Who's in the Room?

While interning for the Education Department at Levine Museum of the New South this summer, I've heard community members time and again comment, “Now, the Levine Museum does history the right way.”  Over the course of this summer, I've increasingly understood what it means to “do history” the “right way.”  

Growing up in small-town North Carolina, I had a very limited understanding of history—especially when it came to the history of the South.  Like many other Southern children, I was taught to believe and accept that Stonewall Jackson was a great leader and that the Confederate flag was an acceptable symbol of Southern identity.  It was not until I started studying Anthropology in college that I started to ask myself questions about how history is made, published and taught.  

Traditionally, history has been fabricated based on limited perspectives and the loudest voices in the room.  In other words, power plays a major role in the shaping of history.  Just as the accumulation of power has depended on socially constructed factors-- race, skin color, displays of wealth—the ability to write and tell history has been centralized along similar constructs.  As a result, what we know of events, people, culture and places are really objects of partial histories and partial truths.  These are problematic in that they are only a sliver of the many perspectives that actually exist. 

Levine Museum has sought to break away from the classical museum model by employing a bottom-up approach.  It seeks to allow community members to speak for themselves and tell their own stories.  Ranging from the use of listening sessions to collect community input on exhibit design to programming pop-up sessions to collect oral stories, Levine Museum is inclusive of narratives across the spectrum of race, socioeconomic class, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, religion and more.  Emphasis is placed on self-representation and the multiplicity of voices and perspectives.  

Last spring the Museum hosted Out of the Shadows: Undocumented and Unafraid, an artfully crafted exhibit from artist Annabel Manning and curator Carla Hanzal, which featured names, photos and narratives of undocumented students around North Carolina.  The exhibit was particularly exemplary of the museum’s approach as it empowered and gave voice to a population of students who have been systematically disfranchised and disempowered.  In July, the Museum opened LGBTQ: Perspectives on Equality which also took on the approach of having visitors and community members tell their stories and influence what direction the exhibits and programming should take. 

Such exhibits not only make what we do authentic so that it resonates with visitors and their thinking we did the history “right;” but more importantly, they serve as community safe space where stories are validated and appreciated as threads of a richer community fabric.  

~Yeeva Cheng, Education Intern

What other stories would you like to see told? 

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Ask an Artist: Nancy O'Neil, Looking Forward/Looking Back

Levine Museum is excited to host Looking Forward/Looking Back, an exhibit of the public art to be integrated into the first phase of the CityLYNX Gold Line streetcar project. The exhibit of collages by artist Nancy O’Neil is on display now through March 30, 2015. 

Please meet artist Nancy O'Neil

What inspired you to work on such a massive project?

I wasn't afraid to take this on because I had experience with large projects —in 2000 I did a huge glass curtain wall for the Sam Nunn Atlanta Federal Center.  And I had one prior experience with windscreens a couple of years ago in Salt Lake City. Check out my website, www.nancyoneil.com.

My work is very much about place, so a transit job with lots of stations is great for me.  Each station has its own story to tell.  I get to find out about all the different neighborhoods —history, culture, natural features, etc. And I get to use old maps, which I love. This kind of project provides me with a lot of good material for my collages. It’s the kind of work I like best.

I especially like making unexpected connections and weaving things together.  I have respect for the past, how it affects us, and propels us into the future.

What feelings, thoughts, emotions do you want your artwork to invoke on Charlotte’s riders?

Some of the panels are more emotionally powerful than others but I think every station has something for people to think about. We will have to wait and see.

How was it working with many individuals and their passion for Charlotte’s history?

Everyone I worked with was extremely knowledgable and people were very generous with their time. All of the archives people really went the extra mile for me, and I am grateful.

What challenges did you face creating the artwork?

At times I wished I lived closer —there was an awful lot of research to do long distance!

What can riders expect?

I think people will like the colors and the overall designs. People tend to spend a lot of time looking at the photos and many people are intrigued by the maps and like to study them closely. Based on my recent experience with a series of windscreens I installed in Denver, lots of people will want to know more about what they are looking at.  Once these windscreens are in place I will photograph them and put  a complete Key to all of the imagery and sources on my website so that people can learn more.

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What do you think of the new CityLYNX line and the artwork that will be incorporated? Tell us below and share with your friends. 

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A Look Back: Charlotte and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 -- Part II

Our series "A Look Back: Charlotte and the Civil Rights Act of 1964" continues.

Three desegregation actions in our area during the early 1960s did make national headlines. Sit-ins blossomed in Charlotte and nearby cities during 1960 - 61.  In spring 1963, A & T University student Jesse Jackson organized relentless marches against segregated movie theaters and other public accommodations in the Greensboro area.  In May 1963 came the voluntary desegregation of Charlotte’s upscale restaurants. Together those important initiatives set the stage for the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Black college students sat down at the segregated lunch counter of the Woolworths store in downtown Greensboro on February 1, 1960.  One of the original four, Franklin McCain, went on live most of his life in Charlotte, passing away in 2013. The sit-in strategy quickly spread other Carolina towns with black colleges. Johnson C. Smith University students led in part by Charles Jones held one of the biggest sit-ins, with as many as 200 participants.  In nearby Rock Hill, sit-in activists from Friendship College pioneered the “jail, no bail” technique, making headlines as they braved arrest and did hard labor at the county prison.

The sit-ins opened most lunch counters but segregation remained in other public places.  In 1963, charismatic student Jesse Jackson at NC A & T University organized mass protests in Greensboro and nearby cities.  As hundreds of students picketed movie theaters week after week, it became clear to America that this issue would not go away.

Events in Charlotte gave hope that change could come peacefully.  In response to a march by black dentist Dr. Reginald Hawkins and Johnson C. Smith University students, Mayor Stan Brookshire worked with the Chamber of Commerce to arrange for black and white businessmen to go two-by-two to eat together at the city’s elite restaurants.  By the end of May 1963, desegregation was a reality. The New York Times and other national press applauded.

The stage was set for the 1964 Civil Rights Act.  On June 20, 1963 the Act was introduced in the US House.  Despite long and concerted resistance by many white Southern legislators, it made its way thru the House then the Senate over the next year.  President Lyndon Johnson signed it into law on July 2, 1964!

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Would sit-ins be as effective today? Would you participate in a sit-in? 

A Look Back: Charlotte and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 -- Part I

July 2 marks the 50th anniversary of the historical Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Charlotte area played a huge role from the beginning. In this two-part series our Dr. Tom takes a look back on Charlotte's impact in the Civil Rights movement and the actions that lead to the passing of this landmark legislative bill.

The 1964 Civil Rights Act remade the South and America.  The law mandated the end of segregation in “public accommodations”: restaurants, movie theaters, hotels, and more. Congress did not simply swoop down and declare this new order.  Civil Rights activists fought long and hard to put equality on the nation’s agenda. Key actions in that struggle took place right here in Charlotte and the Carolinas.  As we mark the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act, enacted July 2, 1964, it is a good time to share some of those stories.

Since the Plessy v Ferguson decision by the Supreme Court in 1896, racial segregation had been the law of the land.  Plessy held that separate accommodations on trains and in railroad stations, and by extension anywhere else, were OK … as long as they were “separate but equal.”  In reality, things were definitely separate but seldom if ever equal. Segregation was blatant south of the Mason Dixon Line but most communities outside Dixie also had formal or informal “color lines” separating urban areas and businesses into white and black categories.

In Charlotte, City Hall had “white” and “colored” water fountains.  Those actual signs are on display in the Museum's COTTON FIELDS TO SKYSCRAPERS exhibition.  Also at the Museum you can see a re-creation of the Carolina Theater. It admitted only whites; black people went to the Lincoln Theater which seldom showed first-run films. When Independence Park opened in 1903, city law barred black people with the exception of black nannies who brought white children to play.  Such regulations carried over even to the city-owned golf course at Revolution Park, when black youngsters could be caddies but could not play.  One caddie, Charlie Sifford, snuck in at night and perfected his game to the point that he went pro, the first African American on the PGA Tour.

Black people challenged segregation from the beginning.  When North Carolina started requiring African Americans to sit at the back of streetcars in 1906, Charlotte ministers led a boycott, unsuccessfully.  That’s long before Rosa Parks and the famous Montgomery Bus Boycott of 1956.  Another “before Rosa” action happened at Revolution Park golf course. African American doctors, lawyers and other professionals in Charlotte wanted to play golf.  In 1951 they sued to desegregate the park.  The lawsuit meandered through the courts for years, eventually winning in the late 1950s.  If it had been speedily decided, we’d be reading about it in national history books today.

A Look Back: Charlotte and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 continues tomorrow...

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Destination Freedom Kick Off: Ask an Activist!

This Sunday is our official Destination Freedom Kick Off, a free afternoon program featuring panel discussions, new exhibits and entertainment, along with a special talk by Civil Rights activist Diane Nash.  In preparing for Sunday, we had the opportunity to ask several of the panelists questions surrounding the pivotal moments of the Civil Rights Movement, their own activism, and what they are looking forward to during the Destination Freedom Kick Off. 

 

Next up: Elver Barrios, Community Organizer at the Latin American Coalition

 

How does Sept. 15, 1963 relate to the causes you are most passionate about? What takeaways have you gained from the Civil Rights Movement?

Sept. 15, 1963 relates to causes I am passionate about because of the fact that there has always been people who, for various reasons, always feared or showed hatred towards others based on their skin color, gender or other identities. But, the fact that there is always someone that stands up to fight for what is right gives me courage to see that it might take a while to make changes. It is never too late to make those changes. I also look at the sacrifices from this day 50 years ago and think about how in movements for change sometimes there are sacrifices and losses.

Changing the immigration system is something that I’m really passionate about since I’m personally affected by the broken immigration system. I think that the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960’s is much like today when we are still fighting for a new group of people that are oppressed. I think that if there is something that I take from the Civil Rights Movement is that perseverance always pays off and that one person can make a difference if they fight with their heart to make a difference and work to make some else’s life better. 

 

How do you recall your activism and any highlights of it?

I think that my activism has impacted in a positive way the lives of many by encouraging them to join the movement. That together we can make changes so our undocumented immigrant families can stay together and not have to be separated.  In 2010, when the fight for the DREAM Act became stronger than ever, I decided to take a stand and fight for my education along with that of other young people in Charlotte and challenge our North Carolina Senators to fight for the future of this country. Although it did not pass, the youth immigrant movement only became stronger! Today, we have grown from that time and have realized the importance of focusing not only on ourselves as young people but also on our families.

 

What are you looking forward to during the Destination Freedom Kick Off

I think that it is important that we acknowledge that in this country there has always been a group of people that has been oppressed at some point in history, and the struggles are very much similar but yet so different. It takes more than one person to make those changes. During this event I hope to see people make the connections to what happened in 1963 and today and why it is important to fight not only for our struggles but also to help others overcome theirs.

 

Hear more from Mr. Barrios and others at Levine Museum, Sunday, Sept. 15, beginning at 3 p.m.

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Destination Freedom: Civil Rights Struggles Then and Now

2013 marks the year of many anniversaries of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960’s. The most famous of these anniversaries will include the 50th anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington where the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., gave his “I Have a Dream" speech.

Dr. King, March on Washington, 1963

To commemorate that event and the various other civil rights anniversaries from Alabama to Mississippi to North Carolina, Levine Museum of the New South will begin a series of exhibitions and programs known as Destination Freedom that will highlight the aims of the Civil Rights movement then, and the issues we face today.

Destination Freedom will create a cohesive history of the movement for civil rights and the parallels to today. One exhibit in the series, Network of Mutuality: 50 Years Post-Birmingham will be the first that will bring to life—through art—what Birmingham in 1963 meant for the nation. This exhibit will coincide with our film series that will document many different facets of the movement.

With movies such as "4 Little Girls," (screenings are scheduled for Sept. 5 and 8) which tells of the life of the tragic death of 4 little girls in the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, the film series offers a chance to learn about history and then participate in discussions with community members and scholars about what the stories can teach us.

To raise the banner about all of our programming, one month from today on September 15, the Levine Museum will host its Destination Freedom kickoff; featuring keynote speaker Diane Nash, former SNCC organizer.  Along with Nash there will also be a panel of Civil Rights activists representing “then” and “now.”  All will share their stories of activism during the 1960’s and what the fight looks like today.

Want to attend the opening? Visit us on Facebook www.facebook.com/LevineMuseum to get more Destination Freedom details.

Join the conversation and exploration of civil rights (then and now) on Twitter @LevineMuseum. Follow along using the hashtag #DestinationFreedom.