They need to see the darker sides of black history, she said.
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The items reflect the stories passed from one generation to the next, the stories that became the inspiration and driving force for the new national museum. “That part of slavery and what we went through is too costly to teach”, she said.
A museum conceived of more than 100 years ago, the final product is made of two parts: the lower level is dedicated to history and black empowerment, while the upper floors are dedicated to sports, music, entertainment, food and pop culture.
The Muncie native and Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology alumnus played a key role in the establishment of the much-anticipated Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, set to open today in Washington, D.C.
The museum takes visitors through the complex history of black people in the US with artifacts and exhibitions that cover centuries of oppression, triumphs and modern discussions on race. He said he hopes the museum can contextualize current events and highlight the story of the African-American experience. “It is a story of America”. “I just think it’s important to have a facility to show the work, dedication and commitment the African-American culture has had on the development of this country”. That exhibit contains such items as a slave cabin from SC, a bill of sale for a 16-year-old girl for $600, shackles used on slaves and a copy of the Emancipation Proclamation.
At the Civil Rights Movement exhibit museum-goers learn about key figures like Martin Luther King, as well as the rise of the Black Power movement and the Black Panther party. There are also tens of thousands of other artifacts which have been contributed which could be rotated later into exhibition space.
President Barack Obama and former President George W. Bush took seats of honor at the opening ceremony of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.
Baltimore’s more recent history is also included with pictures from the unrest after the death of Freddie Gray.
The museum also tells the story of segregation, the civil rights movement, and the African-Americans who influenced the history of the USA and who have changed the direction of its future.
“We were an outgrowth of Frederick Douglass and white abolitionists who partnered with him”, Obama told ABC News. “Of all races. Young people idealistically coming down here and being willing to challenge an unjust system”. Joining historic sites like the Washington Monument, The White House and The Capitol Building, the NMAAHC will be the final landmark added to the National Mall.
The dramatic building-set in a prime location near the White House and the Washington Monument-features three inverted-pyramid tiers sheathed in bronze-painted filigree panels that house more than 34,000 objects, almost half of them donated.
Shirley Burke considered donating a violin that’s more than 150 years old to the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit before she and her family decided it deserved a larger audience and greater appreciation.
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At night, the corona glows from the light within the building.
