Three metropolitan Detroit museums will have a presence in Alpena this summer, through a coordinated project with the Arab American National Museum, the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, and the Holocaust Memorial Center.

The special collections department of the library is collaborating with these museums to bring educational and interactive exhibits to Alpena.

The exhibits, free and open to the public during regular library hours, include:

¯ July 15 to 31 — “Telling Our Stories,” from the Holocaust Memorial Center

¯ August 1 to 15 — “Arab Americans: History, Culture, and Contributions,” from the Arab American National Museum

¯ August 16 to 31 — “An Uncommon Community Alliance: Second Baptist Church and Comerica Bank,” “Jazz in Detroit Before Motown,” and “Walk to Freedom,” from The Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History.

Staff at the library are excited to share these exhibits with the community. The first exhibit, from the Holocaust Memorial Center in Farmington Hills, looks at numerous Holocaust experiences using the accounts of survivors who settled in Michigan. The exhibit presents topics such as pre-war life, the rise of Nazism, ghettos, concentration camps, resistance, life after, and more. By telling the personal stories of Michigan’s Holocaust survivors, this exhibit provides a local and personal connection to the history of the Holocaust.

Beginning on August 1, an exhibit created by the Arab American National Museum in Dearborn, an Affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, will be on display for the public.

Arab Americans have been an integral part of American society for more than 125 years, and through this traveling exhibit, visitors will explore the history, culture and contributions of Arab Americans.

The final exhibit, from the Charles H. Wright Museum in Detroit, will tell the history of the Underground Railroad through the Second Great Migration, the history of jazz in Detroit, and black neighborhoods like Paradise Valley and Black Bottom and their role in providing jobs, homes and recreation for the black community during the Great Migrations. Also featured will be Dr. Martin Luther King’s historic speech at Cobo Hall and walk down Woodward Avenue in Detroit before his famous march in Washington, D.C.

For more information, visit the library’s Facebook page, www.alpenalibrary.org, or call 989-356-6188, ext. 17.

About the Holocaust

Memorial Center

The Holocaust Memorial Center Zekelman Family Campus is a 55,000 square foot museum and library archive in Farmington Hills that teaches about the senseless murder of millions and why people must respect and stand up for the rights of others to prevent future genocide and hate crimes.

The lessons of history are used to create a call to action, teaching visitors through the examples of those who risked their lives to save others, and asking guests to react to contemporary challenges such as racism and prejudice. Exhibits include artifacts such as an authentic WWII-era boxcar, text panels, photos, video testimonies, films, paintings, sculpture, and a sapling from the tree located outside Anne Frank’s hiding place window that is described in her diary.

Located on the second floor above the museum, the library archive is an important resource for academics, the media and families researching their heritage.

About the Arab American National Museum

The Arab American National Museum (AANM) is the first and only museum in the United States devoted to Arab American history and culture. Arab Americans have enriched the economic, political and cultural landscape of American life. By bringing the voices and faces of Arab Americans to mainstream audiences, the commitment continues to dispel misconceptions about Arab Americans and other minorities. Since opening in 2005, the Museum has shed light on the shared experiences of immigrants and ethnic groups, paying tribute to the diversity of our nation.

About the Charles H. Wright Museum of

African American History

The Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History opens minds and changes lives through the exploration and celebration of African American history and culture. Founded in 1965, the 125,000 square foot museum is located in the heart of Midtown Detroit’s Cultural Center, next to the Michigan Science Center and within one block of the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA).