BANISHED (ITVS Community Cinema Cafe - January) January 13, 2008

From the 1860s to the 1920s, dozens of towns and counties across America practiced their own form of racial cleansing, violently expelling entire African American communities and forcing thousands of black families to flee their homes. A century later, these towns remain virtually all white. In BANISHED, filmmaker Marco Williams travels to three of these communities and asks: what can be done today to repair past injustice?

BANISHED brings to light this hidden chapter of American history, telling these dramatic stories for the first time. Williams (Two Towns of Jasper) goes to these communities, following black descendants as they return to learn the shocking history of the towns where their ancestors once lived, and to speak with current white residents struggling to come to terms with their past.

After the screening: Q&A on African American genealogy with MARY N. ELLIOTT on the Elliott, Gandy, and Randall Families (Mississippi and Oklahoma); and CHAR McCARGO BAH, professional genealogist, historian and author.Tickets: http://www.communitycinema-dc.org

Official Website: https://spongecell.com/event/view/491301