Explore below and discover North Carolina's many connections to Black history in the US. Visit Raleigh for films about the oldest HBCU in the South and the history of Oberlin, a town built by formerly enslaved and free Black people. Learn more about Harvey Gantt, a prominent and pioneering figure in NC politics. Discover how the joy of golf broke barriers in Asheville.
All films are available for streaming online and on the free PBS Video app. More films and series will be added throughout the month. Be sure to check back often for the latest!
Revealing how a historic preservation project has helped recover the story of a once-thriving town near Raleigh built after the Civil War by formerly enslaved and free Black people. Oberlin had more than 1200 inhabitants before being paved over in the name of progress. The renovation of two 1880s houses by Preservation North Carolina has exposed remarkable stories about the families who lived there.
Oberlin: A Village Rooted in Freedom is streaming now online and on the free PBS Video app.
Shaw University started in December 1865 with a Bible class for newly freed slaves in Raleigh, NC. Fighting vicious prejudice in the aftermath of the Civil War and the Jim Crow South, Shaw rose to become a co-educational college, a medical school, law school & divinity school.
Shaw Rising is streaming now online and on the free PBS Video app.
Durham-native Henry "Mickey" Michaux was elected to the North Carolina General Assembly in 1972. He served until 1977 and again between 1989-2019. Michaux was the first African American United States Attorney in South, and was in that role from 1977-1980. FRONT ROW host Marc Rotterman sat down for a special one-on-one interview with Michaux in 2019.
A Conversation with Henry "Mickey" Michaux is streaming now online and on the free PBS Video app.
In 1960, a talented African American student from Charleston, Harvey Gantt, graduated from high school and decided to become an architect. Clemson College was the only school in South Carolina that offered a degree in his chosen field. In January of 1963, with the help of NAACP lawyer Matthew J. Perry, Gantt won a lawsuit against Clemson and was peacefully admitted to the college.
The Education of Harvey Gantt is streaming now online and on the free PBS Video app.
Harvey Gantt's recollects his journey from his childhood in South Carolina, to his solo integration of Clemson College in 1963, and his political career as the first African American Mayor of Charlotte. This three-part series premiered in 2016.
Biographical Conversations with Harvey Gantt is streaming now online and on the free PBS Video app.
Harvey Gantt traces the future Charlotte mayor’s path from his childhood in Charleston, SC
A jovial love letter to the game of golf, told by the Black golfers who, despite segregation and racist systems, built a vibrant culture and lasting community on a municipal golf course in Asheville, NC. Narrated by popular singer and golfer Darius Rucker, and directed by Paul Bonesteel.
Muni is streaming now online and on the free PBS Video app.
EXPLORE MORE
In March 2021, REEL SOUTH series producer Nick Price led an engaging discussion with Muni filmmaker Paul Bonesteel and golfer C.Y. Young (featured in the film), highlighting how this story came to film, the history of the groundbreaking Skyview Annual Pro Am Golf Tournament and the state of golf in Asheville today.
STREAM ANYTIME, ANYWHERE
