What is Facing Freedom?
Facingfreedom.org complements the Facing Freedom exhibition permanently on display at the Chicago History Museum. Both the website and the exhibition are designed for middle and high school teachers and students. This website can be used before you visit, after you visit, or independent of a visit to the Museum.
The Facing Freedom website explores conflicts over freedom through four themes; each theme is supported by two stories, which highlight moments when Americans have struggled over the meaning of freedom and ask "What can we do for freedom?"
Themes and Stories
The four themes and eight stories contained in Facing Freedom are:
Unite - Workers’ Rights
Pullman Porters, Chicago, 1920s
United Farm Workers, California, 1960s
Defend - Protecting Community
House Music, Chicago, 1980s
Wounded Knee II, South Dakota, 1973
Struggle - Race and Citizenship
Japanese Internment, West Coast, 1940s
Abolition, Chicago, 1850s
Speak Out - Public Protest
School Boycott, Chicago, 1963
Votes for Women, Illinois, 1910s
What can my students and I do on this website?
The eight stories are explored through short history articles. Articles are embedded with images of primary source materials that can be enlarged and examined closely. Every article concludes with a link to the Facing Freedom collection. There are also two main activities you can do:
1. The Facing Freedom collection: Explore primary and secondary sources
The Facing Freedom collection includes the primary and secondary sources that Museum curators used to interpret the history featured in the exhibition. Zoom in on photographs, objects, documents; listen to audio; and watch videos that support each of the eight stories.
The Analyzing Facing Freedom graphic organizer (in the Facing Freedom Learning Guide—Coming Soon!) can be used in conjunction with the website to help students identify key details related to one topic. The Facing Freedom Learning Guide post-visit section features discussion questions that can be used during classroom conversations.
2. My Freedom Collection: Remix and interpret the Facing Freedom collection
This online resource allows students to creatively think about Facing Freedom as a whole. A topic or question can be set by the teacher. Students use the website to create their own online exhibition by choosing items from the digital collections. Using the provided writing space, students can explain how their choices support the assigned prompt. Each student submission is assigned a unique URL that remains live and editable for one year. The URL can also be sent to the teacher for review and grading.
Suggested prompts include:
- Find 2–3 objects that inspire you. Explain why they inspire you and how they relate to social justice issues today.
- Describe [insert one of the four themes] using 3–5 objects. Explain your choices and how they relate to that theme. Your objects can draw on the collections from both stories within that theme.
- Imagine a being from outer space landed in the United States and had never heard of [insert one of the eight stories]. Choose 3–5 objects that explain that story. Then write about each of your choices.
To access My Freedom Collection, visit: https://facingfreedom.org/create-my-freedom-collection