The National Museum for Peace and Justice, opened Thursday in Montgomery, Ala., featuring a memorial dedicated to thousands of lynching victims.
Thousands of visitors are expected to travel to Montgomery this weekend to celebrate the launch of the museum, which was inspired by the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin and the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg.
Visitors to the museum will be led on a journey from slavery, through lynching and racial terror, with text, narrative and monuments to the lynching victims throughout American history.
The experience continues through the civil rights era and ends with contemporary issues of police violence and racially-biased criminal justice. The museum also showcases writing from Toni Morrison, words from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and a reflection space in honor of Ida B. Wells.
The museum’s grand opening, which continues through the weekend, will also include educational panels and presentations from leading national figures, performances and concerts from acclaimed recording artists.
Tickets for admission to the museum and the memorial are available at museumandmemorial.eji.org.