Streaming Video Resources at the RLB Library

Henry Louis Gates Jr. uncovers the complex trade networks and advanced educational institutions that transformed early north and west Africa from deserted lands into the continent’s wealthiest kingdoms and learning epicentres.

Henry Louis Gates Jr. explores the impact of the Atlantic trading world, giving rise to powerful new kingdoms, but also transatlantic slave trade. Learn of the revolutionary movements of the 18th & early 19th centuries, including the advent of the Sokoto Caliphate.

Henry Louis Gates Jr. explores the dynamism of 19th century Africa, the “scramble” by European powers for its riches, and the defiant and successful stand of uncolonized Ethiopia.

In central China, a vast underground mausoleum conceals a terracotta army of cavalry, infantry, horses, chariots, weapons, acrobats, and musicians, all built to serve China’s first emperor, Qin Shi Huang, in the afterlife. Lost for more than 2,200 years, this 8,000-strong clay army waited to help the first emperor rule beyond the grave. Now an archaeological campaign is probing the thousands of figures entombed in the mausoleum. With exclusive access to pioneering research, Emperor's Ghost Army reveals the techniques and organization that enabled the manufacture of the clay figures and the lethal weapons they carried. NOVA tests the power of these weapons with high-action experiments and reports on revolutionary archaeological techniques used to explore the site. Distributed by PBS Distribution.

Part one of the series From Jesus to Christ examines the influence of Judaism and the Roman Empire on the life of Jesus. Through compelling interviews with archeologists, theologians, and historians it is revealed that Jesus was an ordinary Jewish resident of his time, but new findings show that he was probably not of the assumed humble class. Nazareth, where he grew up, was about four miles from the cosmopolitan urban center of Sepphoris, one of the Roman provincial cities. And while Rome defined one dimension of Jesus' world, the other was symbolized by the great Temple in Jerusalem. The film also reveals an excavation of new theories leading to Jesus’ crucifixion—likely an act of the Romans—with little notice taken by Jewish people. Produced by Frontline. Distributed by PBS Distribution. Part of the series From Jesus to Christ: The First Christians.

Part two of the series From Jesus to Christ explores the period after the crucifixion of Jesus by tracing the beginnings of the “Jesus Movement,” as Christianity was first called in its early years. Drawing upon historical evidence and archeological finds as well as engaging interviews, we learn that the early Christians branched out spreading their message to non-Jews, while the Apostle Paul, in approximately 50 CE, traveled away from the traditional centers of the Jesus Movement to found new churches in Greco-Roman cities. In fact, Paul's letters to these fledgling congregations mark the first writings of the New Testament. Meanwhile, spiraling tensions between Jews and Rome would culminate in a catastrophic Jewish revolt against Rome, propelling the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple—the center of Jewish spiritual life. This film presents a rare and compelling glimpse at early Christianity. Produced by Frontline. Distributed by PBS Distribution. Part of the series From Jesus to Christ: The First Christians.

The first installment in Ken Burns’s remarkable documentary on the women’s suffrage movement, this program depicts the early years of Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton. With the help of rarely seen archival materials and voice-over portrayals by well-known actors, viewers learn how the ideas of both women came to maturity and how they became allies in the struggle for women’s rights. Distributed by PBS Distribution. A part of the series Not for Ourselves Alone: The Story of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony—A Film by Ken Burns and Paul Barnes. (94 minutes)

The second installment in Ken Burns’s eye-opening profile of the women’s suffrage movement, this program depicts the later years of Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton. With the help of rarely seen archival materials and voice-over portrayals by well-known actors, viewers learn how the struggle for women’s rights gained momentum in America and coalesced around the right to vote. Distributed by PBS Distribution. A part of the series Not for Ourselves Alone: The Story of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony—A Film by Ken Burns and Paul Barnes. (90 minutes)

Marian overhears Sir Percival and Fosco plotting against Laura. But Marian falls ill and Sir Percival conceals her, telling Laura that she has gone to London. Fosco puts his sinister plan into action. Will Marian be able to save Laura? Distributed by PBS Distribution.

Faulty eyewitness identification is the most common source of wrongful convictions in the legal system. Here, take a closer look at some real-world instances of wrongful identification; discover how DNA testing has helped exonerate hundreds; and learn what specific reforms can help prevent these horrible mistakes in the future.

Release Me chronicles the story of Texas killer Kenneth Allen McDuff who received the death sentence in 1966 for a murderous rampage that left three teen-agers dead. He was paroled years later only to kill again. His subsequent recapture and trial resulted in another death sentence, carried out in 1998. After a public outcry over his parole, there was a complete overhaul of the prison and parole systems in Texas. All told, the killer was positively linked to six murders, but it is believed that he was responsible for as many as 13 during his lifetime. Viewers gain an inside looks at the teams of prosecutors who brought him to justice and who put him on death row, not once, but twice.

Now you must choose between pleading guilty and receiving a shorter sentence-or going to trial and risking decades behind bars. "THE VANISHING TRIAL" focuses on four individuals who were forced to make that excruciating choice. Each was threatened with a "trial penalty," the term used to describe the substantially longer prison sentence a person receives if they exercise their constitutional right to trial instead of pleading guilty. We see how the trial penalty has led to the shocking disappearance of one of the most fundamental individual rights and the explosion in America's prison population. Throughout the film, we hear the perspectives of national experts, including former federal judges and prosecutors, criminal defense lawyers, constitutional law experts, and criminal justice reform advocates.

To understand how criminal law works, you first have to understand what a crime is. What are the purposes of criminal law? Why is textualism so important to distinguishing the bygone era of common-law crimes from those of the 21st century? Who are the key players involved in defining a crime?

THE MASK YOU LIVE IN follows boys and young men as they struggle to stay true to themselves while negotiating America's narrow definition of masculinity.

Pressured by the media, their peer group, and even the adults in their lives, our protagonists confront messages encouraging them to disconnect from their emotions, devalue authentic friendships, objectify and degrade women, and resolve conflicts through violence. These gender stereotypes interconnect with race, class, and circumstance, creating a maze of identity issues boys and young men must navigate to become "real" men.

Experts in neuroscience, psychology, sociology, sports, education, and media also weigh in, offering empirical evidence of the "boy crisis" and tactics to combat it. The Mask You Live In ultimately illustrates how we, as a society, can raise a healthier generation of boys and young men.

The division of the world's peoples into distinct groups - "red," "black," "white" or "yellow" peoples - has became so deeply imbedded in our psyches, so widely accepted, many would promptly dismiss as crazy any suggestion of its falsity. Yet, that's exactly what this provocative, new three-hour series by California Newsreel claims. RACE - THE POWER OF ILLUSION questions the very idea of race as innate biology, suggesting that a belief in inborn racial difference is no more sound than believing that the sun revolves around the earth.

Yet race still matters. Just because race doesn't exist in biology doesn't mean it isn't very real, helping shape life chances and opportunities.

Astonishingly gripping, LET THE FIRE BURN is a found-footage film that unfurls with the tension of a thriller.

On May 13, 1985, a longtime feud between the city of Philadelphia and controversial radical urban group MOVE came to a deadly climax. By order of local authorities, police dropped military-grade explosives onto a MOVE-occupied rowhouse. TV cameras captured the conflagration that quickly escalated--and resulted in the tragic deaths of eleven people (including five children) and the destruction of 61 homes. It was only later discovered that authorities decided to "...let the fire burn."

Winner of a Truer Than Fiction Award at the Film Independent Spirit Awards. Winner of New Documentary Director at the Tribeca Film Festival.

Outpatients portrays a re-enactment of four segments of group sessions over the course of a mixed adult psychotherapy group. Dr. Yalom provides insightful, behind-the-scene commentary regarding his interventions. You'll see how his interpersonal model is applied, and learn techniques to steer groups into the here-and-now so they remain dynamic, on-track, and powerfully therapeutic. The general principles clearly outlined her will be extremely helpful and applicable to all therapists leading outpatient psychotherapy groups.

Academy Award winners Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman star in this true story as Washington Post reporters Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, whose investigation of a seemingly minor hotel room break-in uncovers the greatest political scandal in United States history and leads to the downfall of President Richard Nixon.

Shakespeare's "Othello" inspired this drama about a black athlete who wins a scholarship to an all-white school. Although Odin's future seems bright, a jealous friend tries to make the star athlete believe that his girlfriend is cheating on him.

est Picture winner is about a fictional romance between a struggling young playwright named Shakespeare and a noblewoman who longs to act, and who inspires him to write "Romeo and Juliet." Gwyneth Paltrow won an Oscar for her role as the muse.

A former violin prodigy has bouts with schizophrenia that land him on the streets after two years of schooling at Juilliard and finds an ally in a disenchanted journalist dealing with a recent divorce.

This biographical drama explores the genius and shortcomings of computing guru Steve Jobs in backstage vignettes spanning 14 years, as he and his closest advisers prepare for three different public presentations of era-defining technologies.