By The past few months have been a whirlwind of emotions as America grapples with more black deaths at the hands of police officers and racists. The most recent events – the shooting death of Ahmaud Arbery while he was jogging, the fatal police shooting of Breonna Taylor in her own home, and the murder of George Floyd at the hands of a police officer who planted his knee in Floyd’s neck for nine minutes – sparked enough outrage to lead to protests around the world. And now as many are rallying to amplify black voices, we thought it would be a great time to share with our readers some places to visit within the U.S. that honor African Americans and/or celebrate our rich history. This originated as a post on our Instagram to celebrate Black History Month, but we decided to turn it into a full blog post, with links to the places we discuss.
This is a mix of historical sites and museums we have particularly enjoyed throughout our domestic travels. So here’s our list of nine, in no particular order.
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The DuSable Museum of African American History (Chicago) – This is the oldest African American museum in the U.S. and a Smithsonian affiliate.
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National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel (Memphis) – Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated at this motel in 1968.
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Hitsville U.S.A. Motown Museum (Detroit) – Tour the record studio where allll the greats recorded!
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Museum of African American History (Boston) – We took a Black Heritage Trail Tour that ended at this museum…must-visit when in Boston.
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Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historical Park (Atlanta) – here you can take a guided tour of Dr. King’s birth home!
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Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial (Washington, DC) – there’s a 30-foot sculpture of Dr. King and an inscription wall with some of his famous quotes.
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Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History (Detroit) – there’s a gut-wrenching exhibit here that allows you to follow the full journey of a slave.
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Huff & Thomas Cemeteries (Lake Charles, LA) – this is a burial ground for some of the area’s first African American leaders. We visited it as part of the Living History Cemetery Tour, which we’re not sure is still offered, but it’s definitely still worth a visit.
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Project Row Houses (Houston) – located in Houston’s historic Third Ward, PRH is a row of small homes with art installations inside that emphasize the cultural identities of African Americans.
By no means is this an exhaustive list! We’re always looking for places of interest. If there’s somewhere you’d like to suggest we visit, drop it in the comments below.
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