SACRAMENTO, California — There is so much history to be learned throughout the Sacramento region and the Center for Sacramento History is here to tell it all — the good, bad and ugly.
The center was recently awarded the Leadership in History Award of Excellence from the American Association for State and Local History for its short film series “Unlocking the Past: A History of Prejudice and Racism in Sacramento.”
The center has released the first three films in the series exploring the history of racism in the Sacramento region. The films touches on issues surrounding the Ku Klux Klan, housing discrimination and the hardships Native Californians faced because of settler John Sutter.
Most people have heard the saying, “The good ‘ol days,' but Archivist Kim Hayden says they really don’t exist, just look at history.
“We have mug books going back to the 1860s that show people committing the same crimes they commit today. Poverty being a big problem with it, racism, showing discrimination of who’s getting arrested, who’s getting tried for things. There’s always been problems and those problems can continue and cause those same problems today," said Hayden.
The films are produced by the center and include people from the community telling their own stories. They have completed a fourth film in the series and are working on a fifth one.
The first three films are available online. There are also a few in-person showings being offered. Find information about showings and how to watch online HERE.
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