>>> COMING UP IN HONOR OF BLACK HISTORY MONTH, WE'RE CONNECTING YOU WITH THE CREATIVITY, CULTURE, AND COMMUNITY, OF THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN EXPERIENCE IN OUR COMMUNITY.

>> THIS IS SOMEONE WHO ATTENDED THE MARCH ON WASHINGTON, WHO WALKED WITH DR. KING FROM SELMA TO MONTGOMERY.

>> ART AND HISTORY COME TOGETHER IN AN EXPLORATION OF THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN EXPERIENCE.

>> HOW WOULD I APPROACH 400 YEARS OF AFRICAN-AMERICANS BEING IN THIS COUNTRY FROM A MUSICAL STANDPOINT?

YOU KNOW, AND IT'S NOT A CELEBRATION.

IT'S JUST ACKNOWLEDGMENT.

>> AND WE WILL VISIT A BOOKSTORE THAT'S AS MUCH ABOUT COMMUNITY AS IT IS ABOUT LITERATURE.

>> WE CAN BUILD AS A COMMUNITY.

WE TURN A SORE SPOT INTO SOMETHING THAT IS LIKE A ROSE.

>> JOIN US FOR THOSE STORIES AND MORE AS WE EXPLORE THE CREATIVITY, CULTURE, AND COMMUNITY THAT MAKE US WESTERN NEW ENGLAND UP NEXT ON "CONNECTING POINT."

>>> SUPPORT FOR "CONNECTING POINT" IS PROVIDED BY OUR CONTRIBUTING VIEWERS.

>>> WELCOME AND THANKS FOR JOINING US FOR "CONNECTING POINT," YOU'RE SOURCE FOR CREATIVITY, CULTURE, AND COMMUNITY.

I'M ZYDALIS BAUER.

AS WE CELEBRATE BLACK HISTORY MONTH THIS FEBRUARY, WE HEAR FROM A LOCAL MAN WHO HAS NOT ONLY WITNESSED BUT EXPERIENCED FIRSTHAND DECADES OF THE NATION'S RACIAL HISTORY, FROM THE GRIEF AND GLORY OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT TO THE ELECTION OF THE FIRST BLACK PRESIDENT.

AND MOST RECENTLY, THE RISE OF THE BLACK LIVES MATTER MOVEMENT.

NOW IN HIS NINTH DECADE OF LIFE FORMER WINSTED, CONNECTICUT, RESIDENT DANIEL SMITH SHARED HIS MEMORIES WITH PRODUCER DAVE FRASER WHO INCLUDED GROWING UP IN THE REGION AS THE SON OF A FORMERLY ENSLAVED PERSON.

>> ON THE CAMPUS OF SPRINGFIELD COLLEGE, A SPECIAL EVENT WAS HELD THAT BROUGHT TOGETHER THREE MEN, ALL OF WHOM HAD ATTENDED MAT TIN LUTHER KING'S 1963 "I HAVE A DREAM" STRETCH.

ONE WAS DAN SMITH.

PROFESSOR OF COMMUNICATIONS AT THE COLLEGE, MARTIN DON'T ROW WAS THE MODERATOR AND RECALLS WHAT YOU DAN'S STORY PIQUED HIS INTEREST.

>> DAN IS A CONSTITUTIONALLY VERY MODEST PERSON.

WHO I DON'T THINK THINKS OF HIS OWN LIFE AS BEING ANYTHING PARTICULARLY EXTRAORDINARY.

BUT TO ME HE'S REALLY SORT OF LIKE THE FORREST GUMP OF CIVIL RIGHTS.

HE'S BEEN EVERYWHERE.

THIS IS SOMEONE WHO ATTENDED THE MARCH ON WASHINGTON.

WHO WALKED WITH DR. KING FROM SELMA TO MONTGOMERY.

WHO WORKED IN ALABAMA AT THE HEIGHT OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT IN SOME VERY, HAD SOME VERY HARROWING ENCOUNTERS THERE.

ULTIMATELY, SOMEONE WHO ATTENDED INAUGURATIONS OF BARACK OBAMA SO HE'S LIVED TRAJECTORY OF THE AMERICAN RACIAL STORY IN WHAT TO ME FEELS LIKE A PRETTY UNIQUE WAY.

SO IT SEEMED TO ME REALLY IT WOULD BE A GREAT STORY.

>> HE WROTE ABOUT SMITH IN A STORY THAT APPEARED IN THE ONLINE PUBLISHING PLATFORM "MEDIUM."

WHAT MAKES THIS STORY EVEN MORE UNIQUE IS THAT SMITH IS THE LIVING SON OF A SLAVE.

>> THERE HAD TO BE VERY SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES FOR THIS TO HAPPEN.

ONE IS THAT HIS DAD HAD TO PROCREATE QUITE LATE.

DAN, HE WAS BORN IN 1932.

HIS DAD WAS ALMOST SEASON AT THE TIME.

DAN HIMSELF WOULD HAVE TO LIVE A PRETTY LENGTHY LIFE.

>> DAN SPENT HIS YOUTH GROWING UP IN WINSTED, CONNECTICUT.

HE WAS JUST SIX WHEN HIS FATHER WAS KILLED IN A CAR ACCIDENT LEAVING HIS MOTHER CLARA TO RAISE DAN AND HIS FIVE SIBLINGS IN A TOWN OF NOT MANY BLACK PEOPLE.

>> WE WERE ALWAYS EMBARRASSED AND ASHAMED THAT WE WERE DESEASON DENTS OF SLAVES.

IT WASN'T A PROUD TO BE DESCENDED.

BUT KIDS IN SCHOOL WOULD SAY, YOU ARE FROM A SLAVE.

YOU ARE JUST A SLAVE.

>> DESPITE DAN'S FAMILY HISTORY, HE WAS ABLE TO GET A GOOD INDICATION IN TOWN BUT AS THE ONLY BLACK KID IN CLASS HE HAD TO LEARN TO ADAPT TO THE WHITE WORLD.

>> I COULDN'T GET A HAIR CUT IN WINSTED BECAUSE THEY WOULDN'T CUT BLACK PEOPLE'S HAIR.

I HAD TO TAKE A BUS TO HARTFORD, TAKE A CAB TO THE BARBER SHOP AND IT COST ME $15.

TO ME THAT WAS A LOT OF MONEY.

>> AFTER HIGH SCHOOL, DAN SERVED A TOUR OF DUTY IN THE U.S. ARMY DURING THE KOREAN WAR.

HE WORKED AS AN OPERATING ROOM TECHNICS AND IT WAS HERE THAT HE DEVELOPED AN INTEREST IN PUBLIC HEALTH.

IN 1955, WHEN HURRICANE DIANE ROARED THROUGH NORTHERN CONNECTICUT, DAN, WHO WAS AN EXCELLENT SWIMMER, PERFORMED AN ACT OF HERO I AM THAT IS STILL REMEMBERED TO THIS DAY SAVING A DROWNING MAN FROM THE TURBULENT RIVER.

THE NEXT FUNDED BY THE GI BILL HE WENT TO SPRINGFIELD COLLEGE.

HE WAS ABLE TO PUSH AHEAD.

HE JOINED THE WRESTLING TEAM, SANG IN THE GLEE CLUB AND WAS ELECTED PRESIDENT OF THE STUDENT COUNCIL.

IN AUGUST OF 1963, DAN, ALONG WITH A WHITE FRIEND FROM CONNECTICUT, DROVE TO THE NATION'S CAPITAL TO PARTICIPATE IN THE MARCH ON WASHINGTON.

>> UP HAPPY TO JOIN WITH YOU TODAY.

>> ALTHOUGH DR. MLK'S I HAVE A DREAM SPEECH WAS POWERFUL, IT WAS THE SPEECH OF YOUNG JOHN LEWIS THAT RESONATED WITH DAN.

>> WE MUST GET IN THIS REVOLUTION AND COMPLETE THE REVOLUTION!

FROM THE DELIST OF MISSISSIPPI, SOUTHWEST GEORGIA, IN THE BLACK BELT OF ALABAMA AND HARLEM AND CHICAGO, DETROIT, PHILADELPHIA AND ALL OVER THIS NATION, THE BLACK MASSES ON THE MARCH FOR FREEDOM.

>> SO WHEN HE CAME ON, IT WAS JUST SPELL BINDING.

KING WAS INCREDIBLE.

BUT JOHN REALLY SPOKE TO MY HEART ABOUT GETTING THINGS DONE NOW.

DON'T WAIT.

>> DAN WOULD TAKE THE WORDS THAT WERE SPOKEN THAT TAKE TO HEART AND FOLLOW HIS OWN DREAMS.

HE ENROLLED IN THE VETERINARY PROGRAM AT TUSKEGEE INSTITUTE, A HISTORICALLY BLACK UNIVERSITY IN ALABAMA.

>> IT'S A WHOLE NEW WORLD FOR ME IN TUSKEGEE.

ALL BLACK COMMUNITY.

WE HAD ONE OR TWO WHITES ON THE CAMPUS.

ALL THE GUYS IN MY VETERINARY CLASS AT THE TIME HAD WITNESSED SOME SERIOUS DISCRIMINATION OR VIOLENCE, EITHER THEY HAD IT OR THEIR PARENTS HAD.

SO I GOT A VERY QUICK EDUCATION.

>> THIS CAREER PATH WAS SHORT LIVED BECAUSE OF HIS LEADERSHIP ABLE HE WAS ENCOURAGED TO WORK TOWARDS THE CAUSE OF CIVIL RIGHTS.

>> THAT WAS ONE OF THOSE, YOU KNOW, FORKS IN THE ROAD, TWO ROADS I DID VERSION AND THE YELLOW WOOD KIND OF MOMENT.

AS HIS LIFE.

AND HE MADE WHAT WAS A POWERFUL CHOICE.

AND WOUND UP WORKING VERY INTENSELY WITH THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT DOWN IN ALABAMA.

HAD A COUPLE OF HARROWING ENCOUNTERS WHILE HE WAS THERE.

ONCE CHASED WITHIN A FEW INCHES OF HIS LIFE BY THE KU KLUX KLAN ON A DARK ROAD IN ALABAMA.

SO I THINK THOSE YEARS WERE VERY IMPORTANT TO DAN.

ALSO A SMALL CHUNK OF HIS LIFE BUT AN IMPORTANT CHUNK.

>> THROUGHOUT HIS LIFE, DAN HAS WITNESSED DECADES OF THIS NATION'S RACIAL HISTORY, FROM THE INJUSTICE OF JIM CROW TO THE GRIEF AND GLORY OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT, TO THE ELECTION OF THE FIRST BLACK PRESIDENT.

>> AND WHEN OBAMA WAS ELECTED, LORETTA AND I WENT TO OBAMA'S INAUGURATION.

WHEN HE CAME ON TO MAKE HIS SPEECH, I MEAN, I WAS JUST DRIPPING, CRYING.

THE GUY NEXT TO ME WHO WAS WHITE WAS CRYING.

EVERYONE IN THE ROW WAS JUST IT WAS SO EMOTIONAL.

LORETTA WAS CRYING.

IT WAS SO EMOTIONAL BECAUSE WE ALL FELT THE SAME THING.

IF THIS IS FINALLY HERE.

BUT IT HAS CHANGED AND NOT FOR THE BETTER.

>> AT AGE 88, THERE IS NO QUESTION THAT DAN HAS WITNESSED MOMENTS OF NATIONAL SHAME AND SHIMMERING POSSIBILITIES.

HE RETIRED IN 1994 AND IN 2016 WE HAD HIS SECOND WIFE AT THE NATIONAL CATHEDRAL WHERE DAN SERVED AS THE HEAD USHER ESCORTING NATIONAL PRESIDENTS INTO MAJOR NATIONAL EVENTS.

TODAY IN HIS HOME HE AND LORETTA ARE WORKING ON HIS MEMOIRS.

>> I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT FOR MY MEMOIRS, I HOPE WILL SHOW, IT'S THE PATH I'VE TAKEN FROM BIRTH TO WHERE I AM NOW.

AND A PATH THAT IN A WHITE WORLD.

MY PHILOSOPHY HAS ALWAYS BEEN LIFE HAS NO OBSTACLES, ONLY CHALLENGES.

AND I HAVE NEVER HAD A FIGHT IN MY LIFE.

I WAS ALWAYS READY TO DO BATTLE.

>>> WHEN A COMPOSER CREATES AN ALBUM, THEY ARE CALL IT A PROJECT.

ESPECIALLY WHEN THE MUSIC IS CONNECTED TO MORE THAN JUST NOTES AND CHANGE ORDERS.

BASSIST AVERY SHARPE REFERS TO HIS WORK "400: AN AFRICAN AMERICAN MUSICAL PORTRAIT" AS A SERIOUS PROJECT.

THAT'S BECAUSE IT CHRONICLES THE 400 YEARS START, IN 1619, WHEN THE FIRST ENSLAVED AFRICANS WERE BROUGHT TO THIS COUNTRY.

SHARPE FIRST PERFORMED 400 AT HIS ALMA MATER THE UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AT AMHERST AND PRODUCER DAVE FRASER SAT DOWN WITH HIM TO EXPLORE THE SOURCE OF THE MUSIC ¶ THAT'S WHAT THEY PTOLEMY OF AFRICA ¶ >> LONG TIME BASSIST, COMPOSER AND RECORDING ARTIST AVERY SHARPE RELEASED HIS LATEST WORK IN 2019 ENTITLED "400: AN AFRICAN AMERICAN MUSICAL PORTRAIT."

>> IT WAS DR. SHIRLEY WHITAKER WHO IS A KIDNEY DOCTOR.

I WAS AT WHOLE FOODS AND I RAN INTO HER.

AND SHE GOES, 2019.

WHEN YOU SAY THAT TO A LOT OF BLACK FOLKS WHO STUDY A LOT, I KNEW IMMEDIATELY WHAT SHE MEANT.

400 YEARS, 1619 TO 2019.

AND I JUST KIND OF SPACED.

I JUST STARTED HEARING A WHOLE BUNCH OF MUSIC AND SHE STARTED -- AND SHE SAID, YOU'RE NOT REALLY LEADERSHIPPING.

I SAID, NO, I'M HEARING ALL THIS MUSIC.

HOW WOULD I APPROACH 400 YEARS OF AFRICANS, AFRICAN-AMERICANS BEING IN THIS COUNTRY FROM A MUSICAL STANDPOINT?

YOU KNOW?

AND IT'S NOT A CELEBRATION.

IT'S JUST ACKNOWLEDGMENT.

¶ COME ON, COME ON, WE GOT TO WAKE UP ¶ >> THE MUSIC TELLING A HARROWING YET INSPIRING TALE CENTURY BY CENTURY.

MUCH OF THE MUSIC THAT SHARPE COMPOSES AND PERFORMS IS MUSIC WITH A PURPOSE.

HE HAS WRITTEN PIECES INSPIRED BY THE STORIES OF A NUMBER OF NOTED AFRICAN-AMERICAN FIGURES, FROM ABOLITIONIST JOE SOUTHERNER TRUTH TO JESSE OWENS TO MASON, THE 19th CENTURY SPRINGFIELD TROPIST.

>> I WAS INSPIRED FROM ARTISTS FROM THE '60s.

PEOPLE SAID SOMETHING.

WHEN THEY SAW SOME INJUSTICE.

IT'S NOT GO ALONG TO GET LONG.

I'M JUST AN ARTIST.

I DON'T GET POLITICAL.

YOU DO GET POLITICAL.

I DON'T CARE WHAT COUNTRY YOU ARE FROM YOU ARE POLITICAL.

NOT SAYING ANYTHING MAKE YOU POLITICAL.

MAKES YOU SILENT.

YOU JUST WATCH THINGS AS THEY HAPPEN AS OPPOSED TO GETTING INTO THEM.

YOU ARE INVOLVED.

>> SHARPE WAS BORN IN GEORGIA AT A TIME WHEN SEGREGATION WAS LEGAL.

HIS MOTHER WAS THE CHOIR DIRECTOR IN THE CHURCH OF GOD AND CHRIST AND GAVE PIANO LESSONS TO EVERYBODY IN THE FAMILY INCLUDING AVERY WHO WAS ONE OF EIGHT CHILDREN.

>> SO I WENT WITH MY MOTHER EVERYWHERE.

IF SHE PLAYED FOR REVIVALS I WAS THERE.

SO -- SHE'S MY FIRST MUSICAL INFLUENCE.

>> BY THE TIME HE WAS A TEENAGER SHARPE HAD DISCOVERED THE ELECTRIC AND EVENTUALLY THE ACOUSTIC BASS.

HIS FAMILY MOVED TO SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS, IN THE EARLY 1970s AND HE ENROLLED AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS.

AND IT WAS THERE THAT HE WAS EXPOSED TO THE WORLD OF JAZZ.

>> MAX ROACH WAS THERE.

FATHER OF BEE BOP MUSIC.

HE LIVED IN AMHERST.

ARYE SHEP, ONE OF THE GREAT MASTERS ON SAXOPHONE WHO WAS A JOHN COLTRANE PROTEGE.

HE WAS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS.

REGGIE WORKMAN WAS MY FIRST BASS TEACHER WHO USED TO PLAY WITH JOHN COLTRANE.

HE WAS COMING UP A COUPLE DAYS A WEEK FROM BROOKLYN.

BUT THAT WAS LIKE MID-'70s.

IT'S HARD TO GET THOSE PEOPLE TOGETHER IN NEW YORK.

AND HERE I HAD THEM ON A CAMPUS.

>> AFTER GRADUATING FROM UMASS SHARP WITH HIT THE ROAD PLAYING HUNDREDS OF GIGS WORLDWIDE.

BUT IT WAS FITTING HE WAS RETURN TO THE UMASS CAMPUS FOR A PERFORMANCE OF "400."

¶ THROUGHOUT THE CONCERT SHARPE USES THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN MUSIC OF EACH ERA TO TELL THE FLUID STORY OF THOSE DESCENDED FROM THE ORIGINAL AFRICANS BROUGHT IN BOND ACCEPT TO AMERICA 400 YEARS AGO.

SHARPE'S FINAL SONG ON THE AM BUM IS CALLED 500, A RIVETTING AND ADVENTUROUS PIECE TO POINTS THE WAY TOWARDS THE FUTURE.

>> IT'S A MYSTERY.

I DON'T KNOW.

BUT IN TERMS OF HOPING, I WOULD HOPE THAT THE COUNTRY LOOKS AND THINKS A LITTLE DIFFERENT AND THAT PEOPLE JUST LET, LIVE AND LET LIVE.

¶ I'M ALWAYS TRYING TO GIVE PEOPLE SOME INFORMATION.

THAT'S MY POLITICAL THING.

I'M NOT TRYING TO SLAP YOU ACROSS THE HEAD.

I WANT TO ENTERTAIN YOU.

BUT WHEN YOU WALK OUT, I WANT YOU TO SAY, DANG, I WANT YOU TO THINK.

I DON'T WANT YOU TO SAY.

I WANT TO YOU HAVE A GREAT TIME BUT BY THE WAY, WOW, I LEARNED SOMETHING.

AND FOR ME, I THINK THAT'S WHAT WE'RE HERE TO DO.

¶ >>> IF YOU ENJOYED THAT STORY, BE SURE TO GO ONLINE RIGHT NOW TO NEPM.ORG/CONNECTINGPOINT, AS WE CELEBRATE BLACK HISTORY MONTH IN FEBRUARY WITH THE LOOK AT THE PEOPLE, STORIES, AND ISSUES THAT SHAPE THE BLACK EXPERIENCE IN WESTERN MASSACHUSETTS.

>>> AWARD WINNING PERFORMANCE ARTIST PLAYWRIGHT AND SPRINGFIELD NATIVE DANIEL ALEXANDER JONES RELEASED SEVERAL PROJECTS LAST FALL INCLUDING TWO NEW BOOKS, AN ALBUM, MUSIC VIDEOS AND A PODCAST SERIES.

JOBES, WHO IS WIDELY RESPECTED IN CELEBRATE THE NATIONWIDE FOR HIS FRANCE NATIONAL PERFORMANCE AND WRITING, EXPLORES HIS PAST WORK AS WELL AS EXPANDS HIS DIGITAL PRESENCE IN THIS SERIES OF PROJECTS.

I SPOKE WITH JONES TO LEARN MORE ABOUT HIS WORK AND HOW HIS UPBRINGING IN SPRINGFIELD INFLUENCED HIM TO BECOME THE SUCCESSFUL ARTIST HE IS TODAY.

>> I WAS VERY FORTUNATE TO BE COMING UP DURING AN ERA WHERE SPRINGFIELD HAD SOME OF THE BEST PUBLIC SCHOOLS IN THE NATION.

AND THE TEACHERS WERE SO GENEROUS AND SO LOVING.

AND I FEEL LIKE I WAS ABLE TO, THROUGH THEIR TEACHING AND THROUGH THEIR GUIDANCE, FIND OUT THAT I WAS AN ARTIST.

AND TO THEN LEARN THAT THAT COULD BE A PATH I COULD TAKE.

AND THEY WERE, YOU KNOW, WE CAME FROM WORKING CLASS NEIGHBORHOOD.

AND, YOU KNOW, THERE WAS NO SENSE THAT A CAREER IN THE ARTS WAS SOMETHING THAT I HAD SEEN BEFORE, NECESSARILY.

BUT THEN THEY JUST BELIEVED IN US.

AND THEY'RE LIKE, YEAH, YOU ARE GOING TO DO THAT THING.

I ALWAYS THINK OF MY TEACHERS, MY FOURTH GRADE TEACHER, MS. DAVIS, IN PARTICULAR, WHO PUT THE INNER SENSE OF, YOU CAN BE WHO YOU WANT TO BE.

AND YOU HAVE TO LEARN TO, THE DISCIPLINE AND THE WORK ETHIC TO FOLLOW YOUR DREAMS.

>> AND SPEAKING OF YOUR CAREER, YOU HAVE A LOT TO CELEBRATE THIS FALL WITH TWO NEW BOOKS, AN ALBUM, VIDEOS, A PODCAST CONVERSATIONS SERIES.

I SAID THIS TO YOU EARLIER.

WHILE WE'RE FEELING BURNT OUT FROM THIS PANDEMIC YOU SOMEHOW HAVE MANAGED TO FIND THE MOTIVATION TO CREATE SO MANY DIFFERENT BODIES OF WORK.

WHERE DID THAT INSPIRATION COME FROM?

>> YOU KNOW, IF YOU ARE DEALING WITH SOMETHING THAT'S REALLY CHALLENGING, THEN, THE THINGS THAT YOU ALREADY HAVED A YOUR DISPOSAL AREN'T GOING TO HELP YOU GET OUT OF IT.

YOU HAVE TO REACH BIGGER AND DREAM BIGGER AND LEARN AND ASK MORE QUESTIONS.

SO ALL OF THIS WORK WAS DID, YOU KNOW, ASKING MYSELF WHAT IF?

AND THE MUSIC AND THE VIDEOS CAME OUT OF LIKE THINKING ABOUT WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WE DO I.

BECAUSE MY MOM WAS ON HER WAY TOWARD PASSING.

THAT LED ME TO A MEDITATION ON THE SOLAR SYSTEM AND THE UNIVERSE.

ALL OF THAT WORK CAME OUT OF SITTING WITH MY OWN GRIEF AND SITTING WITH MY OWN WONDER ABOUT LIFE AND DEATH.

AND THEN THE BOOK WAS, YOU KNOW, ALL OF THESE WORKS THAT I MADE, AND BEING INVITED BY THIS PUBLISHER TO COLLECT THEM AND TO HAVE A CHANCE TO GO BACK AND, A COUPLE OF THE PIECES ARE ACTUALLY SET IN SPRINGFIELD.

SO IT'S LIKE, IT WAS DEEP TO KIND OF COME BACK AND SAY, YOU KNOW, I'VE BEEN IN DIALOGUE WITH THIS PLACE FOR DECADES, YOU KNOW?

>> RIGHT.

THE PANDEMIC PRESENTED YOU WITH A UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY TO EXPLORE THE DIGITAL UNIVERSE WITH YOUR SERIES THAT YOU WERE REFERENCING BEFORE.

WHEN FEATURE YOURS SELF AND I HAVE TO MENTION YOUR ALTER EGO MAMA JONES.

WHAT WAS IT LIKE TRANSFORMING THIS LIVE PRODUCTION INTO NOW A DIGITAL PRODUCTION?

WHAT DID YOU LEARN FROM IT?

>> FIRST OF ALL, I HAD THE BEST TIME.

BECAUSE ANYONE WHO DOES THEATER OR DOES LIVE PERFORMANCE ANYWHERE, LIKE IF YOU SING OR CHURCH OR COMMUNITIES, WHATEVER YOU DO, YOU KNOW THAT THERE'S SO MUCH WORK THAT GOES INTO IT AND THEN YOU DO IT AND IT'S GONE.

BUT DOING THIS WORK WHERE IT LIVES NOW, IN THESE VIDEOS, AND YOU CAN KEEP COMING BACK TO IT AND YOU CAN SHARE IT ACROSS VAST DISTANCES.

EVERYBODY DOESN'T HAVE TO BE IN THAT ROOM.

IT WAS A REVELATION.

>> ONE OF THE STATEMENTS THAT STOOD OUT TO ME ON YOUR WEBSITE WAS WHEN YOU SAY THAT YOU'RE WORK IS CONTINUOUS BUT IT'S IN THE YOUR WORK ALONE.

WHY IS COLLABORATION BETWEEN THE ARTS AND DIFFERENT ARTISTS SO IMPORTANT FOR YOU AND IMPORTANT FOR THE COMMUNITY AS WELL?

>> I BELIEVE THAT WE ARE ALWAYS SMARTER, MORE LOVING, AND MORE CAPABLE WHEN WE FIND WAYS TO COME TOGETHER.

PERIOD.

AND I KNOW THAT I KNOW CERTAIN THINGS VERY WELL.

I KNOW I HAVE CERTAIN TALENTS AND ABILITIES.

BUT I ALSO KNOW WHAT I DON'T KNOW AND WHAT I CAN'T DO AND SO WHEN I DREAM OF A PIECE OR I HAVE A BIG QUESTION I WANT TO EXPLORE IN ART, I AUTOMATICALLY SAY, WHO ARE GOING TO BE THE PEOPLE THAT ARE GOING TO BRING THE CONTRIBUTIONS THAT WILL MAKE IT WHOLE?

BECAUSE I CAN'T DO THAT BY MYSELF.

AND THEN YOU FIND THAT NOT ONLY DO THEY BRING OUT YOUR BEST, BUT YOU CAN, YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT EASY.

BECAUSE PEOPLE GOT PERSONALITIES AND PEOPLE HAVE HISTORIES.

AND STUFF.

ALDERMAN OCCURS, FOR SURE.

DRAMA OCCURS, FOR SURE.

BUT IF YOU ARE COMMITTED TO THE IDEA, YOU CAN FIND WAYS TO INSPIRE OTHERS TO BRING OUT THE BEST OF HEM SELVES.

>> I HAVE TO TALK ABOUT ABOUT MAMA JONES.

SHE CAME TO YOU IN 1995.

AND AS A MESSENGER, COMING FROM THE FUTURE, WHAT WOULD JO MAMA JONES WANT TO SHARE WITH US ABOUT THE FUTURE?

>> WITHOUT QUESTION, SHE WOULD SAY THAT THE FUTURE IS IN OUR HANDS AND WE MUST TAKE ACTION IN THE SERVICE OF THOSE THINGS I'M TALKING ABOUT.

ABOUT COMMUNITY.

ABOUT GENEROSITY.

THE GREATEST TRAGEDY OF MY LIFETIME WAS WATCHING THAT MOVEMENT FROM THAT COMMUNITY-MINDED CIVIL RIGHTS ERA INTO THE ME GENERATION OF REAGAN.

AND THE WAY THAT AS INDIVIDUALS WE ARE LED TO BELIEVE WE'RE IN THE IT ALONE, WE SHOULD ONLY GO FOR OUR OWN AND HEM E-HELP OREGON PEOPLE IS WEAKNESS.

WHAT SHE WOULD SAY IS THE TIME IS COMING WHERE WE'RE GOING TO NEED ONE ANOTHER.

AND SO YOU BETTER START PRACTICING NOW.

>>> EVERY WEEK "CONNECTING POINT" EXPLORES THE CREATIVITY, CULTURE, AND COMMUNITY THAT MAKE US WESTERN NEW ENGLAND.

BUT IT DOESN'T STOP THERE.

YOU CAN FIND US ONLINE ANY TIME FOR EXCLUSIVE FEATURES AND CONTENT.

AND THIS WEEK'S DIGITAL EXCLUSIVE FROM 1936 TO 1966, AN ANNUAL GUIDE WAS PUBLISHED DESIGNED TO HELP AFRICAN-AMERICANS TRAVELING THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES CALLED THE GREEN BOOK.

BY NOW YOU HAVE PROBABLY HEARD THE NAME THANKS TO THE OSCAR WINNING MOVIE WITH THE SAME TITLE.

BUT WHAT YOU MAY NOT KNOW IS THAT THE GREEN BOOKS' IMPORTANCE EXTENDED BEYOND THE SOUTH INCLUDING HERE IN WESTERN NEW ENGLAND.

>> TO SOMEONE THAT DOESN'T KNOW THE COMMUNITY, HOW CAN YOU GET AT LEAST A THUMBNAIL WHAT STREET, WHAT AREA OF TOWN DO I HIT?

BECAUSE WHAT'S THE USE OF HAVING A CAR, HAVING THIS MOBILITY IF YOU HAVE GOT TO BE AFRAID AND YOU HAVE GOT TO BE MISTREATED ALL ALONG THE WAY ON THE ROAD.

>> YOU CAN FIND THAT DIGITAL EXCLUSIVE ONLINE RIGHT NOW AT NEPM.ORG/CONNECTINGPOINT.

>>> IN 2004, ZEE JOHNSON CONVERT THE FIRST FLOOR OF A DILAPIDATED FORMER DRUG HOUSE FOR A PLACE FOR PEOPLE TO BROWSE THROUGH MORE THAN 500 BOOKS.

SINCE THEN OLIVE TREE BOOKS-N-VOICES HAS BECOME A BELOVED SHUNT COME IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD OF ANYWAYS SON SHARE.

IT'S JUST ONE OF A HANDFUL OF BLACK OWNED BOOKS STORES IN MASSACHUSETTS.

PRODUCER DAVE FRASER VISITED OLIVE TREE AND BRINGS US THE STORY.

>> I PROMISE TO WORK HARD AND DO WHAT'S RIGHT.

A BOOK CAN PROVIDE A NUMBER OF THINGS.

IT CAN PROVIDE COMFORT.

IT CAN PROVIDE GROWTH, CERTAINLY.

CHANGE ATTITUDES, CREATE SELF AWARENESS, ALLOW YOU TO EXCHANGE IDEAS.

IT'S A CHANCE TO REALLY HAVE SOME INTROSPECTIVENESS, TOO.

REALLY THINK ABOUT WHO YOU ARE AS A PERSON AND WHAT IT IS THAT YOU WANT TO DO WITH YOUR OWN LIFE?

I ENVISION THIS, WHEN I RETIRE I'LL SIT IN A BOOKSTORE AND I'LL WAVE TO CUSTOMERS.

THAT WAS 15 YEARS AGO.

THAT WAS NOT THE TRACK.

AND TRAIL THAT I ON.

LO AND BEHOLD WHEN THE COMMUNITY AND OTHERS FOUND OUT THERES A BOOKSTORE, IT STARTED TO INCREASE.

>> MY FAVORITE PEOPLE!

>> YOU WALK INTO A BOOKSTORE, THERE'S ALWAYS LIKE THE SECTION OF BLACK BOOKS AND BLACK AUTHORS.

BUT HERE IT'S THE WHOLE STORE.

THE JOY ON THE WALLS, THE COLOR, IT'S, IT FEELS LIKE HOME AND NOT JUST SOMEWHERE WHERE YOU BUY A BOOK BUT YOU ALSO HEAR A STORY.

>> I HAVEN'T DONE EVERYTHING IN LIFE.

ONE OF THE THINGS THAT INSPIRES ME TO WANT TO READ AND WANT TO KNOW, WHEN I COME IN HERE I LOOK AROUND AND I SEE STOW MANY PEOPLE THAT LOOK LIKE ME.

I BROUGHT MY DAUGHTER HERE WHEN SHE WAS YOUNG.

FOR THEM, KIDS SEEING PEOPLE WHO LOOK LIKE THEM, IT CAN BE INSPIRING.

>> I AM A WOMAN HAS HURT, AS MISERABLE AS I HAVE LOVED.

>> I WAS BORN AND RAISED IN RICHMOND, VIRGINIA.

SO I WAS ABLE TO READ BOOKS ABOUT AFRICAN-AMERICANS AND ET CETERA, BECAUSE THAT WAS MY ENVIRONMENT AND WORLD.

SO WHEN I LOOKED AT MAE JEMMERSON, DEBBIE THOMAS THE SKATER, WHEN I LOOKED AT A NUMBER OF HEROES AND ET CETERA, I COULD ENVISION MYSELF.

OH, I COULD BE THAT!

BECAUSE I HAD A FRAMEWORK.

IT WASN'T JUST MY IMAGINATION.

I HAD CONCRETE EVIDENCE THAT THESE PEOPLE EXIST.

>> NO JUSTICE.

>> NO PEACE.

>> IT WOKE A LOT OF FOLKS UP IN TERMS OF, LET ME REALLY UNDERSTAND OTHER PEOPLE OTHER THAN MYSELF.

AND THEN LET ME UNDERSTAND IF I'M PART OF THIS PROBLEM OR IF I'M GOING TO BE PART OF THE SOLUTION.

SO THAT TRIGGERED A LOT OF PEOPLE TO COME INTO THE STORE AND REALLY HAVE GOOD CONVERSATIONS ABOUT WHAT SHOULD BE NEXT STEPS.

EVEN THOUGH MASON SQUARE CAN BE PORTRAYED OR VIEWED AS LESS THAN DESIRABLE, I WANTED TO BE ABLE TO SAY, NO, THAT'S NOT TRUE.

WE CAN BUILD AS A COMMUNITY.

WE CAN TURN A SORE SPOT INTO SOMETHING THAT IS LIKE A ROSE.

I WANTED TO BE IN A PLACE THAT PEOPLE COULD CONSIDER IT THEIR OWN.

>>> AND THAT DOES IT FOR THIS EDITION OF "CONNECTING POINT."

REMEMBER, YOU CAN ALWAYS FIND ALL OF THE STORIES THAT YOU SAW IN THIS EPISODE AS WELL AS EXCLUSIVE FEATURES, DIGITAL-ONLY CONTENT AND SO MUCH MORE ONLINE ANY TIME AT NEPM.ORG/CONNECTINGPOINT.

AND PLEASE BE SURE TO JOIN US AGAIN EVERY THURSDAY AND SATURDAY AT:30 P.M.

RIGHT HERE ON NEW ENGLAND PUBLIC MEDIA FOR MORE STORIES OF THE CREATIVITY, CULTURE, AND COMMUNITY THAT MAKE US WESTERN NEW ENGLAND.

I'M ZYDALIS BAUER.

HAVE A GOOD NIGHT.

>> SUPPORT FOR "CONNECTING POINT" IS PROVIDED BY OUR CONTRIBUTING VIEWERS.