Message from the Museum President

Terri Lee Freeman gives an update on museum operations during the COVID-19 pandemic.


Remembering MLK – Virtual Commemoration

On the 52nd anniversary of his death, the museum has retooled its annual event in light of the pandemic to remember the life and legacy of the great civil rights leader, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Watch the virtual broadcast of "Remembering MLK: The Man. The Movement. The Moment." on April 4, 2020 at 5:00pm Central.

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Understanding & teaching the civil rights movement

On March 6, Dr. Hasan Jeffries, Associate Professor of History at The Ohio State University, discussed his new edited volume, Understanding and Teaching the Civil Rights Movement. 

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Accessibility

With at least two weeks’ notice, the museum offers complimentary tour guide and sign-language interpretation for hearing-impaired guests.  With 48-hours’ notice, the museum offers complimentary tour guide interpretation for visually-impaired guests.

To arrange a tour guide for hearing or visually impaired guests, contact Guest Services at (901) 521-9699or email admission@civilrightsmuseum.org. These groups are limited to no more than ten people per tour guide.

For hearing-impaired guests, assisted listening devices for the museum’s two main theater experiences and transcripts for audio elements within the exhibitions are available upon request at the admissions desk. All films have open captions at the bottom of the screen.  Trained service animals are welcome to accompany guests who require their assistance due to a disability. All other pets or animals are not permitted in the museum.

From the Vault: Collections EXHIBIT

This year’s From the Vault exhibition offers the public a glimpse into the museums collections by highlighting the museum’s recent acquisitions and donations. Showing January 18 – April 2020.

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Voices of the Civil Rights Movement

combines these two video archives into one interactive exhibit available within a walk-up kiosk. The exhibit runs for multiple years.

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From the Vault: Collections Blog

Click to check out the latest artifacts and photos From the Vault, our collections blog.

From the vault

"There lived … a people who had the moral courage to stand up for their rights and thereby they injected a new meaning into the veins of history and of civilization."

—Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

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National Civil Rights Museum News

There’s plenty of history in the making here at the National Civil Rights Museum.

  • John Lewis: Freedom Rider Tuesday, March 10, 2020
    In a 1961 strategy meeting, members of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) gather in Alabama to discuss their next moves. Key among them i...
  • Model Slave Cabin Tuesday, April 23, 2019
    Model Slave Cabin Among the interstingly novel artifacts in the National Civil Rights Museum’s collection is a model slave cabin donated to the museum along with figurines, furniture and ac...
  • The Lorraine Motel Guest Book Thursday, February 7, 2019
    By Raka Nandi Museum Collection Manager & Registrar     One of the unique collections housed at the National Civil Rights Museum is the Evidence Collection, related to ...