Silence in Sikeston documentary film

Feb
25
3:00 pm – 4:30 pm
Where

SHSMO Center for Missouri Studies

605 Elm St.

Columbia

This one-hour documentary, released in 2024, tells the story of Cleo Wright, a Black man lynched in 1942, and the failure of the first federal attempt to prosecute a lynching. Wright was removed from a Sikeston, Mo. jail and lynched by a mob. Nearly 80 years later, Denzel Taylor was killed by police in the same community. The deaths of these two Black fathers tell a story about violence, trauma, silence and resilience of many of the town residents over 78 years.

Reported and hosted by Cara Anthony, KFF Health News Midwest Correspondent, the film explores what it means to live with racism and how it affects the health of residents - from high blood pressure and heart disease to struggles with mental health.  

Directed by Jill Rosenbaum, Silence in Sikeston is a co-production of WORLD, Retro Report and KFF Health News.

Q&A afterwards with SHSMO executive director Gary Kremer and Cara Anthony.