As the Semiquincentennial anniversary of America's independence fast approaches, the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and PBS Books have joined together to produce “Visions of America: All Stories, All People, All Places,” a digital-first series of videos and virtual conversations that explore our nation with a renewed interest in the places, people and stories that have contributed to the America we live in today.

Hosted by PBS Books and the sixth director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) Crosby Kemper leads a video tour through three lesser-known historical sites that  symbolize an aspect of the spirit of our independence, probing what makes each of these so important to our national identity. 

Please join us for a screening and discussion with local historians and researchers Thursday evenings in July. Light refreshments will be provided. Registration is recommended, not required, as a way to help us plan refreshments.

We begin with A Journey to the Freedom Tower – Stories of Cuban Migration with UCSC Latin American and Latino Studies PhD Student Jennifer Gottleib.

The Freedom Tower (or Torre de la Libertad) in Miami has graced the city’s skyline for nearly a century, but it became an important national landmark when it played a crucial role in hosting Cuban refugees in the wake of the Cuban Revolution in 1959. 

Exploring the Wing Luke Museum in Seattle July 18th

The Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American Experience was established in Seattle in 1967 as the only Pan-Asian Pacific American community-based museum  in the country. The episode features a discussion of the resilience of Asian American immigrants, through their early oppression in the U.S. to a now flourishing community in Seattle’s Chinatown-International District.

Discovering 18th & Vine in Kansas City July 25th

The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum was founded in 1990 to keep the stories of its players and how they eventually broke the barriers of segregation in Major League Baseball  alive, especially Jackie Robinson. While the conversation will lead with baseball, it will wend towards jazz since the museum also shares its building with the American Jazz Museum.