illegal drug use and trafficking. Long story short: it has not worked to reduce drug use or trade, and the policy has had devastating effects, especially on communities of color. Today we'll talk about the history of the War on Drugs, what it was trying to accomplish, and how it contributed to the US as a carceral state, and the nation that imprisons more of its population than any country in the world.

EP43 Shirley Chisholm Jul 27, 2022

In 1972, Shirley Chisholm ran for president of the United States of America as a Democrat. She didn't win, but this was not the beginning or the end of her career in politics. She held a congressional seat in the New York delegation for decades, and Shirley was a pioneer on many fronts. Today we'll learn about her life, her career, and her legacy.

EP44 Jesse Jackson Aug 09, 2022

Today, Clint Smith is teaching you about the Civil Rights activist and Icon, Reverend Jesse Jackson. Jackson began his career working with Martin Luther King in the 1960s, and in the 1970s he founded PUSH, an organization to advance the cause of urban, poor, and predominantly Black communities. Jackson ran for president of the United States in 1984 and 1988, and founded another organization, the Rainbow Coalition. Jackson has worked for decades for the cause of Civil Rights and his long career as served as a bridge from the work of the 1960s to the movement for Black lives today.

EP45 Los Angeles Uprisings Aug 26, 2022

In this episode of Black American History, Clint Smith teaches you about the complicated history of racial tension in South Central Los Angeles. You'll learn about the Watts Rebellion of 1965, a 6-day uprising in response to police brutality that shaped the landscape of racial tension in southern California for years to come. This tension culminated in two major events -- the murder of Latasha Harlins and the beating of Rodney King in 1991 -- which incited the L.A. Uprisings of 1992.

EP46 Anita Hill and Clarence Thomas Sep 07, 2022

Today, Clint will teach you about the Supreme Court confirmation hearing of Clarence Thomas. During the screening process, Anita Hill came forward alleging that Thomas had sexually harassed her when the two of them worked together at the Department of Education. The public response to Hill's allegations was tense and split the Black American community along gendered lines. Thomas's nomination was ultimately confirmed by a margin of 52-48, and he became the second Black American appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

EP47 Rap and Hip Hop Sep 20, 2022

Music is an integral part of Black American culture. Today, Clint Smith will teach you about rap & hip hop, and the cultural significance of artists including Public Enemy, Wu-Tang Clan, the Notorious B.I.G., Tupac, N.W.A., Queen Latifah, and Missy Elliott. And he just might break dance while doing it.

EP48 Toni Morrison Oct 06, 2022

Today, Clint Smith will teach you about the legendary writer Toni Morrison. Morrison is best known for her novels which chronicle the experiences of Black Americans throughout history. She was the first Black American Woman to win a Nobel Prize for Literature.

EP49 Hurricane Katrina Oct 19, 2022

In this episode, Clint Smith details his experience as a teenager in New Orleans when Hurricane Katrina made landfall in 2005. The widespread devastation of Hurricane Katrina was a result of faulty levees and a fumbled response by FEMA, and it hit Black residents the hardest. Today, we'll take a closer look at the structural racism that made this disaster so catastrophic.

EP50 Barack Obama Nov 02, 2022

Barack Obama was the first Black man elected President in the United States in 2008. In this episode, Clint Smith will explore the early life, political career, presidential campaign, and legislative milestones of Barack Obama.

EP51 Black Lives Matter Nov 09, 2022

In the final episode of Crash Course Black American History, Clint Smith teaches you about the Black Lives Matter movement. We'll discuss some of the major events that contributed to the rise of BLM, including the deaths of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and George Floyd, and the way that social media was utilized by Black organizers to gain support for the movement.

2| 0h30m| en

Synopsis

Over the course of 50 episodes, we're going to learn about Black American History. Clint Smith will to teach you about the experience of Black people in America, from the arrival of the first enslaved Black people who arrived at Jamestown all the way to the Black Lives Matter movement.

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Complexly