Community Conversation: Race and Privilege-a Backyard Perspective, Monroe County Public Library Auditorium, 303 E. Kirkwood Ave., Bloomington, IN

WFHB’s Interchange will host a panel discussion moderated by Dr. Amrita Myers that focuses on topics prompted by the highly publicized police shootings of unarmed Black Americans in recent years and the subsequent rise of the Black Lives Matter movement. Hosted by Doug Storm, topics to be discussed include race, racism, privilege, and policing, with special emphasis on the local. From Ferguson to Charlotte, a national dialogue is underway about the status of race and racism in the United States. But how are things here, in Bloomington and other communities in South Central Indiana? Many suggest that racism is institutionalized within the United States, and thus operates in ways both seen and hidden. This discussion seeks to interrogate our own community.

The panel includes Berenice Sanchez, current doctoral student at IU’s School of Education and past Assistant Director of La Casa Cultural Latina at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Rasul Mowatt, Associate Professor of American Studies and Associate Chair and Associate Professor in Recreation, Park and Tourism Studies with the School of Public Health; Jennifer Brooks, co-chair of Showing Up for Racial Justice – Bloomington; and William Morris, Civil Rights Attorney and member of the Bloomington Civil Rights Commission. The panel is moderated by Amrita Myers, Associate Professor in the Department of History and Gender Studies. Audience participation will be encouraged.