NEWSLETTER
Hyde Park, N.Y. - The Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum will open a new major special exhibition, BLACK AMERICANS, CIVIL RIGHTS, AND THE ROOSEVELTS, 1932-1962, on Saturday, June 3, 2023, in the William J. vanden Heuvel Gallery of the Library and Museum. The exhibit runs through December 31, 2024.The museum and special exhibit will be open 9:00 a.m. through 3:00 p.m. on June 3, with a special afternoon program at 3:00 p.m. -- exploring exhibit themes and current connections -- in the Henry A. Wallace Center at the FDR Presidential Library and Home. The program will be streamed live to the official FDR Library YouTube, Twitter and Facebook accounts. Visit fdrlibrary.org to register to attend the 3:00 p.m. program in-person. Regular Library and Museum admission applies to view the exhibit.
Developed in collaboration with a distinguished committee of scholars, BLACK AMERICANS, CIVIL RIGHTS, AND THE ROOSEVELTS, 1932-1962 centers the historical voices of many Black community leaders, wartime service members, and ordinary citizens who engaged the Roosevelt administration directly and who pushed for progress. Within this context, the exhibit examines the political evolution of both Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt regarding racial justice.
From the Great Depression and New Deal, through World War II and the postwar Civil Rights movement, the exhibit offers critical perspectives on, and candid assessments of, the administration’s policies and practices, and of the Roosevelts themselves. A compelling story emerges, one of Black Americans organizing and expanding national networks of political allies to create new opportunities for social justice, and to combat Jim Crow segregation, widespread discrimination, and the harsh and often violent realities of racism in America.
The exhibit features documents and artifacts -- many on display for the first time -- from the Roosevelt Library’s rich holdings and from private collections nationwide. These materials evidence the unrelenting efforts of many key figures of the early Civil Rights Movement, as well as Eleanor Roosevelt’s interactions with Black leaders of the midcentury freedom struggle. They also document the racism and discrimination in American politics and culture of the era and highlight the contradictions inherent with fighting for democracy abroad while injustice persisted at home. Showcasing some of the most riveting yet unheralded voices from its vast archives of personal letters, political pamphlets, petitions, artworks, photographs, and sound recordings, the Library hopes to inspire further research into key aspects of this important history.
The special afternoon program at 3:00 p.m. on June 3, 2023, will feature FDR Library Trustee and Director of the Roosevelt House Institute for Public Policy at Hunter College, Basil Smikle PhD; Pulitzer Prize-winning American historian David Levering Lewis; and President & CEO of the New York Urban League Arva Rice. Panelists will discuss Civil Rights in the context of the Roosevelt era, including the perspectives of Black leaders and the Roosevelts themselves, and explore the legacy of this era and its influence on current events. This discussion will be held in the Henry A. Wallace Center at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Home and will be streamed live to the official FDR Library YouTube, Twitter and Facebook accounts. Visit fdrlibrary.org to register to attend the 3:00 p.m. program in-person.
BLACK AMERICANS, CIVIL RIGHTS, AND THE ROOSEVELTS, 1932-1962 was created by staff at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum in close collaboration with a distinguished committee of historical advisers including: David Levering Lewis, New York University (Chair); Patricia Bell-Scott, University of Georgia; Kevin M. Burke, Hutchins Center for African and African American Research; Blanche Wiesen Cook, Graduate Center, City University of New York; Paula J. Giddings, Smith College; Ira I. Katznelson, Columbia University; Lionel Kimble, Jr., Chicago State University; Patricia A. Sullivan, University of South Carolina; Joe William Trotter, Jr., Carnegie-Mellon University; Geoffrey C. Ward, Historian-Writer and Jill Watts, California State University - San Marcos; with additional input and assistance from: Anita V. Sonawane, FDR Library Trustee; Freddimir Garcia, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer, Hudson Gateway Assoc. of Realtors; and Paul M. Sparrow, Former Director, Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum.
This exhibit was made possible through the generous support of the Library’s nonprofit partner, the Roosevelt Institute, with additional support provided by Mary Penniman and Garrett Moran; Gillian and Robert Steel; The Ford Foundation; Eileen Simmons; Patricia Bell-Scott; Michael Goldberg and Linda Fairstein; and the Trustees of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum.
Please contact Cliff Laube at (845) 486-7745 with questions about the exhibition.
Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum
Designed by Franklin Roosevelt and dedicated on June 30, 1941, the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum is the nation's first presidential library and the only one used by a sitting president. Administered by the National Archives and Records Administration since 1941, the Library preserves and makes accessible to the American people the records of FDR's presidency. The Roosevelt Library's mission is to foster a deeper understanding of the lives and times of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt and their continuing impact on contemporary life. This work is carried out through the Library's archives and research room, museum collections and exhibitions, innovative educational programs, and engaging public programming. For more information about the Library or its programs call (800) 337-8474 or visit fdrlibrary.org.