Media Contact: publicrelations@shawu.edu
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – 03/13/2023
RALEIGH, N.C. – On Thursday, March 16 beginning at 4 p.m., Shaw University will screen the documentary “The Big Payback” in Estey Hall and then host a debate at 6 p.m. about the film’s topic of reparations with actor, writer and producer Erika Alexander, along with co-director Whitney Dow. Color Farm Media, the team behind the documentary film “The Big Payback,” is partnering with HBCUs to hold a series of National Reparations Debates, inspired by the historic 1965 James Baldwin-William Buckley debate.
The event series is partnering with national ice cream maker Ben & Jerry’s, and company representatives will be on location at Shaw disseminating social impact materials, scooping ice cream, and serving a special, unique menu item in honor of “The Big Payback” film. “The Big Payback” made its broadcast premiere on INDEPENDENT LENS on PBS on Jan. 16, 2023, and is currently streaming for free on the PBS app and online at INDEPENDENT LENS.
About “The Big Payback”: In the summer of 2019, rookie Illinois Alderwoman Robin Rue Simmons ushered in the first legislation of its kind in the United States: Resolution 126-R-19, which devoted funds to local reparations for Black residents in Evanston, Illinois. “The Big Payback” follows Simmons as she leads the community in the uphill battle to obtain reparations—payments meant to correct for the historic systematic bias inflicted upon descendants of African American slaves. The film is co-directed by Erika Alexander (“Living Single,” “John Lewis: Good Trouble”) and Whitney Dow (“Two Towns of Jasper,” “Whiteness Project”).
Shaw University, located in Raleigh, North Carolina, is the first historically Black institution of higher education founded in North Carolina and is among the oldest in the nation. The University was founded in 1865 by Henry Martin Tupper. Dr. Paulette Dillard currently serves as the University’s 18th President. For more information, visit: www.shawu.edu
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