Hi all,

Its not often that the Smithsonian opens a new museum.  As you may know, this weekend the National African American Museum of History and Culture will open on the National Mall.  The dedication ceremony with President Obama will be Saturday morning and there is a "Freedom Sounds" Festival on the mall all weekend long to commemorate this important occasion.

We would like to invite you to take part in this joyous and historic event. SITES has been working with the staff of the new museum to develop a poster set that highlights the story of African Americans and some of the important collections in the museum.  We only have a few poster sets left, but could possibly print more if there is a ground swell of interest. These posters are beautifully designed and could become the centerpiece of a deeply inspiring exhibition in libraries or community centers or used as a focal point in classrooms.  The quotes are very powerful and could be the coupled with a reading discussion program.

If your councils are interested in being a part of this year long celebration, please go to the following link to see the design files (very large files to open, but worth the wait!), a program handbook, and promotional material.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/0B34ognB6Av6sMDRUZ3ZKdktBVVE
If you like, you can download the design files and print them yourselves to share with organizations in your states. They could be framed or easily mounted on foam core.

So, no matter where you are this weekend, please raise a toast to this new museum and to the mission it has to share with the world the stories, collections, music, culture, and history of African American people.

With warm regards,

Carol


Carol G. Harsh
Director, Museum on Main Street and Special Projects
Smithsonian Institution, SITES
202-633-5333