Voices of America: Race and Change in Hollywood, Florida. (Arcadia, $18.99), is the result of a three-month long oral history project at the dawn of the new millennium interviewing a cross-section of 42 Blacks, Whites and immigrants who were born and raised in or who migrated to this South Florida area between Fort Lauderdale and Miami. Their memories span 75 years of racial and ethnic change. They tell tales of segregated beaches, buses and bathrooms; facing the culture of a new country; and of causes over the years that have brought different ethnic groups together. Recording their memories for the archives of the African American Research Library and Cultural Center in Fort Lauderdale, these individuals provide valuable, often poignant insight into race relations in America, in their own words – the painful and the uplifting. Says one reviewer, “A must reading for anyone who earnestly cares about the state of ethnic relations in the Sunshine State.” For information and ordering contact Arcadia Publishing (1-888-313-2665).
Companion video: “Crossings of the Racial Divide: Hollywood Stories”, written and produced by Kitty Oliver as a companion public television documentary of this project, is also available ($30.00). The half-hour program was produced by Kitty Oliver in cooperation with WBEC-TV. It has aired widely on public TV and is used as an educational resource for middle and high schools, universities and colleges, and community groups. A FCAT-related Teacher’s Guide is provided. For information and ordering, contact KittyO@KittyOliverOnline.com.
Dr. Kitty Oliver is a veteran journalist and academic, an author and oral historian, a media producer, and a professional singer with an MFA in Creative Writing, specializing in literary nonfiction and memoir, and a Ph.D. in Comparative Studies, focusing on race and ethnic communication.
A product of the civil rights era who came of age with integration in the U.S., she brings an innovative perspective to race and ethnic relations sharing research and stories across cultures in Race and Change dialogues where people can explore race in a hopeful, progressive way.
She is founder of the cross-cultural Race and Change Oral History Archive, the largest of its kind in size and scope, housed in Special Collections at the African American Research Library and Cultural Center. Her books and television documentaries are used widely in public schools, college classrooms, and community forums. She has also assembled an online resource of Race and Change programs for youth including an iTunes radio channelfeaturing stories of scores of native-born and immigrant college students and teens.
In 2019, she presented the first “Agents of Race and Change Award,” to encourage today’s youth who are building bridges across the racial and ethnic divide. Signup for the email list for information on how to submit a nomination.
Watch her in a brief but pivotal segment of the recent award-winning Ron Howard documentary film on the Beatles – “Eight Days a Week: The Touring Years” – where she shares personal experiences with the band and segregation in Florida. Her cross-cultural intergenerational race and ethnic relations work was also chronicled by CNN.
You can hear her original inspirational music on the CD “The Calling of Our Time” that she also shares as an entertaining aspect of her Race and Change public presentations.
