Race: The Power of Illusion Episode I: The Difference Between Us - Film & Discussion

Join us for a 3-part discussion with Beverly Braxton to explore the concept of race, how it has shaped our lives, and how the United States has evolved as a racialized society. Using the 3-part documentary film Race - The Power of an Illusion as our guide, we will explore the myths and realities of race in our society, with the goal of expanding our understanding.
Beverly Braxton is a retired Warwick PIE teacher, the founder of Family Central: A Parenting Support Network, and an adjunct professor at SUNY New Paltz. Ms. Braxton was an educational leader during her 28 years in the Warwick Valley Central School District and one of the founding members of the district's Partners in Education (PIE) Program.
Episode I: The Difference Between Us
Everyone can tell a Nubian from a Norwegian, so why not divide people into different races? That's the question explored in "The Difference Between Us," the first hour of the series. This episode shows that despite what we've always believed, the world's peoples simply don't come bundled into distinct biological groups. We begin by following a dozen students, including Black athletes and Asian string players, who sequence and compare their own DNA to see who is more genetically similar. The results surprise the students and the viewer, when they discover their closest genetic matches are as likely to be with people from other "races" as with their own.