Overview
Film screening: At your home, via OWN The Oprah Winfrey Network, November 25 through December 13
– Or scroll below to the Photos & Video section to listen to Oprah’s SuperSoul Conversations podcast.
Panel discussion: 7PM on Monday, December 14, via Zoom video conference
After everything that has happened in 2020, where do we go from here?
Join us for the next PSEG True Diversity Film screening at NJPAC, when we’ll look at the tumultuous events of this past year, and talk about what the way forward looks like — and what it ought to look like.
Before we meet, we’ll screen Where Do We Go From Here, a two-part series on the OWN Oprah Winfrey Network, which explores the extraordinary events of 2020 with a range of Black leaders, artists and journalists, including Stacey Abrams, Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, Academy award-nominated filmmaker Ava DuVernay, journalist and Pulitzer prize-winning founder of the “1619 Project” Nikole Hannah-Jones, historian and author Ibram Kendi (“How to be an Anti-Racist”) and actor David Oyelowo (“Selma”), among many others.
This season, the films NJPAC will present through the PSEG True Diversity Film Series will focus on social and racial justice, in response to the uprisings against systemic racism that have spread around the globe in 2020. To continue these presentations safely during the pandemic, we have redesigned this series to work like a book club. We’ll all watch the selected films at our homes, then come together on a Zoom video conference to discuss the film with panelists who can offer context and insight.
We encourage everyone to view Where Do We Go From Here and then join us for not one but two virtual panel discussions.
The first, at 7PM on Monday, December 14, will focus on the youth perspective on social justice, and what progress that has been made — and not made — over the past year. Moderated by hip hop artist and NJPAC Director of Hip Hop Programs Sheikia “Purple Haze” Norris, this panel will bring together high school and university students who are leaders in their communities to discuss the future of the Black Lives Matter movement, the push to defund the police, reparations and what role they believe governments can play in promoting equity.
Our panelists:
Saboor Karriem: A high school scholar and an athlete who competes in multiple sports, Saboor serves as a volunteer of the Newark Homelessness Coalition, where he annually collects warm clothing for neighbors without addresses. He is also a member of the MPAL Safety Ambassador’s Program, Mayor Ras Baraka’s Youth Leadership Development Academy, and the NAACP.
Cyrus Morrell: A sophomore at Georgetown University, studying government, political economy and business, Cyrus grew up in Newark and attended Newark Public Schools. Cyrus has worked with the Newark Chapter NAACP. His goal is to use his knowledge he receives to help build a better life for his community by participating in local politics. Cyrus also plans to serve in the US Armed Forces.
Oluwadamilola Oshewa: A Nigerian-American, born and raised in Newark, Oluwa graduated from Johns Hopkins University in May 2020 with a degree in Neuroscience and is currently a Pre-Health Post Baccalaureate student at the University of Pennsylvania. She is a Black maternal healthcare advocate, an aspiring physician and a certified personal trainer.
Samantha “Sammi” Powell: A sophomore Sociology major at Howard University, Sammi has always been passionate about social justice. She helped spearhead a BlackLivesMatter protest at her alma mater, Newark Academy. She is also the creator of the World On Fire Series, a discussion panel led by Black students, and the founder and co-director of BackingUpBison, a student-run coalition made to assist fellow Bison in need of financial and mental health assistance.
