Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition Tells the Story of African American Pioneers of Flight
The Wright brothers signaled the arrival of the new air age when they flew an airplane on a 12-second flight in Kitty Hawk, N.C., in December 1903. It was the beginning of America’s new fascination with and exploration of flight. And while many African Americans were enthusiastic about flight, they still faced racial discrimination and were denied access to formal training as pilots and mechanics. A powerful group of aviation proponents emerged to challenge these obstacles and create their own legacy in the world of flight. “Black Wings: American Dreams of Flight,” a new Smithsonian traveling exhibition funded by the MetLife Foundation, chronicles this group of Americans.
“Black Wings” will open in Chicago July 2 at the historic DuSable Museum and will be on view through Sept. 25. Developed by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service and the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum, the exhibition will travel to museums on a national tour through 2015.
This exhibition chronicles some of the most important black figures from the past and present that helped make the dream of careers in flight and space exploration possible, including Bessie Coleman, a young African American woman who desired to fly but whose race prevented her from doing so in the U.S. To combat this injustice, Coleman went to France to learn to fly. Another important figure, William J. Powell, led an ambitious program to promote aviation by establishing the Bessie Coleman Flying Club and later sponsored the first all-black air show in Los Angeles in the late 1930s.
These are people that shaped the lasting legacy African Americans would forever leave on aviation. Divided into six sections, “Black Wings” chronicles the evolution of aviation through the stories of African Americans who dreamed of flight, left their mark and helped pave the way for those who would follow. Figures whose contributions are explored include the Tuskegee Airmen—the first military division of African American pilots who fought in World War II—and Mae Jemison, the first African American woman to fly in space.
The exhibition is based on the book Black Wings: Courageous Stories of African Americans in Aviation and Space History (HarperCollins, 2008) by exhibition curator Von Hardesty of the National Air and Space Museum.
The National Air and Space Museum building on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., is located at Sixth Street and Independence Avenue S.W. The museum’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center is located in Chantilly, Va., near Washington Dulles International Airport. Both facilities are open daily from 10 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. (closed Dec. 25). Admission is free, but there is a $15 fee for parking at the Udvar-Hazy Center.
SITES has been sharing the wealth of Smithsonian collections and research programs with millions of people outside Washington, D.C., for almost 60 years. SITES connects Americans to their shared cultural heritage through a wide range of exhibitions about art, science and history, which are shown wherever people live, work and play. Exhibition descriptions and tour schedules are available at www.sites.si.edu.
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SI-206-2011
