The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute (BCRI), in partnership with The Alabama Sports Hall of Fame, NASCAR, Honda, Southern Custom Exhibits, Microsoft and The Southern Center for Broadening Participation in STEM, is pleased to announce the opening of a special exhibit on July 7, 2022 in conjunction with The World Games. Race to Freedom: African Americans in Sports & The Marathon for Progress will be an interactive display bringing into focus the powerful symbol of the wide-ranging challenges and triumphs in the nation’s history of race and racism - sports.
The exhibit will take visitors through an observation of the space within society where African Americans have engaged in inventive ways to incite change and advocate for equality. The narrative and full-sensory experience will encourage visitors to consider the harrowing intersection of racism in sports and sports as conduit for progress. The points of reflection, or marks on the track of progress, include Segregation, Discrimination and Stereotypes, Activism and Change.
Adorned with a real BCRI branded NASCAR stock car that will be on display at the Institute as part of the presentation, this special exhibit is expected to bring thousands of visitors to learn more about the struggle for equality that Black athletes have faced for centuries. Race to Freedom will include weekly giveaways, a Gee's Bend Quilt, interactive features, unique photo opportunities with celebrities, sports archives and memorabilia. Featured objects and narrative pay tribute to athletes and athletic organizations tied to Alabama, including but not limited to: Joe Louis, Jesse Owens, Alice Coachman Davis, the Birmingham Black Barons, the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame, NASCAR, and others. Throughout, visitors will face statistical data related to racism and sports before exiting with their batons to continue the race for equality.