As the United States approaches its 250th anniversary, the “Freedom & Resistance” exhibition at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library in Washington, D.C., offers a profound reflection on the nation’s history. Inspired by The 1619 Project, the exhibit seeks to reframe America’s founding narrative by centering the experiences and contributions of Black Americans.
Launched on Jan. 16, 2026, the exhibition features artworks from individuals of all ages, exploring themes of freedom and resistance. The initiative is a collaboration between the New York Times Magazine, led by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones, the Pulitzer Center, and guest curator Dominique Hazzard.
“The 1619 Project is an ongoing initiative… that aims to reframe the country’s history by placing the consequences of slavery and the contributions of Black Americans at the very center of our national narrative,” according to the New York Times Magazine.
Beyond the original publication, the project has expanded to include “The 1619 Project: A Visual Experience,” an illustrated edition, and “The 1619 Project: Born on the Water,” a picture book detailing the effects of slavery and the history of Black resistance in the U.S.
Nikole Hannah-Jones, the creator of The 1619 Project and curator of the exhibition, emphasized the importance of confronting historical erasure. “Part of what we’re doing here is pushing back against that erasure, especially in the nation’s capital and especially in this 250th year,” she stated. “We were here. We have been here almost as long as the Europeans can claim that they were here. We are going to be seen.”
The exhibition is divided into three sections: “Artworks from The 1619 Project: A Visual Experience,” “Echoes of 1619 in Washington, D.C.,” and “Through the Eyes of D.C. Youth.” Middle and high school students from D.C. were invited to submit original artwork on the themes of freedom and resistance, resulting in more than 100 submissions, with 80 pieces featured in the exhibition. The exhibit runs through March 15, 2026.
The significance of this exhibition is underscored by recent events in Philadelphia, where the National Park Service removed the “Freedom and Slavery in the Making of a New Nation” exhibit from the President’s House Site at Independence National Historical Park. The exhibit, which honored nine individuals enslaved by George Washington, was dismantled following an executive order from President Donald Trump aimed at eliminating content that “disparages” American history.
Philadelphia has since filed a lawsuit against the federal government, arguing that the removal violates a cooperative agreement requiring consultation before changes to the exhibit. Advocates, including Michael Coard of the Avenging the Ancestors Coalition, have condemned the removal as an attempt to whitewash history.
In this context, the “Freedom & Resistance” exhibition stands as a powerful counter-narrative, asserting the importance of acknowledging and preserving Black history. As Hannah-Jones remarked, “We are going to be seen.”
Yacine Ba is a junior journalism major and criminology minor at Howard University. You can follow her on Instagram here.
