PBS has announced a new six-part series presented by noted Harvard scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr. entitled “The African Americans: Many Rivers to Cross.” The program will chronicle African-American history “from slavery to freedom and from the plantation to the White House,” according to a press release.
The six-hour series, which will premiere on October 22 at 8 p.m. ET, is both written and recounted by Professor Gates. It will follow his travels across the United States as he visits historical sites, interviews eyewitnesses, and partakes in debates with some of America’s top historians, in his exploration of the African American experience.
“The story of the African-American people is the story of the settlement and growth of America itself, a universal tale that all people should experience,” says Gates. “Since my senior year in high school, when I watched Bill Cosby narrate a documentary about black history, I’ve longed to share those stories in great detail to the broadest audience possible, young and old, black and white, scholars and the general public. I believe that my colleagues and I have achieved this goal through ‘The African Americans: Many Rivers to Cross.’”
A companion book of the same name, written by Professor Gates and Donald Yacovone, which will go more in depth about the events featured on the show, will be released on October 1. Once the series airs, you can find more information and interactive features on the show’s website.
