INFLUENCING LINCOLN
Eye-opening Exhibition Explored the Black Community’s Pursuit of Freedom
Exploring the Black community’s fight for freedom and equal rights at the national level and in Indiana during and after the Civil War, Influencing Lincoln: The Pursuit of Black Freedom, was an eye-opening exhibition for Indiana State Museum visitors.
Co-curated by the Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites Chief Curator and Research Officer Susannah Koerber, PhD, and Curator of Social History Kisha Tandy, the acclaimed exhibition highlighted the ways President Abraham Lincoln was influenced by members of the Black community — national figures like Frederick Douglass or people in Lincoln’s immediate circle — as he moved toward ending slavery and advocating for greater rights.
“Black people were active in this freedom struggle,” said Tandy. “They weren’t sitting around waiting for someone to give them freedom. They were organized, effective and deliberate. Deliberate in their actions to obtain freedom, organized in the way they went about it, and effective because they made change.”
Influencing Lincoln, created and produced by our in-house team, highlighted how the Black community used their resources, connections and the institutions, especially the church and military service, as they worked for freedom. Visitors to the exhibition also got an up-close look at rare historic documents that resulted from this movement, including the Emancipation Proclamation and the 13th Amendment, both signed by Lincoln. Both of those historical items and many other objects in the exhibition are part of the museum's Lincoln Financial Foundation Collection.
Coupled with the pursuit of freedom was a concurrent effort for Black people to gain the rights of full citizenship, including voting rights and political representation. Influencing Lincoln spanned the years 1861-75, from the beginning of Lincoln’s presidency to the extension of voting rights under the 15th Amendment and the election of the first Black members of Congress.
“Emancipation was a process rather than an event and it was pushed forward by people in the Black community,” said Koerber. “The same institution-building and use of social networks to effect change and equal rights were also happening in communities around the country, including Indianapolis.” ◆
