Brooklyn Resists

A Public History Project at the Center for Brooklyn History

Brooklyn Resists tells the stories of Black Brooklynites and how they have responded to systemic racial injustice, risen up against those systems, and how the protest movement of the present ties to the generations of activists and leaders who came before. 

Outdoor Exhibition at the Center for Brooklyn History 
Brooklyn Resists is on display starting Juneteenth 2021, through late September, at the Center for Brooklyn History on the corners of Pierrepont and Clinton streets.

Online Exhibition
The exhibition is fully accessible online, along with additional resources, including contemporary collections documenting Brooklyn's BLM protests in 2020. 

New and Existing Special Collections
This project is based on research and interpretation of CBH’s substantial historic resources and existing collections, as well as the acquisition of new collections—photography, oral histories and ephemera—documenting the 2020 racial protest movement in Brooklyn. 

Public Program Events
From a look at the state of reparations today, to an examination of expressions of protest through the arts, to discussions with activists and change-makers and a look at the history of racism in America, these free panels and discussions shine a light on the what is perhaps the most urgent issue facing our country today. 

Community Collecting in Collaboration with Urban Archive
CBH is proud to be partnering with Urban Archive to create a community collecting portal. Brooklynites are encouraged to submit their own materials related to the 2020 BLM protests. 

Collaborations with BPL Presents
CBH is excited to collaborate with BPL Presents on several critical aspects of Brooklyn Resists, including Whispering LibrariesChloë Bass' The Parts, and Cinema Ephemera.

Partnerships with Branch Libraries Throughout Brooklyn
The Center for Brooklyn History is actively working with the entire BPL branch library network to bring materials, resources, programs and elements of the exhibition to locations throughout the borough. Branch partnerships will launch in the summer/fall of 2021.

Educational Resources
In the coming year, CBH will develop educational resources for students and teachers that will bring the important history of Black protest and resistance to classrooms throughout Brooklyn and beyond. 

Upcoming Events

Freedom to Read Read-In

Sat, Oct 19 1:00pm
Brownsville Library

banned books Brooklyn Resists

Join us for a Read-In and book giveaway.  Read a favorite sentence, paragraph or page from a book.  Teens and Adults can choose a free book provided by the National Book Foundation Book Rich Environment at NYCHA.

Brooklyn Resists is made possible through generous support from

Jennifer and Steven Eisenstadt
Blake and Andrew Foote
Audra and Robin Ottaway
Nicholle and Timothy Simons
Donors to the Fund for CBH

The Double-R Foundation
The Malka Fund
National Grid Foundation
White Cedar Fund

NYC Department of Cultural Affairs

® I LOVE NEW YORK is a registered trademark and service mark of the New York State Department of Economic Development; used with permission.

 

Project Team

Historian and Curator
Dr. Brian Purnell

Exhibition Design, Fabrication & Installation
Little Mega

Center for Brooklyn History Staff
Heather Malin, Director
Natiba Guy-Clement, Assistant Director, Collections and Public Service
Anna Schwartz, Art Collections and Exhibitions Manager
Cecily Dyer, Special Collections and Outreach Librarian
Bailey Bretz, Administrative and Special Projects Assistant
Julia Pelaez, Educator
Marcia Ely, Director of Programs
Michelle Montalbano, Reference Librarian
Deborah Tint, Special Collections Cataloger

 

For general inquiries, contact cbh@bklynlibrary.org
For press inquiries, contact Fritzi Bodenheimer at fbodenheimer@bklynlibrary.org or (929) 276-4232