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Revisiting Our Black Mosaic: Black Mosaic 20th Anniversary

This symposium will address relevant urban issues over the past two decades. It serves to bridge past museum research with current initiatives and renew the community relationships that are crucial to the Museum’s work.

Date & Time

Friday
Sep. 19, 2014
9:00am – 3:50pm ET

Location

6th Floor, Woodrow Wilson Center
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Overview

In 1994, the Anacostia Community Museum presented the landmark exhibition Black Mosaic. The project was among the first documentation projects to examine the perceptions and realities of race, nationality, and ethnicity of Black urban immigrants. Progressive for its time, the multi-cultural and multi-lingual exhibition presented the personal stories of African-descendant immigrants from Central America, South America, and the Caribbean who made their homes in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. This community-centered research project added complexity to prevailing local and national notions of the conventional African-American narrative, and also demonstrated the strong ties between the work of the Anacostia Community Museum and the greater D.C. community.

Nearly 20 years have passed since the Black Mosaic exhibition, and in that time both the local and national contexts have changed. Immigration is a hotly debated national issue. Latinos have come to outnumber African-Americans as the largest minority in the United States. Native-born Black populations are declining while African immigrant populations have hit an all-time high. Formerly predominately Black cities, like Washington, D.C., are changing in demographic composition. Fittingly, the Anacostia Community Museum has since expanded its community-focused mission beyond an African-American emphasis to include urban communities more broadly.

Scholars and members of the Washington community will publicly engage with issues that affect our shared community. The symposium will address relevant urban issues over the past two decades. It serves to bridge past museum research with current initiatives and renew the community relationships that are crucial to the Museum’s work.

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Speaker

Roger-Mark De Souza

Roger-Mark De Souza

Global Fellow and Advisor;
Former Director of Population, Environmental Security, and Resilience
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Hosted By

Urban Sustainability Laboratory

Since 1991, the Urban Sustainability Laboratory has advanced solutions to urban challenges—such as poverty, exclusion, insecurity, and environmental degradation—by promoting evidence-based research to support sustainable, equitable and peaceful cities.  Read more

Mexico Institute

The Mexico Institute seeks to improve understanding, communication, and cooperation between Mexico and the United States by promoting original research, encouraging public discussion, and proposing policy options for enhancing the bilateral relationship. A binational Advisory Board, chaired by Luis Téllez and Earl Anthony Wayne, oversees the work of the Mexico Institute.   Read more

Thank you for your interest in this event. Please send any feedback or questions to our Events staff.