Exhibitions

Giving in America

November 29, 2016 – Permanent
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Ice Bucket Challenge bucket, 2014

National Museum of American History
1300 Constitution Ave., NW
Washington, DC

3rd Floor, Center

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Giving in America, a permanent exhibit that looks at the history of philanthropy’s role in shaping the United States, opened on #Giving Tuesday, a global day of giving. The exhibit showcases four major themes of American philanthropy centered on the questions of “Who Gives?” “Why Do We Give?” “What Do We Give?” and “How Do We Give?” and uses artifacts ranging from an alms box of the 1800s to a bucket used during the 2014-15 “ALS Ice Bucket Challenge” which went viral on social media. The exhibit features a section devoted to an annual topic.