Includes a conversation with host W. Kamau Bell

Emmy-nominated United Shades of America with W. Kamau Bell is an eight-part CNN Original Series that follows sociopolitical comedian Bell as he explores subcultures across the country, using humor to start a conversation about race and how our differences unite and divide us.  Each episode of the hour-long series strives to show the country is not built upon just one, but many diverse and colorful definitions of America. The second season premieres this spring on CNN.

“Immigrants & Refugees”

In the nation’s capital and its multicultural suburbs, Kamau is gleefully steeped in the extraordinary stories of ambitious immigrants to the U.S., as well as those who have escaped to it seeking a safer life. A whirlwind of a trip, his pilgrimage to the area takes him from Gaithersburg, Maryland, which celebrates being the most diverse city in America, to an Alt-Right conference in D.C., where leader Richard Spencer confesses happily, “I want to bathe in white privilege.” Kamau balances the extremism as a guest at a huge refugee potluck dinner, surrounded by hopeful transplants from a variety of countries; here, the participants revel in the possibilities on which the United States was founded: you don’t have to be from here to help make this country great.

2017, 43 min, color, ProRes

Ticketing Information

Film Independent and LACMA Film Club members can reserve tickets starting at 12 pm on Thursday, March 16. | Free; limit two tickets per membership. | Proof of member status is required to reserve tickets during advance reservation period.

LACMA member and general-admission tickets can be reserved starting at 12 pm on Thursday, March 23. | Free; limit two tickets.

PLEASE NOTE: Pre-reserved tickets for this event can be picked up at LACMA’s Ticket Office, located in the Hammer Building, on the day of the event—as early as 11 am. Tickets are for general, unreserved Bing Theater seating. Ticketed guests must be in their Bing Theater seat 15 minutes prior to the advertised start time or seat(s) may be released. Reservations do not guarantee entry, even with a ticket in hand. Entry is first come, first served, so please arrive early. Program and guest participation subject to change or cancellation without prior notice. Tickets are nontransferable and can only be picked up by the individual who purchased or reserved them.