Ava DuVernay will host a special centered on the caste in America that will debut on ABC owned TV stations and Hulu later this month, TheWrap can reveal exclusively.
Drawing from themes of caste discussed within DuVernay’s film, “Origin,” “Our America: Hidden Stories with Ava DuVernay” will examine how caste functions in the country through the lenses of racism, sexism and other human hierarchies in an effort to engage, inform and inspire viewers.
The special, which hails from DuVernay’s Array Filmworks and ABC owned television stations, kicks off on Sunday, July 14 across ABC Owned Television Stations linear and digital platforms, and will be available to steam on Hulu on July 19.
“I teamed up with ABC owned television stations journalists across the country to take a deeper dive into this complex phenomenon of caste, and how it affects everything — our families, our personal lives — and how learning can change the lives of many communities for the better,” DuVernay said in the trailer. “To understand the present, we have to uncover the hidden stories of the past.
Featuring interviews in Los Angeles, Houston and New York, the special will unpack DuVernay’s insights into the making of “Origin” and the takeaways with which she hopes audiences leave the film, as well as discuss the attempted ban of Isabel Wilkerson’s “Caste” in Texas schools.
The “Selma” filmmaker also dissects the differences between caste, class and all the “isms” alongside WABC-TV anchor Sade Baderinwa, spotlighting how discrimination can be supported by seemingly hidden systems of dominance.
The special will conclude with a roundtable filled with current college students, who discuss their passions, concerns and their hopes to drive societal change.
Through these segments, “Our America: Hidden Stories with Ava DuVernay aims to bring viewers’ attention to their role in caste system and the responsibility individuals have to influence positive change in one’s communities and country. To supplement the special’s educational experience, viewers can make use of DuVernay’s free Interactive tools to understand how caste functions in health care, education, technology, the legal system and even environmental justice.
You can watch the trailer for “Our America: Hidden Stories with Ava DuVernay” above.
See when the special is airing on each ABC owned TV station below:
Sunday, July 14
3:00 p.m. PT ABC7/KABC-TV Los Angeles
Monday, July 15
8:00 p.m. ET ABC Localish
Saturday, July 20
11:00 a.m. PT ABC30/KFSN-TV Fresno
1:00 p.m. ET ABC7/WABC-TV New York
8:30 p.m. PT ABC7/KGO-TV San Francisco
Sunday, July 21
4:00 p.m. CT ABC7/WLS-TV Chicago
6:00 p.m. ET ABC Localish
Saturday, July 27
12:30 p.m. CT ABC13/KTRK-TV Houston
Sunday 7/28
11:30 a.m. ET ABC11/WTVD-TV Raleigh-Durham
Sunday, Aug. 4
5:00 p.m. ET 6abc/WPVI-TV Philadelphia
