Bernard Harris

The history of Black astronauts in America is absolutely fascinating. And mostly unknown. The Space Race is an eye-opening National Geographic documentary from directors Lisa Cortes and Diego Hurtado de Mendoza that focusses on an unsung group of heroes — the Black pilots, scientists and engineers who were part of the U.S. space program. The filmmakers situate their story in the wider landscape of recent U.S. history; the space pioneers they interview for the film are, you know, actual rocket scientists, so this is a riveting watch. Even now, institutionalized racism in the U.S. is being strengthened by laws that will prevent the teaching of Critical Race Theory. As Charles Bolden says in The Space Race, “Black history is American history. We forget it at our peril.”