We are all deeply troubled by recent events involving the tragic killings of Black Americans. As our city, state and nation react, we once again see the sad truths about racism, inequality and injustice. We each experience these heartbreaking events in different ways and recognize that it is even more painful and distressing for our community members who are Black. WGBH stands against racism and inequity and is committed to advancing understanding, tolerance and justice.

Many of you look to public media to help create a more just and informed society. In the days, weeks and months ahead, we are planning special programs that will serve as common ground for all of us as we examine these issues together.

True to our mission, we have created this resource page for easy access to a wide range of relevant content.

Among the historical and contemporary perspectives on racism you’ll find on the site:

  • Tonight there is a special edition of Basic Black. Host Callie Crossley will examine whether the protests in the wake of the killing of George Floyd are a passing moment or the catalyst for real change around racism, Black life, and police brutality. You can watch tonight’s episode at 7:30pm on WGBH 2 or streaming on the Basic Black Facebook and Twitter channels.
  • Information about tonight’s one-hour premiere at 9pm, Race Matters: America in Crisis, a PBS NewsHour special anchored by Judy Woodruff with contributions from senior national correspondent Amna Nawaz, correspondent Yamiche Alcindor and special correspondent Charlayne Hunter-Gault.
  • This interview with James Baldwin at a similar painful impasse in our history, weeks before the March on Washington
  • The 1968 James Brown concert WGBH aired in a tense Boston, the day after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr.
  • FRONTLINE’S Policing the Police, which first aired four years ago.
  • The FRONTLINE Dispatch podcast “Race, the Police and the Pandemic.”

It is moments like these that call forward public media’s purpose. But we also acknowledge that there is still more we must do to contribute meaningfully to the local and national dialogue, bringing people together and championing just, inclusive communities.

WGBH remains committed to ending all forms of racism. We will continue to focus even more on the vital issues of diversity, inclusion, opportunity and equity. And we will work toward a day when every person is treated justly and with the dignity, respect and kindness they deserve.