African American Legacy and The Chicago Community Trust have partnered to present the Chicago premiere of Giving Back: The Soul of Philanthropy Reframed and Exhibited, Pop-Up Abridged Edition, inspired by the book Giving Back: A Tribute to Generations of African American Philanthropists by Valaida Fullwood and photographer Charles W. Thomas, Jr.
The exhibit will be featured from September 26 through October 20 in the Grand Promenade on the third floor of Harold Washington Library Center.
The exhibition features stories of generosity among Americans of African descent. Centuries-old cultural customs and beliefs about giving, though rarely acknowledged as “philanthropy” in black communities, have long been an integral and transformational force in lives and communities throughout American society. Photography, poetry and prose weave vivid stories and reveal the long and unsung legacy of black philanthropists—from generous donors of wealth to ingenious givers carving a way out of no way.
