WMHT Public Media Hosts Free Premiere Feb. 8 of New Original Documentary, “North To New York: The Great Migration In NY’s Capital Region” 

ALBANY — A free public screening and discussion will be held at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 8. at the New York State Museum’s Huxley Theater, in advance of the Feb. 9 broadcast debut on WMHT. 

The half-hour program explores the migration of African Americans from the small town of Shubuta, Mississippi to Albany, N.Y. and surrounding areas, forming the roots of a community celebrated each September as Mississippi Day in the Capital Region.

A special premiere screening of the documentary, which is free and open to the public, will also feature a discussion on the history and legacy of those that left all they knew behind to make the Capital Region home. Panelists include Stephanie Woodard, President of the Rapp Road Historical Association; Willie White, Founder of AVillage Inc.; Clarence Samuel Johnson, son of Reverend John “Jack” Johnson; and Jennifer Lemak, Ph.D., Chief Curator of History with the New York State Museum.

North to New York: The Great Migration in NY’s Capital Region was produced by WMHT as a companion piece to Henry Louis Gates Jr.’s PBS documentary series Great Migrations: A People on the Move, which examines the transformative impact of Black migration on American culture and society. 

North to New York: The Great Migration in NY’s Capital Region will make its broadcast debut at 5 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 9. on WMHT. 

WMHT Public Media is a multichannel public communications organization serving Eastern New York and Western New England. For additional details on North to New York: The Great Migration in NY’s Capital Region, and to register for the premiere screening and discussion, visit www.wmht.org/north-to-new-york.