Local, USA

Indie Films Series / 8 Seasons

Culled from public television stations and independent producers from across the country, LOCAL, USA is a half-hour series featuring fascinating stories of diverse people, curated around a single theme.

26m 49s / TV-PG

Silence in Sikeston | Beyond the Lens with Cara Anthony

8m 12s / TV-PG

Cara Anthony talks about SILENCE IN SIKESTON and the exploration of health - physical, mental and emotional - when trauma lives in the body. The KFF Health News Midwest correspondent shares how working on the project revealed a piece of family history that parallels the racial violence and silence seen and talked about in the film and podcast.

Silence in Sikeston | Before Lynching Became a Crime

56s / TV-PG

In 1942, Cleo Wright was lynched by a white mob before Sikeston, Missouri's Black community. Wright's death was the first federally investigated lynching but not before 3,842 had occurred around the country. Before the 2022 Emmett Till Antilynching Act, an anti-lynching campaign that began in the late 1800s, and led by Ida B. Wells, the NAACP and many activists, aimed to make the offense a crime.

Silence in Sikeston | Preview

30s / TV-PG

The story of how the 1942 lynching of Cleo Wright - and the subsequent failure of the first federal attempt to prosecute a lynching - continues to haunt the small city of Sikeston, Missouri. Then, in 2020, the community is faced with the police killing of a young Black father. The film SILENCE IN SIKESTON explores the necessary questions about history, trauma, silence and resilience over 78 years.

Silence in Sikeston | Trailer

1m 17s / TV-PG

The story of how the 1942 lynching of Cleo Wright - and the subsequent failure of the first federal attempt to prosecute a lynching - continues to haunt the small city of Sikeston, Missouri. Then, in 2020, the community is faced with the police killing of a young Black father. The film SILENCE IN SIKESTON explores the necessary questions about history, trauma, silence and resilience over 78 years.

Silence in Sikeston | Love & Grief for a Young, Black Father

59s / TV-PG

In 2020, Denzel Taylor's life was cut short in a police shooting. His mother, Jean Kelly, shares pieces of his story as a son, father and young, Black man who had much more to give to his loved ones in Chicago and Sikeston.

Silence in Sikeston | Witnesses to a Lynching

59s / TV-PG

Carleen Harrington and Mable Cook were only girls growing up in Sikeston, Missouri when Cleo Wright was lynched by a white mob in front of the Black community. The violence of that 1942 day haunted these two young residents, and the small city, for decades leaving them silent to the situation. Now, they are sharing how the experience affected them.

American Problems, Trans Solutions | My Sistah's House

35s / TV-PG

Kayla Gore knows about being unhoused. The founder and executive director of My Sistah's House shares her dream for the Memphis organization and the transgender people who find housing through them.

American Problems, Trans Solutions | The Meaning of Home

47s / TV-PG

What does home mean to you? Kayla Gore, the founder and executive director of My Sistah's House, shares her own story of homelessness and home ownership. Gore also talks about housing for Memphis, Tennessee's Black transgender people, and what she hopes her organization accomplishes today and in the future.

American Problems, Trans Solutions | Trailer

1m 10s / TV-PG

In the U.S., Black trans people are among the most marginalized of marginalized Americans.  Award-winning journalist Imara Jones shares the stories of trans leaders Kayla Gore, Breonna McCree, and Oluchi Omeoga who, despite the record-breaking number of anti-trans bills passed in 2023, are addressing critical issues surrounding economic empowerment and human dignity with heart and vision.

American Problems, Trans Solutions | Preview

30s / TV-PG

In the U.S., Black trans people are among the most marginalized of marginalized Americans.  Award-winning journalist Imara Jones shares the stories of trans leaders Kayla Gore, Breonna McCree, and Oluchi Omeoga who, despite the record-breaking number of anti-trans bills passed in 2023, are addressing critical issues surrounding economic empowerment and human dignity with heart and vision.

American Problems, Trans Solutions | Believing in You

55s / TV-PG

Breonna McCree, the co-executive director of The Transgender District in San Francisco's Tenderloin neighborhood, shares her own personal story of being told no and how it affected her for years. McCree's mindset changed when she met someone that believed in her and life would never be the same from that point on.

American Problems, Trans Solutions | Black LGBTQIA+ Migrant Project

25s / TV-PG

Oluchi Omeoga, the co-director of the Black LGBTQIA+ Migrant Project (BLMP) talks about the origins of the Minneapolis, MN organization. They center their work at the intersection of race, gender identity and immigration which Omeoga understands as a Black trans leader/activist whose family is Igbo of Nigeria.

Public Enemies, Private Friends | Trailer

1m 20s / TV-PG

On December 30, 1994, a man entered two abortion clinics in Brookline, MA. By day's end, two women were dead, five wounded, and a community was left mourning. Thus began a clandestine dialogue between leaders of the pro-choice and pro-life movements and the beginning of the most unlikely friendship.

Public Enemies, Private Friends | Preview

30s / TV-PG

On December 30, 1994, a man entered two abortion clinics in Brookline, MA. By day's end, two women were dead, five wounded, and a community was left mourning. Thus began a clandestine dialogue between leaders of the pro-choice and pro-life movements and the beginning of the most unlikely friendship.

Chinatown Auxiliary | Protecting the Community

47s / TV-PG

The auxiliary police of New York City's Chinatown is made up of Chinese seniors who volunteer their time to patrol the neighborhood. Auxiliary Chiu shares his own story as to why he joined and the need for him and his fellow members to keep connecting with the community - to protect and serve the Asian and Asian American residents from hate, especially in the time of the pandemic.

Chinatown Auxiliary | Running from War

41s / TV-PG

David, a member of the NYPD volunteer police in Manhattan's Chinatown, shares the story of his father's escape from China and immigration to the United States. His father endured war and advised his son to do as he did. But he questions whether America is safe for him in a time of hate.

Chinatown Auxiliary | Preview

30s / TV-PG

For decades, Chinese residents have patrolled Manhattan's Chinatown as NYPD volunteer police to protect the few blocks they call home while finding belonging in a foreign, unwelcoming country. From the savage tribulation in the '70s to “Asian Hate” during the pandemic, these stories remind us of the hope the U.S. represented to the tired, the poor, and the huddled masses yearning to belong.

Chinatown Auxiliary | Trailer

1m 14s / TV-PG

For decades, Chinese residents have patrolled Manhattan's Chinatown as NYPD volunteer police to protect the few blocks they call home while finding belonging in a foreign, unwelcoming country. From the savage tribulation in the '70s to “Asian Hate” during the pandemic, these stories remind us of the hope the U.S. represented to the tired, the poor, and the huddled masses yearning to belong.

Chinatown Auxiliary | New York City's Chinatown

1m / TV-PG

In New York City's Chinatown, senior residents have weathered change in their Manhattan neighborhood. These immigrants, and members of the auxiliary police, have seen waves of crime and prosperity over the years that put them and their fellow neighbors at risk. But police presence during that time also caused unease as they did not have a relationship of trust with law enforcement.

Against the Current: Life on the Eastern Shore | Organic Farming

58s / TV-PG

Thelonius Cook, who owns and manages an organic farm on Virginia's Eastern Shore, talks about the challenges of farming with climate change affecting agriculture. Cook shares how water in the form of heavy rains, run off and flooding has destroyed his crops, and why this may be the future.

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