WCSU to host screening, discussion of "The Central Park Five"
Western Connecticut State University will screen the film "The Central Park Five at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 5, in Warner Hall on the university's Midtown campus, 181 White St. in Danbury. The film is a documentary that examines a 1989 case in which five black and Latino teenagers were convicted of raping a white woman in Central Park. After each teen had spent between 6 and 13 years in prison, a serial rapist confessed to the crime.
The screening will be accompanied by commentary from Associate Professor of History and Non-Western Cultures Dr. Jennifer Duffy and Professor of English Dr. Don Gagnon. The screening will be free and the public is invited.
Duffy said, "I hope this film will provide historical context for today's New York, a relatively safe, tourist-friendly space. This film will underscore the economic and political uncertainty of the 1970s and 1980s and the concomitant calls for aggressive privatization and policing. More importantly, I hope this screening can shed some crucial light on those who bear the cost of these troubling trends."
This screening, though separate from WCSU's celebration of Hispanic-Latino Heritage Month, is in line with the ideology of the university in its efforts to support and enrich the advantages of its unique cultural composition. It was organized by Professor of History Dr. Marcy May and Lauren Kerton.
For more information, email May at maym@wcsu.edu">maym@wcsu.edu<mailto:maym@wcsu.edu>.