Have you been watching Henry Louis Gates, Jr.’s PBS series “The African Americans: Many Rivers to Cross,”? The sixth and final episode airs Tuesday, November 26^th at 8pm ET/PT.  Titled A More Perfect Union (1968 – 2013), this episode explores the new future African Americans sought following the victories of the civil rights movement, but instead, ran into a growing class disparity that threatened to split the black community in two.  As hundreds of African Americans won political office across the country and the black middle class made unprecedented progress, larger economic and political forces isolated the black urban poor in the inner cities, vulnerable to new social ills and an epidemic of incarceration.  

Yet, African Americans of all backgrounds came together to support Illinois’ Senator Barack Obama in his historic campaign for the presidency of the United States.  When he won in 2008, many hoped that America had finally transcended race and racism.  By the time of his second victory, it was clear that many issues, including true racial equality, remain to be resolved. This episode also includes coverage of the fatal shooting of Miami Gardens teen, Trayvon Martin by neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman while Trayvon visited Sanford, Florida.

Now we ask: How will African Americans help redefine the United States in the years to come?

Here’s a sneak peek of episode six featuring The Root’s Questlove.