RICHMOND, Va. — An exhibit under construction at the Virginia Museum of History and Culture will tell the stories of immigrants who helped shape Virginia.
Museum researchers and curators traveled Virginia to interview participants for "We The People: The World in Our Commonwealth" running from March 21 to September 7.
"We had over 100 people who advised this exhibit that we got to speak to. There's people from 68 countries who are represented," said Noah Tinsley, an assistant curator.
This exhibition at the Arthur Ashe Boulevard museum will explore the many people who, over centuries, have made Virginia the unique place it is in America and in the world, and the dramatic impact of the immigrant experience throughout Virginia's history as people arrived from the four corners of the globe, according to the museum.
"We compare a story of someone coming from Germany in the 1850s and someone coming from Bolivia in the 1970s and find the similarities. We see we are more like each other than different from each other," said Julie Kemper, one of the museum's curators of exhibits.
Kemper said people from all walks of life will be able to relate to their stories.
"Whether you're moving a long way across the country or from another country, you still want to find a community. You still need to find a job and seek a good school for your children. Those are all experiences we all have," she said.
The exhibit is a signature component of the museum's multi-year effort to celebrate our country's 250th anniversary.
"Virginia is not always known as like a big immigrant state, but we've always had immigrants coming in that have sort of been shaping the culture and kind of helping us enrich the Commonwealth in various ways," Tinsley said.
The anniversary project includes "SailFest," a fleet of international tall ships that will dock near Richmond's Rocket Landing on June 12 to 14, and "IllumiNATION," a video art projection on the museum facade scheduled for June 25 to 28.
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