American Experience

Back to: American Experience

The influential author and anthropologist whose work reclaimed and honored Black life.

The story of the polygraph, the controversial device that transformed modern justice.

Watch a preview of Part One of Taken Hostage.

Watch a preview of Part Two of Taken Hostage.

Discover how bubonic plague in 1900 set off fear and anti-Asian sentiment in San Francisco

Explore the 1928 dam collapse, the second deadliest disaster in California history.

In June 1943, Los Angeles erupted into the worst race riots in the city to date.

Discover the story of the Supreme Court’s first female justice - Sandra Day O'Connor.

The story of nine young men from Washington who captured gold at the 1936 Olympic Games.