(MEMPHIS, TN – August 11, 2023) The National Civil Rights Museum is partnering with Zócalo Public Square to host a hybrid panel discussion entitled “Why Isn’t Remembering Enough to Repair” on Wednesday, August 23, 2023 at 6:00 p.m. CST/4:00 p.m. PST at The National Civil Rights Museum, located at 450 Mulberry St, Memphis, TN 38103.
Hosted both in-person and online, the live panel discussion is part three of a two-year editorial and four-part series entitled “How Should Societies Remember Their Sins?” Supported by the Mellon Foundation and blending scholarly essays and personal stories, the series explores how societies around the world collectively remember their transgressions and make attempts at repair, and how we might imagine new paths forward.
The purpose of “Why Remembering Isn’t Enough to Repair?” is to talk about how Americans can move beyond the discussion about transgressions in America — slavery, civil rights abuses, the violence of war — and move to action. During the program, we will talk about long-term solutions that will help us begin the healing process from America’s transgressions.
Rhetoric professor Andre E. Johnson, the Monument Lab co-founder and artist Ken Lum, and reparations leader Robin Rue Simmons will discuss what repair looks like and how different people and places have stumbled and succeeded in its pursuit. The discussion will be moderated by William Sturkey, University of North Carolina Historian and author of Hattiesburg.
“Our partnership with Zócalo Public Square for this event is germane to our mission,” said Dr. Russ Wigginton, president of The National Civil Rights Museum. “The museum
examines today’s global civil and human rights, provokes thoughtful debate, and serves as a catalyst for positive social change.”
Visit www.zocalopublicsquare.org/event/why-isnt-remembering-enough-repair to RSVP for the event. In-person attendees will have one-on-one access to our guest speakers after the event and attend our reception with complimentary small bites and beverages. For more information or if you would like to interview someone about the panel discussion, contact Jennifer Sharp, The Carter Malone Group, LLC, at 901.278.0881 or jsharp@cmgpr.com.
About the National Civil Rights Museum:
The National Civil Rights Museum, located at the historic Lorraine Motel where civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated, gives a comprehensive overview of the American Civil Rights Movement from slavery to the present. Since the Museum opened in 1991, millions of visitors from around the world have come, including more than 90,000 student visits annually. The Museum is steadfast in its mission to chronicle the American civil rights movement and tell the story of the ongoing struggle for human rights. It educates and serves as a catalyst to inspire action to create positive social change. To learn more about the National Civil Rights Museum, visit www.civilrightsmuseum.org.
About Zócalo Public Square:
Founded in Los Angeles in 2003, Zócalo Public Square is an ASU Media Enterprise. Zócalo Public Square connects people to ideas and to each other by examining essential questions in an accessible, broad-minded, and democratic spirit. We pursue our mission by convening events and by publishing ideas journalism. We syndicate our journalism to 290 media outlets worldwide and have hosted more than 600 events in 33 cities in the U.S. and beyond, including New York, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Houston, San Francisco, Shanghai, Guadalajara, London, Berlin, and now streaming online. To learn more about the Zócalo Public Square, visit www.zocalopublicsquare.org.