A California Story: Screening & Panel Discussion
From Coast to Coast: Narrative Power in Action
Join Pillars of the Community on May 21, 5:30PM at The People’s Forum for an exclusive screening of California Story, a groundbreaking documentary that examines gang documentation and surveillance laws targeting communities of color across America. With support from Pillars Fund, we’re thrilled to bring this powerful and urgent documentation work from San Diego directly to New York City.
The Film
California Story features compelling interviews with California Secretary of State Dr. Shirley Weber, renowned scholar Dr. Cornell West, Rep. Sydney Kamlager, investigative reporter Greg Moran, and other leading advocates who expose how California’s discriminatory gang documentation policies criminalized innocent people and destroyed community trust. The film exemplifies Pillars of the Community’s use of documentary as a tool for communities to tell their own stories, amplify movement work, and catalyze policy change to address the harms of surveillance laws in the state.
Hear opening remarks from Director David Kuhn, followed by a screening of the film and a dynamic panel discussion by storytellers, organizers, and academics — Linda Sarsour, Khalid Alexander, Dr. Chenjerai Kumanyika, Dr. Elizabeth Hinton, and Tim Kornegay. They will help us understand how the stories in the film reinforce connections to New York's own history with surveillance and over-policing and demonstrate how narrative power can bridge movements and catalyze policy change. The evening will conclude with an exclusive performance by NYC hip hop duo Rebel Diaz.
Light refreshments will be served.
Doors Open: 5:30PM
Program Starts: 6PM