HEAR OUR VOICES: Annual MLK Day Celebration
Monday, January 15, 11am – 5pm
In-person Programs
Free and open to the public
Honor iconic civil rights leader the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and everyday citizens who fought against discrimination while celebrating the everyday hero in you. See the treasures and ritual objects in The Temple-Tifereth Israel Gallery, and share in the Jewish immigrant experience that makes up An American Story. Explore the Maltz Museum’s special exhibition, The Girl in the Diary: Searching for Rywka from the Lodz Ghetto, while enjoying hands-on activities on this family-friendly day!
Featuring a special keynote from Wesley Lowery, Pulitzer Prize winner, journalist, and Shaker Heights native at 1pm. A book signing will follow.
Program Schedule
1pm
Featured Keynote Speaker Wesley Lowery
In-Person at The Temple-Tifereth Israel
26000 Shaker Blvd, Beachwood, OH 44122
Followed by book signing at Maltz Museum
Pulitzer Prize winner, journalist, and Shaker Heights native Wesley Lowery returns to Cleveland this MLK Day to discuss his New York Times Bestseller, American Whitelash: A Changing Nation and the Cost of Progress (Harper Collins, 2023). The book confronts the sickness at the heart of American society: the cyclical pattern of violence that has marred every moment of racial progress in this country, and whose bloodshed began anew following Obama’s 2008 election. Interweaving deep historical analysis with gripping firsthand reporting on both victims and perpetrators of violence, Lowery uncovers how this vicious cycle is carrying us into ever more perilous territory, how the federal government has failed to intervene, and how we still might find a route of escape.
11am–5pm
See the treasures and ritual objects in The Temple-Tifereth Israel Gallery, and share in the Jewish immigrant experience that makes up An American Story. Explore the Maltz Museum’s special exhibition, The Girl in the Diary: Searching for Rywka from the Lodz Ghetto, while enjoying hands-on activities on this family-friendly day!
11:30am, 3:30pm
Civil Rights storytelling with the Black Storyteller Association
Beverly Lloyd and Kwanza Brewer of the Black Storyteller Association tell stories about civil rights and discovering our past in our auditorium
12pm, 4pm
Interactive Biography! Speak with civil rights leader Rev. Dr. Otis Moss Jr., A.I.
Using state-of-the-art technology, the Museum partnered with StoryFile to capture the courageous life story of Cleveland icon and civil rights activist Reverend Dr. Otis Moss Jr, as an Interactive Conversational Biography. An artificial intelligence (AI) version of Rev. Moss can answer audience questions in real time, mimicking an actual conversation.
1pm
Stop the Hate Essay Writing Workshop
For 6th—12th graders
Registration required to due to limited seating.
Each year the Maltz Museum awards $100,000 in scholarships and prizes to Northeast Ohio student upstanders, as part of its annual Stop the Hate contest. During this one-hour workshop designed for 6th – 12th graders, Lake Erie Ink will provide insight on how to craft a personal essay that tells a powerful story. Learn tips and tricks for essay writing to give students an edge in the competition (and in future college applications)!
Sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Cleveland’s Community Relations Committee.
