The Smell of Money

Black History Month Film Screening

The ECU Sustainability Program and Whichard Distinguished Professor in the Humanities Dr. Aleia M. Brown are pleased to screen The Smell of Money honor of Black History Month. The film will be followed by a panel discussion featuring North Carolina Environmental Justice Network (NCEJN) Senior Advisor Naeema Muhammad and Sound Rivers Advocacy Program Manager and Riverkeeper Jill Howell. This program honors the roots of the environmental justice movement that started over 40 years ago, and connects with current grassroots efforts here in our own community and throughout eastern North Carolina.

The ECU Sustainability Program organizes a monthly film screening, inviting many groups to expand environmental conversations. Dr. Brown thinks it is imperative to discuss environmental degradation and Black freedom struggles together. “Films have the ability to bring obscured power dynamics to light. In my classes and in community conversations, we talk about the ways social hierarchies have been projected onto the environment. Seeing Elsie Herring’s story and the larger struggle for environmental justice on the big screen reveals how seemingly abstract concepts have played out in our lives over time.”

The film screening will take place on Wednesday, February 22, 2023 at the Black Box Theater in the Main Campus Student Center. The film will start at 6:00 pm, followed by a 30-minute panel discussion. Transportation stops at CM Eppes Recreation Center and Moyewood Recreation Center will be provided. This event is free and open to the public.

For more information about the film and transportation schedules, please reach out to Chad Carwein, ECU Sustainability Program Manager (carweinc15@ecu.edu).