On July 17th, the Urban Roots podcast participated in the ArtsWave Truth & Reconciliation Grantee Showcase at the Freedom Center. We featured a video comprised of a photograph slide show of the West End alongside the audio from a portion of our prelude episode titled “Cincinnati History is Black History.”

The archival photos used in the Urban Roots prelude video were provided to us by the Robert O’Neal Multicultural Arts Center, an organization that is working to save the historic Regal Theatre in the West End by turning it into a community space.

This Cincinnati documentary holistically explores the physical and social transformations that the West End neighborhood residents have experienced and endured. There is so much that has been lost—some things were gained— and stuff that remains. Despite the odds, these resilient communities have worked hard to preserve their histories and build strong, vibrant neighborhoods today. Our podcast (and this documentary) aims to provide community members with an auditory outlet to express their truth and help them reconcile with the permanent social and physical landscape changes rendered by past and present planning efforts. We hope that, through this project, within these communities of color, those lost voices of Cincinnati will finally be heard.

Visit www.urbanrootspodcast.com to learn more!