On May 4, Rhode Islanders gathered in Providence for a behind-the-scenes look at the newest Smithsonian museum being built on the National Mall in Washington, DC and an up-close look at a new travelling exhibition, “Changing America: The Emancipation Proclamation, 1863 and the March on Washington, 1963.”
The “Changing America” exhibition, presented by the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC), uses photographs, historical quotes, and writings to examine the events leading up to the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, and the March on Washington in 1963, and describes the struggle for equal rights for African Americans from 1860 to the present day. The exhibition will have its official opening on May 7 and will be hosted at the Center for the Study of Slavery and Justice (CSSJ) at Brown University through June 10, 2015.
To help kick things off, NMAAHC’s founding Director, Lonnie G. Bunch III, joined Senator Reed; Brown President Christina Paxson; and over 100 members of the Providence community for a symposium at CSSJ. During the presentation, Mr. Bunch shared his experience in working to help conceive, build, and launch the NMAAHC and enlisted Rhode Islanders’ input in developing the only national museum devoted exclusively to the documentation of African American life, art, history, and culture.
