Upcoming Exhibit
I AM A MAN
The 1960–1970 decade was a momentous time for the civil rights movement in the American South. It was an historic decade that unleashed both hope for the future and profound change as public spaces were desegregated and as African Americans secured their right to vote. I AM A MAN: Photographs of the Civil Rights Movement, 1960–1970 displays a wide range of photographs taken by amateurs, local photojournalists, and internationally known photographers. Together, they provide a vivid visual story of the evolution of the civil rights movement and shed light on the movement’s integration in daily living in the American South. I AM A MAN: Photographs of the Civil Rights Movement, 1960–1070 opens February 3, 2025 at the Temecula Valley Museum.
Southern folklorist, author, and curator William Ferris and his research team sought out photos taken in the heat of the civil rights movement, by activists or local news photographers, who
documented history taking place before their eyes. Viewers of the exhibition will recognize the photographs of protestors who carried signs with messages like “I Am A Man” or sat at segregated lunch counters as iconic images associated with the movement, while numerous other photographs presented in the exhibition have rarely been seen until now. Key events include James Meredith’s admission to the University of Mississippi, Ku Klux Klan gatherings, the Selma Montgomery March in Alabama, the sanitation workers’ strike in Memphis, Martin Luther King’s funeral, the Poor People’s Campaign, and the Mule Train.
Visit the Temecula Valley Museum to see this exhibit. The Temecula Valley Museum is located at Sam Hicks Monument Park in Old Town Temecula (28314 Mercedes Street) and is open Tuesday through Sunday from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm. For more information and other fun online activities, please visit or call (951) 694-6450.