Fifty years ago today was the March on Washington. To bring a piece of this history to your library, the Changing America Exhibit is open for applications.
The American Library Association (ALA) Public Programs Office, in collaboration with the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) and National Museum of American History (NMAH), invites applications from public, academic and special libraries, small museums, and historical societies for the traveling exhibition Changing America: The Emancipation Proclamation, 1863 and the March on Washington, 1963.
The traveling exhibition is made possible by the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the human endeavor (NEH). Online applications must be submitted to ALA by October 21, 2013. The application form and the guidelines for completing the application may be found at www.programminglibrarian.org/
Changing America will help public audiences understand and discuss the relationship between two great peoples’ movements that resulted in the Emancipation Proclamation, and the March on Washington in 1963. One hundred years separate the Emancipation Proclamation and the March on Washington, yet these two events are profoundly linked together in a larger story of liberty and the American experience. Both events were the results of people demanding justice. Both grew out of decades of bold actions, resistance, organization, and vision. In both we take inspiration from those who marched toward freedom.
Fifty sites will be selected to present the traveling version of the exhibition in their communities for a period of six weeks. Sites selected for the tour will be required to sponsor an opening event, and at least two public humanities programs for adult audiences, presented by qualified humanities scholars and related to exhibition themes. The exhibition requires approximately 1,200-1,400 square feet for optimal display. All sites selected for the project will receive a grant of $1,700 from the ALA, with funding provided by the NEH, for expenses related to public programs. A planning webinar/workshop and online program resources will be available for all selected sites. The tour and programs will begin in January 2014 and continue through December 2017.
Please see the application and guidelines for more detailed information.