Sankofa African-American Museum on Wheels Comes to UM

Sankofa-African-American-Museum-on-WheelsThe University of Mississippi Center for Inclusion and Cross Cultural Engagement, the Ole Miss Student Union and the Arch Dalrymple III Department of History are sponsoring a two-day display of the Sankofa African-American Mobile Museum in the Student Union Ballroom.

This display is open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday (Feb. 22) and 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Tuesday (Feb. 23). Admission is free. Students, faculty and staff members and area residents are invited to come explore the exhibit created by Angela W. Jennings, the museum’s historian and curator.

“Students, faculty and staff will all be challenged by the museum’s authenticity,” said Shawnboda Mead, director for the university’s Center for Inclusion and Cross Cultural Engagement. “It does not shy away from the harsh reality that is African-American history and offers a learning opportunity for all of us.

“We believe visitors will marvel over the multitude of inventions and contributions that African-Americans have made to the world.”

Visitors to the exhibit take a journey from 1860 to the present day and explore what it has been like for people who were brought from Africa as slaves and their descendants. Historical figures and selected periods of time are depicted through Jennings collection of artwork and memorabilia.

Jennings also utilizes oratorical presentations to offer history on people such as Ida B. Wells, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the Tuskegee Airmen.

“I look forward to sharing the work and wealth of knowledge that comes both from Ms. Jennings and the Sankofa African-American Museum on Wheels with the UM community,” Mead said. “I am confident that bringing the museum to our campus will be an unforgettable experience.”

For more information on upcoming Black History Month exhibitions and events, visit http://inclusion.olemiss.edu/black-history-month-2016/.