The Conversations on Race and Policing series continues on Tuesday, Aug. 25, at 3 p.m. via Zoom with a panel discussion on depictions of law enforcement officers in film and television, and how these portrayals have affected popular understanding of the role of police in society.  

“Cops on Film,” the 13th program in the series, can be accessed from a PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android at https://csusb.zoom.us/j/97960458784.

The program will feature two guest faculty panelists: Howard Henderson from Texas Southern University, and Frank Wilson from Indiana State University.

Henderson is the founding director of the Center for Justice Research and professor of justice administration in the Barbara Jordan-Mickey Leland School of Public Affairs at Texas Southern.

He is currently evaluating the Bureau of Justice Assistance and Mental Health Collaboration Program with the Harris County Mental Health Jail Diversion Program, designed to implement and expand community-based services to individuals with behavioral health issues through information sharing between the criminal justice system and community service providers.

Wilson, author of “Crime and Media Studies: Diversity of Method, Medium, and Communication (Cognella, 2015),” is a professor of criminology and security studies at Indiana State. His research and publication interests are all focused on increasing the general public’s knowledge of key criminal justice issues. He approaches his research through a blending of criminological, historical, and communications research techniques. 

Wilson’s research and publication interests specifically include issues surrounding mass incarceration and punishment as well as the depiction of municipal police officers in the media. He is currently researching and writing a book on the largest prison cemetery in the United States.

The ongoing Conversations on Race and Policing series, now in its 13th week, is hosted by CSUSB students Marlo Brooks and Yvette Relles-Powell.

The series is organized by CSUSB faculty members Marc Robinson (history), Mary Texeira (sociology) and Jeremy Murray (history), and Robie Madrigal, public affairs/communication specialist for the CSUSB John M. Pfau Library.

Conversations on Race and Policing began in the aftermath of the May 25 death of George Floyd while in the custody of four Minneapolis, Minn., police officers. A video of the incident posted on social media has led to widespread protests, the firing of four police officers, the arrest of one officer on a second-degree murder charge, the other three on charges of aiding and abetting second-degree murder – and a spotlight worldwide on race and policing.

Previous forums also are posted online (more recordings will soon be available for viewing):

On June 16 the College of Arts and Letters presented “Structural Racism, Civil Disobedience, and the Road to Racial Justice in the Age of COVID-19,” which is also posted on YouTube.

The university’s June 9 memorial for Floyd also focused on the Black Lives Matter movement.

And, related to the university’s conversations series, Netflix is making the 2016 Ava DuVernay film, “13th,” available for free on its YouTube channel. Combining archival footage with testimony from activists and scholars, director Ava DuVernay’s examination of the U.S. prison system looks at how the country’s history of racial inequality drives the high rate of incarceration in America.

For more information, contact Robie Madrigal at rmadriga@csusb.edu or Jeremy Murray at jmurray@csusb.edu.

Conversations on Race and Policing, No. 13, web flyer