Immerse yourself in the incredible history, culture, traditions, accomplishments, and contributions of the Black community in America with this list of programs that are airing on PBS KVIE, available to stream for free on the PBS App, or available to stream with PBS KVIE Passport. Discover, reflect, learn, and celebrate Black History Month not only during the month of February, but all year long.

Programs Airing on PBS KVIE

ViewFinder: Voices for Freedom – The Hyers Sisters’ Legacy
February 1 at 7PM

 

Chronicle the lives of Sacramento’s Hyers Sisters, the African American opera prodigies who toured the nation to acclaim from 1871 to 1894 and championed human rights.


Independent Lens: Mr. Soul!
February 7 at 9PM                                             

 

Delve into the story of SOUL!, the first nationally broadcast all-Black variety show on public television, and the enigmatic host and producer Ellis Haizlip.


ViewFinder: Speak My Name and I Shall Live Again
February 8 at 7PM                                             

 

Experience Sacramento resident Sharon Styles emotional journey to find her roots and seeks answers about her family’s place in American history.


KVIE Arts Showcase: African American Art
February 14 at 7PM  

 

Explore history, themes, and heritage of African American art.


Fight the Power: How Hip Hop Changed the World
Series premieres January 31 at 9PM and continues on February 14 at 9PM & February 21 at 9PM and 10PM  

 

Discover hip hop’s political awakening over the last 50 years. With a host of rap stars and cultural commentators, Chuck D tracks Hip Hop’s socially conscious roots.


ViewFinder: African Americans – Civil Rights Era in California
February 15 at 7PM  

 

Examine the many significant, yet unknown, heroes during this turbulent time who honor the spirit, creativity, and determination of African Americans in the 1950s and early 1960s in the Sacramento region.


Programs Available to Stream on the PBS App

American Experience: The American Diplomat

 

Discover how three Black diplomats broke racial barriers at the U.S. State Department during the Cold War. Asked to represent the best of American ideals abroad while facing discrimination at home, they left a lasting impact on the Foreign Service.


Driving While Black

 

Discover how the advent of the automobile brought new mobility and freedom for African Americans but also exposed them to discrimination and deadly violence and how that history resonates today.


Fannie Lou Hamer’s America: An America Reframed Special

 

Explore and celebrate the life Mississippi sharecropper-turned-civil-rights-activist, Fannie Lou Hamer, known in the 1960s and ‘70s for her powerful speeches, soul-stirring songs, and impassioned pleas for equal rights.


KVIE Arts Showcase: Susheel Bibbs

 

Review the broad career of Susheel Bibbs, an actress, filmmaker, scholar, professor, author, and internationally renowned American opera singer.


Studio Sacramento: A Civil Rights Journey 

 

Join Scott Syphax and Attorney Mark T. Harris to examine injustice and racism in the Sacramento region.


Programs Available to Stream on the PBS App with PBS KVIE Passport

PBS KVIE Passport is a benefit of station membership. Members gain extended access to more videos available to stream on the PBS App.

American Masters: How it Feels to be Free

 

Discover the inspiring story of how six iconic African American women entertainers – Lena Horne, Abbey Lincoln, Nina Simone, Diahann Carroll, Cicely Tyson, and Pam Grier – challenged an entertainment industry deeply complicit in perpetuating racist stereotypes and transformed themselves and their audiences in the process.


American Experience: Goin’ Back to T-Town

 

Uncover the story of Greenwood, an extraordinary Black community in Tulsa, Oklahoma, that prospered during the 1920s and 30s despite rampant and hostile segregation. Torn apart in 1921 by one of the worst racially motivated massacres in the nation’s history, the neighborhood rose from the ashes, and by 1936, boasted the largest concentration of Black-owned businesses in the U.S.


American Experience: Jubilee Singers

 

In the chaotic decade following the Civil War, a group of young formerly enslaved singers in Nashville, Tennessee, set out on a mission to save their financially troubled school by giving concerts.


The Black Church: This is Our Story, This is Our Song

 

Explore the 400 year-old story of the Black church in America, all the way down to its bedrock role as the site of African American survival, grace, and endurance.


Muhammad Ali

 

Discover the story of one of the most indelible figures of the 20th century. Three-time heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali captivated millions of fans across the world with his mesmerizing combination of speed, grace, and power in the ring and charm and playful boasting outside of it.


Independent Lens: Ferguson Rises

 

How does a father find purpose in pain? In 2014, Michael Brown Sr.’s son was killed by white police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri, an event that fueled the global Black Lives Matter movement. But his personal story seeking justice and healing has not been told until now.


Making Black America: Through the Grapevine

 

Chronicle the vast social networks and organizations created by and for Black people – beyond the reach of the “White gaze.” Dr. Henry Louis Gates sits with noted scholars, politicians, cultural leaders, and old friends to discuss this world behind the color line and what it looks like today.


Celebrate Black History Month 2023: What to Watch & Stream