American Creed: A Film Screening & Community Conversation

What does it mean to be American? How do Americans from diverse backgrounds understand and shape the American creed? What is your family's American story? 

Barrington Public Library is hosting a screening of the PBS documentary film American Creed, followed by a Community Conversation facilitated by Prof. Aaron C. Allen of the American Studies Department at Roger Williams University. Hear from and engage with fellow Americans from across the country and in your town, as we find answers to these questions.

In the documentary film, recognizing their social and political differences, Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Pulitzer Prize-winning historian David M. Kennedy come together to explore the idea of a unifying American creed.  Along with a range of citizen-activists, they each delve into their own family and community histories to explore urgent questions that are central to America’s success as a democracy, including how to provide access to educational and economic advancement; how to unify culturally diverse populations; and most important, how to define America’s national ideals.

American Creed Community Conversations are film screenings and scholar-facilitated discussions designed to engage Americans in reflection and dialogue about their own part in the American story, and in acting to shape that story for the better.

Prof. Aaron C. Allen holds a Ph. D. in American Studies from the University of Maryland, College Park. He is the Assistant Professor of American Studies at Roger Williams University where he teaches courses on the Challenges of Democracy, Race in America, and Critical Approaches to American Society and Culture. In 2018 he received the Diversity and Inclusion Fellowship from Roger Williams University and has presented at many national conferences. He is a member of the American Studies Association.

Free and open to all

American Creed and Community Conversations are made possible by an American Library Association programming grant, in partnership with Citizen Film, PBS, National Endowment for the Humanities, and the National Writing Project.


Event Location: 
Salem Family Auditorium (Second Floor)
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