African American Policy Forum | The New McCarthyism: Why Authoritarians Fear Storytellers

Join us in-person at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival for The Story of Us presents, “The New McCarthyism: Why Authoritarians Fear Storytellers” on January 22 at 7pm, The Park, 150 Iron Horse Drive in Park City, UT. This will be the final Sundance Festival held at Park City and promises to be a fitting close to four decades of independent storytelling on the mountain.

We are gathering at a precarious moment. The state-pressured suspension of Jimmy Kimmel was a stark reminder that the war on history has evolved into a war on the present. We are witnessing a “New McCarthyism” marked not just by blacklists, but also by book bans, classroom gag orders, and loyalty tests demanding “patriotic” content over truth. What is often lost is the way that cinematic storytelling became a battleground upon which competing visions of a more inclusive democracy played out in Hollywood—a battle that disproportionately impacted Black artists in particular.

This event will not only recover this critical period but also assess how we can collectively avoid this cycle. We will set the stage with a panel discussion moderated by AAPF Executive Director Kimberlé Crenshaw and featuring Viet Thanh Nguyen and Jacqueline Stewart. Enjoy performances written and directed by Justin Emeka performed by Kara Young and Jon Michael Hill. We will give voice to archival testimony from silenced McCarthy-era artists and thinkers alike and outline our highest aspirations for a more creative, free and inclusive future in the arts.