Becoming Thurgood Marshall: America’s Social Architect
On Sunday, April 26, 2026 at 3:30 PM the Lewes Public Library is hosting a screening of the MPT documentary, Becoming Thurgood: America’s Social Architect. The film’s director/producer, Alexis Aggrey, is joining us for a Q&A session after the film. The screening and Q&A will take place at Cinema Art Theater (17701 Dartmouth Dr, Lewes). This event is free and open to the public. The theatre seats 100, so registration is required.
The Lewes Public Library, Southern Delaware Alliance for Racial Justice, ACLU of Delaware, and Cinema Art Theater present a film screening of Becoming Thurgood: America’s Social Architect followed by a Q&A session with the film’s director, Alexis Aggrey.
This landmark documentary explores the life and legacy of Thurgood Marshall, from his trailblazing legal battles to his historic role as the first Black Supreme Court justice. Featuring rare archival materials and interviews with leading HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) voices, the film reveals how Marshall helped America confront its deepest contradictions—and how his vision for justice continues to shape the country today.
Becoming Thurgood traces Marshall’s life and career from his birth in Baltimore in 1908, through his years at Historically Black Colleges and Universities Lincoln University and Howard University School of Law, and on to his groundbreaking career as a lawyer championing civil rights. After launching his legal career in Baltimore in 1935, Marshall went on to win 29 of the 32 cases he argued before the U.S. Supreme Court, most notably the landmark 1954 Brown v. Board of Education case, which invalidated the “separate but equal” doctrine and ended racial segregation in public schools. In 1967, Marshall became the first Black American appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court, where he served until his retirement in 1991.
Executive produced by Emmy Award-winning and Oscar-nominated filmmaker Stanley Nelson and MPT Senior Vice President and Chief Content Officer Travis Mitchell, the film is produced and directed by Alexis Aggrey, with music by two-time Grammy Award-winning composer Derrick Hodge.
Becoming Thurgood: America’s Social Architect is a production of Maryland Public Television, made possible with an appropriation from the State of Maryland for The Center for Maryland History Films. Funding for the film is also provided by Morgan State University, Theralogix, Sage Policy Group, and Allan and Shelley Holt (through the Hillside Foundation).
NOTE: this event is at the Cinema Art Theater (17701 Dartmouth Drive, Lewes), located behind the Wawa on Route 1 and Dartmouth Drive.
Due to limited seating, each individual attending must register to reserve a seat. Do NOT list two people on one registration.
This collaborative program by the Lewes Public Library, Southern Delaware Alliance for Racial Justice, ACLU of Delaware, and Cinema Art Theater is part of a series in observation of America250, which commemorates the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, marking America’s Semiquincentennial.
