Exhibit opening on August 27th
Milwaukee Public Library, in partnership with JPMorgan Chase, will host a traveling exhibition from The King Center in Atlanta. The King Center Imaging Project exhibition showcases digital images of key documents from Dr. King’s correspondence, speeches, sermons and other key figures and organizations from the Civil Rights Movement.
“We are thrilled to have this exhibit in Milwaukee where the dreams of equality Dr. King had for the future are visible,” Mayor Tom Barrett said. “The project’s goal of equal accessibility to all is a fitting tribute to his work and to the Civil Rights Movement.”
The King Center Imaging Project was initiated at the request of the King Center, which asked JPMorgan Chase to use its technological expertise and financial resources to digitize Dr. King’s archives and help make them available to new generations of people across the globe. Until the development of the exhibition, the documents were only available to scholars who visited Atlanta.
“This project gives the public access they’ve never had before,” said Library Director Paula Kiely. “It’s an opportunity to see firsthand how tens of thousands of Dr. King’s documents are digitized and made accessible to the world.”
A team of more than 300 – including veterans and students at Spelman and Morehouse colleges – digitized nearly 200,000 documents associated with Dr. King. His most famous speeches and correspondence, such as his I Have a Dream speech, the letter from Birmingham Jail and his Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, can now be viewed around the world.
“Chase is a proud supporter of this project and developed the traveling exhibition to promote it across the country,” said Jim Popp, President of Chase in Wisconsin and Minnesota. “We have the good fortune to partner with the Milwaukee Public Library to host the exhibition booth, which is the perfect venue because it too reflects Dr. King’s values of equal opportunity, accessibility to all and a commitment to quality education.”
The exhibit was launched at the dedication of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial in Washington, DC in 2011. Since that time the exhibit has traveled to the Congressional Black Caucus in Washington, DC, Madison Square Garden in New York City, The Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati and the National Urban League Convention.
The exhibit is open:
August 27 from 9:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m.
August 28 from 9:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m.
August 29 from 9:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
August 30 from 9:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Where: Milwaukee Public Library Central Library 814 W. Wisconsin Ave. Milwaukee, WI 53233
