New season of Why Race Matters available now

Four new episodes available weekly starting Monday, Sept. 12

Why Race Matters, a digital series elevating issues of importance affecting Wisconsin’s Black communities, returns to PBS Wisconsin with four all-new episodes.

The new season starts streaming weekly with the premiere installment released Sept. 12 on whyracematters.org and on the free PBS Video App, streaming devices and Smart TVs.

Host and producer Angela Fitzgerald connects in conversation with everyday people whose work and commitments center on race, identity and achieving racial equity in the state. The program shares the layered, lived experiences of Black people in Wisconsin, exploring topics simultaneously historic and urgent — offering hope, guidance and resources to thrive.

“It is our hope that Why Race Matters sparks conversations, shifts thinking and ultimately continues to provoke the change that we need to become a more equitable Wisconsin,” said the program’s host and producer Angela Fitzgerald.

In the premiere episode of the new season, available now, Fitzgerald speaks with University of Wisconsin-Madison Professor Emerita Dr. Gloria Ladson-Billings to discuss the history of Critical Race Theory, what it is and how it’s used in educational settings.

Premiering Sept. 19, episode two explores higher education and college barriers for students of color. Fitzgerald visits with Tiffany Tardy from All-In Milwaukee, a nonprofit working to improve college retention and graduation rates for students from underserved communities.

Premiering Sept. 26, episode three explores home ownership and the difficulties facing Black home buyers. Fitzgerald speaks with realtor Tiffany Malone and new homeowner Myesha Thompson.

In the season finale premiering Oct. 3, Fitzgerald talks with Milwaukee artist Anwar Floyd-Pruitt about how he incorporates identity into his work and why Black joy is a revolutionary act.

Funding for Why Race Matters is provided by Park Bank, CUNA Mutual Group, UnityPoint Health-Meriter, Madison Area Technical College, Alliant Energy, UW Health, the Focus Fund for Wisconsin Programs, and Friends of PBS Wisconsin.

PBS Wisconsin is a service of the Educational Communications Board and The Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

PBS Wisconsin is a place to grow through learning on WHA-TV, Madison; WPNE-TV, Green Bay; WHRM-TV, Wausau; WLEF-TV, Park Falls; WHLA-TV, La Crosse; and WHWC-TV, Menomonie-Eau Claire.

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