NAAM in the background of Jimi Hendrix Park

Seattle is still reawakening after years of pandemic closures. MLK Day 2023 will bring an important reopening in the Central District.

The Northwest African American Museum will reopen on Monday, January 16th to commemorate the King Day holiday. The event includes tours, a film screening, and a conversation with actor and activist Jesse Williams, an actor, director, and activist who produced the documentary film, Stay Woke: The Black Lives Matter Movement.

“NAAM is a resilient, innovative organization committed to our mission no matter what. We uplift, share, and celebrate Black stories, even when our doors are closed,” LaNesha DeBardelaben, President and CEO of the Northwest African American Museum said in the announcement. “We are thrilled to reopen our doors on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day with a robust program of activities offered all day for the entire family and community.”

The King Day at NAAM is free, open to the public, and donations are encouraged. The family-friendly event starts at 11:00 AM and features activities for kids, live art, soccer training with the Seattle Sounders, story time, and face painting. The day includes music, speakers, voter registration and a hygiene supply drive. Evening features an After Party with local DJ Chukundi “Kun Luv” Salisbury.

The Northwest African American Museum will reopen on Monday, January 16, 2023 and commemorate the King Day holiday. The event includes tours, a film screening, and a conversation with actor and activist Jesse Williams, an actor, director, and activist who produced the documentary film, Stay Woke: The Black Lives Matter Movement.

“NAAM is a resilient, innovative organization committed to our mission no matter what. We uplift, share, and celebrate Black stories, even when our doors are closed,” LaNesha DeBardelaben, President and CEO of the Northwest African American Museum said in the announcement. “We are thrilled to reopen our doors on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day with a robust program of activities offered all day for the entire family and community.”

The King Day at NAAM is free, open to the public, and donations are encouraged. The family-friendly event starts at 11:00 am and features activities for kids, live art, soccer training with the Seattle Sounders, story time, and face painting. Event includes music, speakers, voter registration and a hygiene supply drive. Evening features an After Party with local DJ Chukundi “Kun Luv” Salisbury.

MLK Day 2023 celebrations in Seattle will also include the annual MLK Day march from Garfield High School on Monday.

Back at the museum, the featured exhibitions during NAAM’s King Day reopening on view through June include:

• Hallway of Healing and Hope – The exhibit tells the story of the Colman School building.
• Making a Way: Jacob Lawrence and the Northwest Black Experience – This exhibition celebrates the life and artistic legacy of Jacob Lawrence as a Northwest artist.
• The Colors of Life: African American Abstract Art and the Regathering of Community – This exhibition uses colorful abstract works by Northwest African and African American artists to resurrect our hope, connection, contemplation, and action as a community. Featured artists include LoMar Metoyer, Yeggy Michael, Shantell Jackson, Vincent Keele.
• A Long Walk to Hope: The Photography of Seattle’s Martin Luther King, Jr. March – This exhibition showcases the energy and magnitude of Seattle’s annual King Day march through photographs taken by photographer Susan Fried.
• Notables of the Northwest Hallway – A hallway featuring photos of notable African American musicians of the Northwest and a thoughtful quote from each of them.

NAAM is also partnering with the Onyx Fine Arts Collective to showcase works of five Black artists of the Collective: Asha Helmstetter, Johnny Harris, Eddie Reed, Ashby Reed, and Earnest D. Thomas.

The Northwest African American Museum is located at 2300 S Massachusetts. Learn more at naamnw.org.

PLEASE HELP KEEP CHS PAYWALL-FREE!
Subscribe to CHS to help us pay writers and photographers to cover the neighborhood. CHS is a pay what you can community news site with no required sign-in or paywall. Become a subscriber to help us cover the neighborhood for as little as $5 a month.