Black Nouveau

(gentle music) (energetic music) Welcome to "Black Nouveau." This is our edition for February. I'm Joanne Williams. This month is Black or African-American History Month, and while we celebrate African-American history all the time here on "Black Nouveau," we want to make you aware of some of the specials that PBS is offering this month. We'll talk with the writer and director of "Chasin' Dem Blues," currently running at the Milwaukee Rep, and we'll visit a class on unlearning racism and talk with two of the teachers. You know, much of our history reflects the struggle for rights. Alexandria Mason shares the story of the 1969 Black Students' Strike at UW Madison. It led to the university's first Black Studies department. -

Alexandria

Bascom Hall is one of many landmarks on the University of Wisconsin Madison's campus. With the Wisconsin state capitol just down the road, the landmark has become an epicenter for student protests over the decades. And in 1969, it became ground zero to one of the campus' largest protests in history, the Black Students' Strike. (mellow music) In the late 60s, white students made up a majority of UW Madison's population, leaving African-American students looking for ways to make the campus feel like their home too. We had more African students, foreigners, than we did American Blacks, African-Americans. So and another issue was subjects, Black Studies. Another issue was faculty. You know, getting more Black faculty. So the issues that we discussed were that. -

Alexandria

These issues were not isolated to UW Madison. Black students took action at UW Oshkosh, reaching their limit on racist encounters. November of 1968, members of the Black Student Union formally delivered demands to the campus president while occupying his office, resulting in what would become known as Black Thursday. 94 students that participated in the uprising were expelled in January of 1969, spurring outrage in students at other UW schools, including Madison. I would say what really got it started here was the Black students being expelled from Oshkosh. And not the reaction of the whites here so much, but the reaction of the Black students, who said "We have to do something," and reached out to progressive white people and said "You gotta work with us here, "on our terms and our demands." -

Alexandria

Weeks later, Wahid Rashad and other Black student leaders followed suit, delivering 13 demands to Chancellor Edwin Young's office. '69 came around, and we said, "Well, we gotta shut this thing down. "We just gotta shut it down." So picked a day, and we went into classrooms and we told people, "Hey, we're on strike." We issued 13 demands, we read them. We went into classrooms and we read it all, and we said, "Who's gonna join us?" Some people got up, some people didn't. -

Alexandria

Among the 13 demands were the Oshkosh 94 be admitted into UW Madison, creation of a Black Studies department, and 500 African-American students be accepted for the fall of 1969. Student activists gave the administration two options. Concede to the demands, or there would be a student strike. Demonstrations came swiftly after Chancellor Young said many of the requests were out of his control. February 10th, upwards of 3,000 students, black and white, officially began boycotting classes and holding rallies. The Black Students Strike would spark a series of disruptions on the UW campus for several weeks. "No one who talks about shutting down the university "can convince me that the welfare and advancement "of Black people is his foremost concern." Chancellor Young said this in a statement. We felt that the only, the greatest power that we had at that point was disruption. And that's why we struck. -

Alexandria

Some days, strikers were met by counter-protestors, erupting into violent confrontations and arrests. -

Frank

My only remembrance, now, this was a long time is basically chaos. We asked people not to go to class. -

Alexandria

Meanwhile, the strikers' tactics grew of a larger concern to the university, and even the governor, sparking a call to National Guard troops. Students met with the intimidation of rifles and the sting of tear gas, but, despite the swelling of chaos, Black students stood firm that the demands were non-negotiable. That was a big, big change, where, you know, you didn't have some white leadership telling the Black students "Here's what's gonna happen." It was a complete change there, which I thought was really salutary, but I know it disturbed a number of people. -

Alexandria

Local residents, companies, and alum around the country wrote letters to the Chancellor, expressing their views on the demonstrators. By the 21st of February, 14 days after the deliverance of the demands, organizers called a moratorium of the strike. It was really a good strike. It eventually was gonna fade, because people were students. They were there to get an education and get a degree. And so eventually we were gonna go to class, write those papers, and move on. So we knew that. -

Alexandria

Less than two weeks later,

the university conceded to a single demand

the creation of a Black Studies department. The university is for everybody. You got people studying science, you got people studying art, and what we're studying is change in the community. You know, uplifting and elevating Black people. And that was the discussion, just straight-up truth. And people could feel that truth. -

Alexandria

the university conceded to a single demand

Last year, on the strike's 50th anniversary, participants returned to campus to tell their story for the first time. Today, the campus' Black Cultural Center holds memories of the Black Students' Strike to remind students like Kingsley of those that fought before them. Sometimes you just kinda forget the past, and kind of getting to look at those who came before us, it was really, like, eye-opening. And I think that they left a larger impact than we initially knew, because now we're trying to, like, foster their footsteps. -

Alexandria

the university conceded to a single demand

And there is still more change to fight for. After a 2019 university homecoming video displayed almost entirely white students, Kingsley and other student activists paid homage to the tactics of the Black Students' Strike. These instances keep occurring, and 50 years ago, they made demands, and they seemed to be effective. So we wanted to do something that kind of implemented and also I guess paid homage to those who ended up making the initial change on campus. It was only years later that I realized the impact that we actually had at the time. And you look back, and you see all of those people, you know, with us. I just, it was beautiful, it was exhilarating. It was like, yeah, it was an affirmation of what people do, it was people power. And it was like, ah, you know, maybe we can do this, after all these years, maybe we can do this. We came where we should be Dive right in I'm goin' where the southern cross the yellow dog I'm goin' where the southern cross the yellow dog I'm goin' where the southern cross the yellow dog The crossroads were quiet when the blues was born -

Everett

the university conceded to a single demand

We're at the tech rehearsal for the Milwaukee Rep's production of "Chasin' Dem Blues." It's currently playing at the Stackner Cabaret. The musical explains how a furniture company on the outskirts of Milwaukee became on of the leading producers of race music in the 1920s. Very interesting story that is a Milwaukee story, a Wisconsin story. And that there was a chair company called The Wisconsin Chair Company, about 30 miles up the road, in Grafton. As an incentive to sell these phonograph cabinets, they began recording artists. Folk artists, immigrant artists. But one particular section of music they started recording were the blues, which was called race music at the time. But they weren't just recording any blues artists. They were recording those who were at the top of the game, so in present-day terms, they were recording the Beyonces of the day, the Michael Jacksons, the high-profile, influential musicians, that they would be ushered into this predominantly all-white, German, Scandinavian, Polish town under the veil of darkness, record, and then be ushered back out. They later hired a man by the name of Mayo Williams, who was an African-American graduate of Brown University, who said "I can help you distribute these records. "I can get these to where you wanna get them to," and the rest is history. Ain't hard to stumble Got no place to fall In this whole wide world, I ain't got no place at all I'm a stranger here, I'm a stranger there I would go home, I would go home But honey, I'm a stranger there What I love about the blues, it's very direct. Right, it doesn't mince words. And most men and women, you know, love directness. Like, I'm very clear on what you just said. You took all my money, and now I'm going to kill you, right, for lack of a better word. It's very direct, oh, you broke my heart, you know, so that's what I love about the blues and the music, and, you know, the fact that folk music, bluegrass music, all of those styles, right, have, I think, something to give back or to at least acknowledge of where it's coming from. Old man Uh-huh, here we come Uh-huh, shining finish From dawn til dusk til dawn -

Everett

the university conceded to a single demand

"Chasin' Dem Blues" is a reworking of "Grafton City Blues," which Ramsey wrote and directed almost a decade ago for the Rep. It's one of a number of historical pieces he has created. (singing in foreign language) New Orleans is surrounded by water. It's like a soup bowl. You got the Mississippi River to the south, and Lake Pontchartrain connect to the Gulf in the north. And being below sea level-- -

Everett

the university conceded to a single demand

"Fire on the Bayou" looked at the impact Hurricane Katrina had on his hometown of New Orleans. Miss Maisy, the only thing an old woman like you can do is bring me a note from a young woman. Well, that's all right, sugar. 'Cause woman's a woman until the day she dies, but a man's only a man as long as he can. -

Everett

the university conceded to a single demand

And "Soultime at the Apollo" was a tribute to the legendary New York theater, which was celebrating its 75th anniversary. Dancing in the street We're dancing in the street We're dancing in the street Dancing in the street, dancing in the street I love music and I love history, right, those are sort of the two worlds that I'm always exploring, of how to theatricalize or to put in film, TV. What do you want people to take away from this production? A sense that we have a shared history. There is no experience like the experience in which Americans share. It's a unique experience, right? And then the sound that pain creates. The transatlantic slave trade created this sound that people imitate. That's fascinating to me, that out of this pain came this music that has helped heal people, that's been like this bond, this sound. I want them to walk away celebrating that. The music will certainly be celebratory. If you're a fan of the blues, PBS has three profiles this month you won't want to miss. Well, I'm just a blues singer. -

Announcer

the university conceded to a single demand

"American Masters" presents B.B. King. Born a sharecropper's son, Riley B. King, he's the king of the blues. B.B. King's not just great. He's like, great. Just like, you know, unbelievable. -

Announcer

the university conceded to a single demand

Join us for his legendary sound and powerful story. "B.B. King, The Life of Riley," on "American Masters." The tears was running down my face -

Announcer

the university conceded to a single demand

We call it rock and roll, but where did this music come from? I'm walking to New Orleans -

Announcer

the university conceded to a single demand

New Orleans, where the great Fats Domino put his boogie woogie spin on rhythm and blues. They call, they call me the fat man -

Announcer

the university conceded to a single demand

And excited a generation of kids who caught the beat and made it their own. People don't really credit rock and roll with integrating America, but it really did. -

Announcer

the university conceded to a single demand

Don't miss "Fats Domino "and the Birth of Rock n' Roll." Crazy, man. -

Announcer

the university conceded to a single demand

On "American Masters." On the documentary front, PBS introduces you to Hollywood's architect, and tackles some important issues. Paul Williams was one of the most gifted architects of the 20th century. -

Woman

the university conceded to a single demand

His legacy of buildings is so wide-ranging. -

Man

the university conceded to a single demand

The first African-American architect to have major crossover appeal to white clientele. He was building homes in neighborhoods that did not allow Blacks to move into those neighborhoods. To see a brother have to go through all he had to go through then, he said "Nothing's gonna stop me." (lively music) -

Announcer

the university conceded to a single demand

The heat wave in Chicago. One of the deadliest heat waves in U.S. history. -

Woman

the university conceded to a single demand

It looked like a war zone. -

Announcer

the university conceded to a single demand

This was a tragedy that should have seared itself into the mind and memory of every American, but it didn't. -

Man

the university conceded to a single demand

Racism and poverty determined who would live and die during the heat wave. It's not really about the heat. It's about a lack of compassion on a lot of parts. The real story is, why were people in these neighborhoods dying? -

Announcer

the university conceded to a single demand

"Cooked: Survival By Zip Code." (haunting music) (energetic music) We talk about racism, we know that there are layers to racism, but there are also layers to micro-aggressions. So the first layer being micro-assaults. -

James

the university conceded to a single demand

This is the Unlearning Racism course, part five of a six-part course taught at the YWCA. This time, the class is learning about micro-aggressions. It's a term that describes actions and words that communicate hostile, negative, and prejudicial slights toward people, especially people in culturally marginalized groups. So I'll give you a story. There were three African-American women that were out to dinner. They were having a grand old time, they were laughing, and a white woman approached them and said "You all are being too loud." And in this conversation, there was a heated discussion, and she left calling them stupid n-words. Now, this was intentional. She was, excuse me, intentionally trying to hurt them. Growing up, you realize that you've been taught, like, dark is usually bad. Like, I think of like, even characters in the different Disney movies, they're usually, they're like the darker skin tone, a different skin tone, they're typically the bad guys. -

James

the university conceded to a single demand

The course offers a safe environment for people to learn about the complexities of race and racism. The facilitators, Martha Barry and Dynasty Caesar, encourage participants to get to know one another through table and full group discussions, activities, readings and reflections on specific topics each session. So how many of your tables would agree that you've witnessed, heard, seen these micro-aggressions? Pretty much everybody. And does anybody as a table have a great way to handle it, like, witnessed it and saw it handled well? Hence our problem. That's why we're here. - Exactly. (laughing) -

James

the university conceded to a single demand

Joining us are YWCA's Racial Justice Director Martha Barry and Racial Justice Trainer Dynasty Caesar. Thanks for joining us. Glad to be here. Martha, so who is the course for? The course is really designed for a mix of people from the community. So we have had a variety of nonprofit people, business folks, folks from government, many independent people who hear about it from friends and decide to take the course. So it's been an eclectic crowd of people that care about race and racial inequities in our community and wanna see those issues get addressed. Dynasty, what goes into the unlearning part of unlearning racism? I think when we talk about unlearning racism, I think it's important for both people, people of color and white people to participate in it, because for people of color, a lot of the times we look at racism from an individual perspective, and so we need to learn more about the depths of it from a systemic perspective. And the same goes for the experience that white people have, so white people not understanding that racial epithets are not the length of where racism exists. And so it allows for us to push on white people to say "How do you address these policies "and practices in the institutions that you represent?" Martha, you know, usually, or typically, when we talk about race, things can get contentious. How do you stop that from happening in your seminars? Yeah, so I set up guidelines, conversation guidelines, so that people feel more comfortable having the difficult conversations. And we encourage people to be honest and real about what they're feeling and experiencing, but often the way that we've made it less contentious is keeping some of the activities around smaller groups, so we do things at tables or people have the opportunity to talk about things. It doesn't mean that people don't disagree. I think they have space for disagreement and ways in which they can raise their questions or their concerns and have people thoughtfully respond to them. So I think there's lots of ways that we can bring down the level, and sometimes it's just us saying we could go all in on that particular topic, and we clearly have some disagreement about it, but let's find a way to talk about it thoughtfully with one another and not about attacking one another or personally feeling as if it's about that person. Many of us have beliefs that just haven't been challenged, and when somebody brings it to our attention that that was a micro-aggression, that was a bias, it can be hard to hear, and we need people to be able to accept that, particularly as a white person. There's lots of things I do that are incorrect in terms of that individual racism, and I need to have people point out to me that I've done something that's been offensive or disconcerting or just is off, and I need to be reminded, take it with a grain of salt, and listen. Dynasty, one thing that I'd noticed, you know, I was one of the few African-Americans in the class, but what can a Black person learn from taking this course? Well, a Black person, it allows Black people or people of color space to understand where white people are coming from, and that for us, we usually think that if you have an education that you know all about racism, right? So if you come into a space and you have a PhD, we assume that you understand racism. That's part of education. But what we find is that that's part of the education that people of color have, and so it allows us to see humanity in white people, but it also gives white people the chance to see humanity in us. We're often times pushing on white people to see us as human beings, and we don't realize that white people have to learn to see humanity in themselves, and so this space allows for us to see both ends of the spectrum. That when we talk about race and racism, sometimes white people are at kindergarten level with understanding what that actually means. Right. Martha, the county executive declared racism a public health crisis. Can you tell me what that means to you? I think it means a lot of things, and I think if you look at our community, particularly Milwaukee, city of, and the county in specific, declaring racism as a health crisis really puts it on the table that many of the issues that the community is facing are those ongoing inequities. So we can look at wealth disparities, we can see how much a white family of four has by way of income versus a family of color. And those same numbers often correlate in terms of home ownership. So you can look at 68% of white folks in the community of Milwaukee own their own homes. It's significantly less for Latino families and even less for African-American. But you can also look at, specifically on health, the inequities around birth rate, birth outcomes. So our young babies are not making it to their first birthday in the same ways that white families' young people are. And so there's many ways in which that health crisis is an important one to address. Okay, thanks for joining us. Thank you for having us. Glad to be here. Before we close tonight, we note the passing of one of Milwaukee's civil rights pioneers, John H. Givens, III. In the 1960s, John Givens went from protesting outside the system to working inside it to affect change. With his daughter Richelle Baylor, we have this remembrance. To look back at all that he's done and own the fact that it was before my time, and some of it I didn't even know. It's very moving. -

Joanne

the university conceded to a single demand

Givens served in the Army, worked for the state, the county, the city, and private businesses, always pushing back on the economic restrictions that kept too many Milwaukeeans from succeeding. The Big Boy story was one that he always talked about. This young man, African-American student at UWM, applied for a bus boy job at Marc's Big Boy on East North Avenue there, right at Farwell and Prospect, on that corner. Its' a different business now. But, and he said, "Well, I went there, "and they told me the job was filled. "And then three days later I see this sign "in the window again, and so I went back again, "and they told me it was filled." And with that, we said, "Okay, you go there "and apply again." So he went and applied, and they told him the job was filled. And we had a white tester just waiting. So as soon as he reported to us that he was told the job was filled, we sent the white tester in. And they told him he could start that afternoon. And that evening, we had a parade of marchers around the Marc's, people were picketing. He always talked about France, how much of a pivot that was for him as far as coming home and seeing the difference in how he lived there and coming here and not having those same opportunities. And that's why he was so passionate about it. -

Joanne

the university conceded to a single demand

When Givens came home from the Army, serving in France, he began his work in Milwaukee with the NAACP, then started the first chapter of Core, the Congress of Racial Equality. He looked at Milwaukee's big industries, and saw no Black managers anywhere, and he wrote them letters. And so if they didn't answer the second letter, that's what they would be met with. We wouldn't call them, we wouldn't write them any more, but they'd look up, pickets would be everywhere. -

Joanne

the university conceded to a single demand

He was arrested demonstrating in Mayor Henry Maier's office. A year later, the mayor hired him to address Milwaukee's issues from inside the system. When I look at that and I look at his legacy and the lineage that comes with that, I'm very proud that one day I'll be able to sit down and talk to my boys about the doors that he's opened for them that they're fortunate enough to not even know were closed. Join us for the next "Black Nouveau"

March 5th at 7

30 p.m. here on Channel 10. We'll meet Major General Marsha Anderson, and explain why it's important that you are counted in the census. You'll find a list of special PBS Black History Month programs, our calendar of events, and our new web exclusives online. So check us out. And that's our program for this month. For "Black Nouveau," I'm Joanne Williams. Thanks for watching. (energetic music)