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PHOTO BY JIM KOHL, COURTESY OF ANCHORAGE MUSEUM
Black Lives in Alaska IN EARLY 2020, Rasmuson Foundation held convenings with African American leaders in Anchorage and Fairbanks in an effort to strengthen relationships and partnerships within those communities. The sessions generated the development of a multimedia storytelling project, Black in Alaska, that hopes to engage the public in civic dialogue and exchange, and also preserve the history of what it looks like to be Black in Alaska in 2021.The project promotes cross-cultural awareness and empathy, connecting members of the Black community to their fellow Alaskans through human connection. An exhibition, Black Lives in Alaska: Journey, Justice, Joy, is part of the project and is currently on display at the Anchorage
Museum in Anchorage through February. In early 2021, it received funding through an annual grant from the Alaska Humanities Forum. The exhibition’s introductory text states: “Generations before statehood and earlier even than the Klondike gold rush of the 1890s, Black men and women arrived in Alaska and have since participated in politics, economic development and culture. They patrolled the seas, built the roads, served in the military and public life, opened businesses, fought injustice, created art and forged communities. This exhibition, told through archival photos and collected materials, showcases the richness and resilience of Black lives in Alaska.”
