Film Screening: When I Rise (2010)

We'll be diving into this documentary about the inimitable Barbara Smith Conrad. Originally from Center Point, Texas, a Black freedmen town in East Texas, Conrad enrolled at the University of Texas at Austin to pursue a degree in Music in 1956. In 1957, Conrad became the central figure in a civil rights storm that changed her life forever. Cast in an opera as the romantic lead opposite a white male student, Conrad became embroiled in a bitter controversy that made its way to the halls of the Texas legislature, where segregationist representatives applied pressure on the university. When Conrad was expelled from the opera, the incident escalated to the national stage, prompting singer Harry Belafonte — then at the height of his fame — to offer to underwrite her studies at the institution of her choice.

Rather than flee, Conrad chose to stay at The University of Texas at Austin and complete her degree, graduating in 1959. This small-town girl, whose voice and spirit stem from her roots in East Texas, emerged from the incident to become an internationally celebrated mezzo-soprano and headliner on stages around the world.

Runtime: 1 hour + 14 minutes

Host or Publisher Juneteenth House