African American Museum of Iowa exhibit sheds light on protests, movements

Art activists Donte Hayes (right) and Savannah Simmons (standing, left) guide community members in painting a large mural during the Unwavering: Art Creation in Defense of Black Lives event at the African American Museum of Iowa in southeast Cedar Rapids on June 27. The mural is one of two created for the “Unwavering 21st Century Activism” exhibit now on display at the museum. (Jim Slosiarek/The Gazette) CEDAR RAPIDS — Visitors have to walk through a powerful past before they can step into the powerful present in the African American Museum of Iowa’s new exhibit, “Unwavering: 21st Century Activism.” Nearly a year in the making, including two community participation projects, “Unwavering” is on view through Aug. 7, 2021. During the current pandemic, hours are noon to 6 p.m. Fridays and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturdays. All visitors must wear masks and follow the one-way arrows through the museum. Doing so means visitors first step through The Door of No Return and into a representation of the slave ships that brought Africans to America, beginning the museum’s journey tracing the Black experience in Iowa, through the Civil War, the Underground Railroad, segregation and the Civil Rights Movement, up to a […]

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