Artifacts From The Jim Crow Museum Of Racist Memorabilia To Be On Exhibit At Aquinas College

Also, showings of the film "Ethnic Notions"

GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN (January 22, 2004) - Images and artifacts from the Jim Crow Museum of Racist Imagery at Ferris State University, Big Rapids will be on display at Aquinas College on Monday, February 16 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and on Wednesday, February 18 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. There will be a showing of the film "Ethnic Notions" on both days followed by discussion. The exhibit and film showings will be in the Aquinas Art and Music Center and are free. This free event is sponsored by the Aquinas Multicultural Department and the public is welcome.

On Monday following the showing of the film "Ethnic Notions," Susan Booker Morris, Ph.D., a philosopher of aesthetics, race and gender theory in the context of contemporary continental philosophy, will do a short presentation about the use of "animalization" to caricature African Americans. There will then be a discussion of the artifacts.

Dr. Richard W. Griffin, Ph.D., Ferris State Professor of Political Science and Program Coordinator for the Public Administration Program will lead the discussion on Wednesday following the film "Ethic Notions." Griffin grew up in the South and was on the front-line of the Civil Rights movement during the 1960s. In 1988, he was campaign manager in South Texas for the presidential campaign of Jesse Jackson.

The Jim Crow Museum is both a real place and a virtual site. The actual Museum is located on the Ferris State University campus. There are six main objectives to the Museum including: collect, exhibit and preserve objects and collections related to racial segregation, civil rights and anti-Black caricatures; promote the scholarly examination of historical and contemporary expressions of racism; serve as an educational resource for scholars and teachers at the state, national and international levels, to name a few.