A new Civil Rights Museum exploring hundreds of years of Black history is set to open in the heart of Harlem this weekend.
The Urban Civil Rights Museum in Harlem is the brainchild of Marc Morial and Jennifer Scott, who together chronicled Black Americans’ history in the North from migration through the 20th century.
“Visitors learn about the transatlantic slave trade, which is not normally associated with the civil rights movement, and the reality of slavery in the northern states, which is a part of the story that’s often overlooked; a lot of people do not know that slavery existed in the North,” said Scott, who curated the exhibits. “From there, we look at ways African Americans resisted oppression and built communities, free black communities. We explore the Underground Railroad, free black settlements, maroon societies, abolition movements, and the long struggle for freedom and citizenship.”
Organizers say this will be New York’s first museum solely dedicated to Civil Rights, and one of the first in the nation focused on the history of Civil Rights in the North.
It is located on the 4th floor of the National Urban League headquarters at 117 West 125th St., which also includes retail spaces and affordable housing within its 17 floors.
The museum uses a mix of projected imagery, interactive booths, historical items, television snippets, large-scale maps, and more to tell the story of Black triumph and overcoming adversity.
“My favorite story in the museum is about Henry Box Brown. Now, who is Henry Box Brown? Henry Box Brown was a man in Virginia who wanted to be free, so he placed himself in a wooden box and shipped himself to the abolitionist in Philadelphia. You will see a replica of the box; he crowded himself in this box for 27 hours,” Morial said. “How he survived undetected, how he survived for 27 hours really, I think, underscores the desire for freedom, the extent to which people will go to escape oppression. So, I love the story of Henry Box Brown.”
The museum is set to open to the public on Nov. 14.
