Malden Public Library to present “Freedom: A US History”

  The Malden Public Library is proud to present “Freedom: A US History,” a traveling exhibition developed by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History and the Meserve-Kunhardt Collection. This exhibition documents and illustrates critical figures and events while tracing the evolving concept of freedom from its founding until 1968.

  The exhibition will be in the Converse Memorial Building and will be open on Tuesdays from 6-8 p.m. and on Wednesdays from 2-4 p.m. throughout the month of March.

  Freedom is an exciting, even dangerous idea. It means independence – the ability to act without being coerced by others. Freedom requires risk taking, courage and a willingness to struggle for the possibility of a better future.

  Freedom is one of the founding principles of the United States. The United States has offered hope for people seeking freedom. At the same time, many Americans have been denied freedom. When the Bill of Rights was written, slavery was an accepted institution and married women were considered their husbands’ property. The freedoms that today offer us protection and opportunities for change should not be taken for granted. Our constitutional freedoms are being hotly debated in Congress and all across the United States.

  The exhibit reproduces revolutionary documents – primary sources – of our history that proclaimed our rights to self-government and freedom. It shows evidence – letters, photographs, artwork – of the work of courageous men and women who took great risks as concepts of freedom evolved.

  The exhibit is based on the book “Freedom: A History of US” by Joy Hakim. Copies of the companion book and PBS media series are available on the library’s website and catalog at maldenpubliclibrary.org.