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In celebration of Black History Heritage month, the Smithsonian Institution and places across the country honor the culture and diversity of Black Americans with exhibits, lectures and other events. Interested in listing your cultural event in celebration of Black History Heritage Month? Email us at EventRSVP@si.edu

 

  ALABAMA
 
Location: Birmingham Civil Rights Institute (Smithsonian Affiliate)
City: Birmingham
Date: ongoing
Description: The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute is an educational, cultural and research center that seeks to promote a comprehensive understanding and appreciation of the significance of civil rights developments in the South, with particular emphasis on the national struggle of African-American citizens and minority participation in the democratic process and free enterprise system. Throughout February, the Institute is hosting a number of programs, from month-long Heritage Alive! programs for young children to the Annual Oral History Project Symposium on February 13 to Classic Moments in Black History Quiz Bowl on February 19.
 
Location: Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts (Smithsonian Affiliate)
City: Montgomery
Date: January 31, 2009 – April 12, 2009
Description: Ancestry and Innovation: African American Art from the American Folk Art Museum, an exhibition of the Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition Service, presents the collection of the American Folk Art Museum, celebrating the ongoing contribution of self-taught black artists to the kaleidoscope of American culture and visual experience. The show juxtaposes complex and vibrant quilts with paintings and sculpture; works by contemporary masters; and provocative pieces by emerging artists.
 
  MARYLAND
 
Location: Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History and Culture (Smithsonian Affiliate)
City: Baltimore
Date: through March 8, 2008
Description: Lift Every Voice: Portraits of African American Musicians by Russ Moss exhibition features black and white photographs of Baltimore's African American musicians. The selected photographs were originally created for Sounds & Stories: The Musical Life of Maryland's African American Communities, an oral history project developed by the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University. Moss's candid portraits present a visual legacy of their lives in music.
 
Location: B & O Railroad Museum (Smithsonian Affiliate)
City: Baltimore
Date: February 1 – 28, 2009
Description: Celebrate Black History Month at the B&O, proudly presented by AMTRAK. Celebrate the contributions of African Americans to the railroad industry. Learn about these men and women who filled vital jobs all along the B&O Railroad's line and understand how significant social issues, such as segregation, affected railroading.
 
  MICHIGAN
 
Location: Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History
City: Detroit
Date: through March 1, 2009
Description: Let Your Motto Be Resistance: African American Portraits, an exhibition of the Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition Service, the National Museum of African American History and Culture, and the National Portrait Gallery, is an intriguing exhibition of photographic portraits of African Americans. The show explores photography's influential role in shaping public identity and individual notions of race and status over the past 150 years.
   
  MINNESOTA
 
Location: Stearns History Museum
City: St. Cloud
Date: January 31, 2009 – April 12, 2009
Description: 381 Days: The Montgomery Bus Boycott Story exhibition from the Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition Service. The show offers a gripping account of the men and women whose non-violent approach to political and social change matured into a weapon of equality for all.
   
  OHIO
 
Location: National Underground Railroad Freedom Center (Smithsonian Affiliate)
City: Cincinnati
Date: February 10, 2009 – April 20, 2009
Description: Through the story of the beautiful coiled basket, the Grass Roots: African Origins of an American Art exhibition explores the history of the southeastern United States and demonstrates the enduring contribution of African people and culture to American life. Featuring over two hundred objects, including baskets made in Africa and the American South, African sculptures, paintings from the Charleston Renaissance, historic photography, and new video, the exhibition traces the history of the coiled basket on two continents and shows how a simple farm tool once used for processing rice has become a work of art and an important symbol of African-American identity.
   
  PENNSYLVANIA
 
Location: The African American Museum in Philadelphia (Smithsonian Affiliate)
City: Philadelphia
Date: February 8, 2009 – June 1, 2009
Description: The Lois Mailou Jones: Prints and works on paper exhibition showcases one of the most prominent African American women artists of the twentieth century through a selection of more than 45 works on paper. She was one of the first artists of color to pay tribute to her African heritage through the implementation of African motifs and patterns into her art. For more than 50 years, Lois Mailou Jones enjoyed a consistently successful career as a painter, teacher, book illustrator and textile designer.
   
  SOUTH CAROLINA
 
Location: Cultural and Heritage Museums, McCelvey Center (Smithsonian Affiliate)
City: Rock Hill
Date: February 26, 2009
Description: For 3 – 8th grades, the Museum presents Heroes of the Underground Railroad, a unique theatrical experience combining traditional music and drama to honor the heroic figures of America's Underground Railroad. Those Americans that dared to go against a nation in order to stand-up for what they knew was right. This play introduces students to those that bravely brought light to America's darkest chapter.
   
  TENNESSEE
 
Location: National Civil Rights Museum
City: Memphis
Date: January 24, 2009 – April 5, 2009
Description: Freedom's Sisters, an exhibition from the Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition Service, brings to life 20 African American women, from key 19th-century historical figures to contemporary leaders, who have fought for equality for all Americans. The exhibition is introduced by a video and features strong artistic images that will seize visitors' emotions.
   
  TEXAS
 
Location: Museum of African American History and Culture (Smithsonian Affiliate)
City: Dallas
Date: ongoing
Description: The African American Museum is dedicated to the research, identification, selection, acquisition, presentation and preservation of visual art forms and historical documents that relate to the life and culture of the African-American community.
   
  WISCONSIN
 
Location: Hoard Historical Museum
City: Fort Atkinson
Date: January 24, 2009 – March 22, 2009
Description: Beyond Baseball: The Life of Roberto Clemente exhibition is organized by the Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition Service, Smithsonian Latino Center, Smithsonian Affiliate the Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico, and the Clemente family. The show is a tribute to this monumental figure's outstanding achievements on the field and off. It is a journey into sports history, ethnic pride, and Clemente's profound commitment to helping others.
   

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