Northwest African American Museum

Northwest African American Museum
Northwest African American Museum, photographed on its second day of operation, 2008.

The Northwest African American Museum (NAAM) in Seattle, Washington, USA opened March 8, 2008.[1] Intended to "document and exhibit the unique historical and cultural experiences of African Americans in Seattle and the Pacific Northwest", the museum is part of the new Urban League Village at the former Colman School (built 1909,[2] and with official status as a City of Seattle landmark[3]). The building will also contain 36 units of mixed income housing for "artists, historians, teachers, and others who would be attracted by the activities of the museum.[4] The museum is located in Seattle's Central District.

Contents

Background

Opening of exhibit "Tacoma's Civil Rights Struggle: African Americans Leading the Way (February 4, 2009).

The first efforts at creating the museum began in 1981,[4] by a group called Community Exchange. In 1984 a formal task force was established. The following year community activists Earl Debnam, Michael Greenwood, Charlie James and Omari Tahir-Garrett occupied the disused Colman School to claim the building as the museum location.[2] Tahir-Garrett's son Wyking Kwame Garrett later also participated in occupation, which continued for eight years.[1]

In 1993, a not-for-profit organization, the African American Heritage Museum and Cultural Center, formed; Bob Flowers was appointed chairman of the museum board in 1995.[2] The Urban League became involved in the project in 2001[4] and purchased the Colman School from Seattle Public Schools in 2003.[2] Unlike Flowers' group, the Urban League group had no continuity from the group that had originally occupied the building, leading to "a bitter split among African-American activists".[1]

Carver Gayton was named director of the museum and Urban League Village project in 2004,[2] and ground was broken in spring 2006.[4] During the March 2008 opening ceremonies, Wyking Kwame Garrett seized the microphone and described the Urban-League-led museum as a "disgrace", a "scam", and "not what we sacrificed our lives for." Booed by the assembled crowd, he refused to leave or to be quiet, and was arrested. Nonetheless, Carver Gayton acknowledged the occupiers' role in bringing the museum into being: "They had a role in improving visibility of the African American Museum. They were part of that. We can't discount it." Similarly, Rev. Sam McKinney, former pastor of Seattle's Mount Zion Baptist Church, thanked the occupiers: "For eight years, they fought the wrecking ball."[1]

Facility

Museum entrance, photographed on NAAM's second day of operation, 2008.

The museum has 17,000 square feet (1,600 m2) of floor space, including a bookstore/gift shop and a café. It will have educational programs for children, including traveling exhibits.[4]

The museum's initial temporary exhibit features the work of Jacob Lawrence and James W. Washington, Jr., two prominent African American artists who made their homes in Seattle. Among the works in the show are Lawrence's series of five panels on the life of George Washington Bush, Washington State's first African American settler.[5]

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d Susan Gilmore, African American Museum opens to acclaim, Seattle Times, March 9, 2008. Accessed online 9 March 2008.
  2. ^ a b c d e Kathy Mulady, African American Museum heading toward reality, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, June 2, 2006. Accessed online 17 October 2007.
  3. ^ Landmarks Alphabetical Listing for C, Individual Landmarks, Department of Neighborhoods, City of Seattle. Accessed 28 December 2007.
  4. ^ a b c d e "Northwest African American Museum at Urban League Village", brochure
  5. ^ Sheila Farr, Kindred spirits at Northwest African American Museum, Seattle Times, March 2, 2008. Accessed online 15 March 2008.

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • American Museum of Natural History — Established 1869 Location Central Park West at 79th Street, New York City, United States Type …   Wikipedia

  • Northwest Seaport — 1002 Valley Street Seattle WA 98109 The Northwest Seaport Maritime Heritage Center is a nonprofit organization in Seattle, Washington dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of Puget Sound and Northwest Coast maritime heritage, expressed …   Wikipedia

  • Museum of Glass — Bridge of Glass and glass blowing (cone) building Established 2002 Location Tacoma, Washington, U.S …   Wikipedia

  • Museum of History and Industry — Boeing B 1 float plane, the first commercial plane made by Boeing …   Wikipedia

  • Museum of Northwest Art — The Museum of Northwest Art in La Conner The Museum of Northwest Art (also referred to as MoNA) is an art museum located in La Conner, Washington, and is focused on the Northwest School art movement, which had its peak in the mid 20th century.… …   Wikipedia

  • Timeline of African-American Civil Rights Movement — African American topics History  Atlantic slave trade · Maafa Slavery in the United States Military history of African Americans …   Wikipedia

  • Museum of Communications — Panel switch district selector frame at the Museum of Communications The Museum of Communications, originally the Vintage Telephone Equipment Museum, is located in Qwest s Duwamish Central Office at East Marginal Way S. and Corson Avenue S. in… …   Wikipedia

  • Coast Guard Museum Northwest — Coordinates: 47°35′26″N 122°20′16″W / 47.5906°N 122.3377°W / 47.5906; 122.3377 …   Wikipedia

  • Nordic Heritage Museum — Established 1980 Location 3014 NW 67th Street Seattle, Washington Type Heritage center …   Wikipedia

  • American black bear — Temporal range: Late Pliocene Early Pleistocene to recent At Lake Louise, Alberta Conservation status …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”