Abstract
Regional history museums are uniquely positioned to cultivate a sense of place for their visitors and are often called upon to steward thoughtful community dialogues. These duties are particularly important when a community is struggling to reconcile its past as it confronts contemporary issues. This essay explores Levine Museum of the New South’s K(NO)W Justice K(NO)W Peace initiative—a rapid-response exhibit and related programming cocreated with community members in the aftermath of the police-involved shooting of Keith Lamont Scott and the protest that unfolded in Charlotte, North Carolina, in September 2016. This essay interrogates the approaches, processes, and lessons learned as the Levine Museum sought to spark civil dialogue and understanding at a time when its community needed it most.
- rapid response
- community engagement
- community cocreation
- dialogue
- Charlotte
- officer-involved shooting
- protest
- museums respond
- © 2018 by The Regents of the University of California and the National Council on Public History