WXXI in Rochester, N.Y., is teaming up with a local museum to encourage a community dialogue on race relations. The Rochester Museum & Science Center is hosting “Race: Are We So Different?” The traveling exhibit from the American Anthropological Association examines the history, human variations and personal experiences surrounding racial differences.
WXXI-FM produced five feature-length reports prior to the exhibit’s Jan. 19 opening. The reports aired during Morning Edition and All Things Considered and examined the political and cultural history of racism, the science and genetics of human biological diversity, the link between race and health, and other matters. WXXI Radio’s daily 1370 Connection public affairs show also is producing four one-hour programs with WDKX-FM, a local urban contemporary station, which run weekly through Feb. 6.
On Jan. 31 the station hosts a screening of The Central Park Five, the documentary by Ken and Sarah Burns on five black and Latino teenagers wrongly convicted of rape. And in February, the WXXI Listening Booth will be at the museum to capture community stories.
Related content is online at wxxi.org/race. The work is backed by a grant from the New York Council for the Humanities.