Please note: This exhibition/virtual reality performance features discussion of racism and segregation. It is strongly recommended that viewers are 12 years of age or older.

Traveling While Black is a cinematic VR experience that immerses viewers in the long history of restriction of movement for black Americans and the creation of safe spaces in our communities.

Academy Award winner Roger Ross Williams and Emmy Award-winning Felix & Paul Studios' film transports viewers to historic Ben's Chili Bowl restaurant in Washington DC. Viewers share an intimate series of moments with several of Ben's patrons as they reflect on their experiences of restricted movement and race relations in the U.S.

Confronting the way we understand and talk about race in America, Traveling While Black highlights the urgent need to not only remember the past but to learn from it, and to facilitate a dialogue about the challenges minority travelers still face today.

Traveling While Black is a traveling VR exhibition for participants to experience a deeper understanding of what segregation was like historically in today’s world of “stop and frisk.”

The Traveling While Black installation gathers multi-generational experiences and contemporary stories of “traveling while black” highlighting the urgent need to remember this past, build critical empathy, and facilitate a dialogue about the challenges minority travelers still face today.

The evocative exhibition production by Phi bridges the gap between the VR experience and the actual location of Ben's Chili Bowl in Washington, DC.