Bernard and Shirley Kinsey collected African-American artifacts like documents, books and manuscripts for more than 40 years. Now, Cincinnati is the latest stop for the Kinsey Collection. The historic items are on display at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center through March 3. “It’s not just about slavery or Civil War,” Bernard Kinsey said. “It’s about the remarkable people that literally changed America and nobody knows about them.” The items, including a 1595 baptism record and a picture of the first African-American members of Congress in 1870, have traveled the world. A portion of the Kinsey Collection is on display at Epcot at Walt Disney World. “It’s been translated into Chinese and Spanish and it’s been seen by over 6 million people,” Kinsey said. The exhibit also includes art, as well as more recent historic items like letters by Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. “Once you see how it plays out and how it actually connects in your own life and today, in 2018, from the past, that’s when it becomes really interesting and exciting, Kinsey Collection and Foundation GM and Chief Curator Khalil Kinsey said.
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