GODFREY – Join an exploration and discussion of the history and culture of systemic racism and stigmas around poverty and public housing with Lewis and Clark Community College this November during a free, virtual discussion with Filmmaker Chad Friedrichs from “The Pruitt-Igoe Myth.”
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“It’s a timeless study on racial segregation, framed around the organization of the communities in and around St. Louis,” said L&C Associate Professor of Sociology Jen Cline, who shows the film in her interdisciplinary honors social science course every year. “It lifts the veil on experiences that some of us have only seen or heard from an outside perspective and encourages discussion around creating better public resources – in this case, public housing. It’s a fantastic documentary, and it’s especially impactful because it hits so close to home.”
“The Pruitt-Igoe Myth,” a 2011 documentary film, tells the story of the transformation of the American city in the decades after World War II, through the lens of the infamous Pruitt-Igoe housing development and the St. Louis residents who called it home. The world-famous image of its implosion has helped to perpetuate a myth of failure which has been used to critique Modernist architecture, attack public assistance programs, and stigmatize public housing residents, according to the film’s website, www.pruitt-igoe.com.
This free event, co-sponsored by the L&C Honors College and L&C Diversity Council, will be held from 7-8 p.m., Thursday, Nov. 12 on Zoom. Participants must pre-register to participate at bit.ly/Pruitt-IgoeRSVP. Zoom meeting details will be emailed to participants prior to the event start.
Friedrichs will spend an hour taking questions from participants and sharing insights on topics related to the film.
“Diversity is a core component of the college’s mission, and it’s important that we understand this in the context of the communities and times that we live in,” said Diversity Council Chair Peter Hussey. “We hope members of the public will take advantage of this unique opportunity to engage with our campus community and the filmmaker around this important topic.”
Anyone who hasn’t already seen the film can stream the movie online on Vimeo, Amazon Prime or PlutoTV, among others.
For more information on this event, contact Cline at jacline@lc.edu.
To learn more about the L&C Honors College, visit www.lc.edu/honorscollege. To learn more about the L&C Diversity Council, visit www.lc.edu/diversity.
Find this event and more by following Lewis and Clark on Facebook, www.facebook.com/lewisandclarkcc.
