Events By Quarter
Cup of Culture
The Feminist On CellBlock Y
MCC Theater
A convicted felon, Richard Edmond-Vargas, builds a feminist movement from behind bars at an all-male prison in Soledad, California. The movement grew from the education the inmates received by participating in a self-run program, which teaches that to be a “proper man” you don’t have to be emotionless and violent. Post film discussion with Richard Edmond-Vargas himself. 1h 15m
Performance
Rhythm, Rap, and Resistance Rebel Diaz
MCC Theater
Hermanos RodStarz and G1, known as Rebel Diaz, are sons of political refugees from Chile who fled a CIA-funded dictatorship in the 1970s. Revolution raised them, and the culture of Hip-Hop provided them their own Nueva Canción: a genre of music that emerged during the resistance period in Chile. Through rap, Rebel Diaz has been sharing their stories and those of their people; el barrio, the hood, the poor, los inmigrantes. Hip-Hop and a vision for liberation have taken them around the world. Join Rebel Diaz earlier in the day for a workshop on how hip hop can be used as a platform for activism.
Race and Religion
Is There a God on the Mic? Hip Hop’s (Untold) Religious History Josef Sorett
MCC Lounge
At odds with abiding critiques of Hip Hop’s celebration of materialism, misogyny and violence, this talk highlights how religion has long been a centerpiece of the music and culture. Telling the less familiar story of Hip Hop’s religious history, we will cover a range of religious performances from such early artists as KRS-ONE, Tupac and Lauryn Hill up through contemporary figures like Kanye West, Remy Ma, Chance the Rapper, and Kendrick Lamar. Josef Sorett is an Associate Professor of Religion and African-American Studies at Columbia University, where he also directs the Center on African-American Religion, Sexual Politics and Social Justice.
Cup of Culture
Monsters and Men
MCC Theater
Simultaneously subtle and on-the-nose, this original yet under-cooked examination of the pressing issue of police brutality centers on three characters who witnessed the death of a Black man at the hands of a police officer — an eyewitness who captured it all on his phone, an African-American police officer routinely confronted by racism on the job, and a local high school student who’s transformed from passive bystander to activist by the event — who serve as the prismatic lens by which first-time director Reinaldo Marcus Green considers the myriad ramifications of such an event. 1h 38m
