Installation has begun... It looks as if our piece of the Berlin Wall is actually "pieces".   :?

 

What am I looking at?

so...they're using pieces to create a walkway?

 

Um...that's dumb.

so...they're using pieces to create a walkway?

 

Um...that's dumb.

 

Symbolism...you can trample the oppressive barrier.

so...they're using pieces to create a walkway?

 

Appears that way. Was there today and most of the landscaping is done. It appears some of the rocks have something inscribed on them (as does the area by the cones in my pic above).

But if those are the blocks...they really don't look anything like the visuals of the wall that you see all the time.  I mean, those could just be concrete from anywhere (not that i dispute where they came from).

Probably concrete from the former W&S garage at Queen City Square.

I can't imagine the broken up pieces of concrete on the ground is the Berlin Wall piece we will be getting.  If you look at renderings from when the Freedom Center was getting built, you will see it was always a plan to have landscaping similar to what is pictures.  Most Berlin Wall pieces I have seen have had grafiti on them, and have been in large, upright slabs.

The wall is not in pieces. Not sure what the crumbled walkway represents... Will found out soon though.

 

Freedom Center Installs Piece Of Berlin Wall

 

 

CINCINNATI -- A local museum now has a piece of an infamous barrier as its newest exhibit.

 

A panel of the Berlin Wall was installed at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center on Wednesday morning.

so...they're using pieces to create a walkway?

 

Um...that's dumb.

 

That's not a "12 by 4 foot section."

 

I think more people will go to the Freedom Center once its surrounded by other stuff.

From today

They had an exhibit on the Berlin Wall at the Newseum in DC. It was probably one of my favorite exhibits. It's so interesting to see the sterile east german side of the compared to the protest graffitied west german side.

That's more like it. I'm glad everyone was wrong about the walking path being made with part of the wall. ;-) I read the slab will be enclosed in glass. Not sure how that will look.

I wrote to all the council about getting a piece of the twin towers that NYC was giving away to install it in this plaza, and heard nothing back. It would fit perfectly at the Freedom Center

RSVP required for this event: http://bit.ly/9vthJN

 

Xavier Rabbi Speaker at Dedication of Berlin Wall Monument

Xavier University, June 24, 2010

 

Twenty years after it was torn down, a piece of the Berlin Wall is going back up – this time as a monument to freedom.

 

On July 3 from 5:30-9:30 pm, the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center will dedicate a graffiti-covered 4-by-13-foot section of the Berlin Wall as a monument to its fall in 1989. “Freedom without Walls” will feature German dancers, a dedication ceremony, Beethoven’s "Ode to Joy," hors d'oeuvres, dinner, jazz with the Kathy Wade Trio, and a musical finale.

 

The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center is at 50 East Freedom Way in downtown Cincinnati. Tickets are $50 per person including valet parking. Reservations are needed by June 30 at http://www.freedomcenter.org/berlinwall/. Gala co-chairs are Ute Papke and Laurie Leonard.

 

Xavier University’s Abie Ingber, Founding Director of the Office of Interfaith Community Engagement, will offer the prayer for the occasion. "The fall of the Berlin Wall represented a critical moment in our modern history when, symbolically, the totalitarian repressive Communist regime collapsed,” Ingber says. “I was linked to this event as a child of Holocaust survivors and as one who worked for human rights in the Soviet Union. Modern Germany has been a tremendous exemplar of a new respect for dignity, pluralism and moral leadership in our world community. On the eve of our Independence Day, this wall represents Freedom and the pursuit of liberty in our lifetime."

 

Keynote speaker will be Malcolm Thomson. After a twenty-seven year career on Wall Street, he became an author, writing Cleopatra's Needle, an espionage-thriller based on events leading to the 1967 Six Day War. Formerly Senior Director with Alliance-Bernstein, Thomson serves as Chairman of the Open University Foundation (American Friends of the Open University) and as a member of the International Governing Council. The Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. was the convocation speaker at Thomson’s rabbinical ordination. Thomson served as the Rabbi of Temple Shalom in Greenwich, CT, and has served on the Board of Trustees of Jewish Theological Seminary since 2002.

 

The 96-mile Berlin Wall was erected by the Communist East German government in 1961 to prevent residents of Communist East Berlin from getting to Democratic West Berlin. It divided families and friends, and was a symbol of the Cold War divisions between communism and capitalism. In 1990, East Germany voted to reunite with West Germany, and became the reunified Federal Republic of Germany, with Berlin as its capital.

 

Richard Schade, professor of German studies at the University of Cincinnati, and Cincinnati’s honorary consul for the German government, flew to Berlin as the wall was coming down in 1989. He began efforts to obtain a wall segment from the city of Berlin. Berlin’s only proviso was that Schade had to get the segment from Germany to Cincinnati. Fabian Schmahl, president of ThyssenKrupp-Bilstein of America, a German-owned manufacturer of shock absorbers with an office in Hamilton, offered to include the segment with their regular materials shipment. The Munich Sister City Association of Greater Cincinnati aided Schade in obtaining funding for the design, installation and maintenance of the monument. Getting the segment to Cincinnati would not have been possible without ThyssenKrupp-Bilstein, Kuehne+Nagel and Hosea Project Movers.

I am really hoping for a movie theater at the Banks. Does anyone know if that is a possibility?

 

To this day, I still wish the Freedom Center would be converted to a theater.  Its a cool looking building, big enough, and at the center of The Banks, perfect.  The subject matter in the building is definitely important but the location sucks and interest is very low.

I am really hoping for a movie theater at the Banks. Does anyone know if that is a possibility?

 

To this day, I still wish the Freedom Center would be converted to a theater. Its a cool looking building, big enough, and at the center of The Banks, perfect. The subject matter in the building is definitely important but the location sucks and interest is very low.

 

Does the Freedom Center have low interest? Does it not attract a lot of visitors? I don't know the answers but wish it would draw more national attention because of Cincinnati's important role during that time period.

a little over 400,000 visitors last year. It's a great museum-

a little over 400,000 visitors last year. It's a great museum-

 

HUH? 400,000 visitors. I dont think so.

 

The center reported 108,000 visitors in the first 11 months of 2010. They certainly didnt get an addition 300,000 in December.

 

BTW: 108,000 is more than they had in 2009.

a little over 400,000 visitors last year. It's a great museum-

 

No, more like just over 100,000. And why the "Freedom Museum" bleeds money, asks for substantial financial assistance and is looking to be federalized so that taxpayers can subsidize the failing museum even more. Remember those lofty projections and studies? Yeah, there is a good reason not to believe in the hype.

 

Idea: Open up the "Freedom Museum" to include more than one race. Lay off employees. Reduce hours and operating days. It's a recession.

Sorry!! I was on my phone and that was a typo... supposed to say "a little over 100,000 visitors last year. It's a great museum-"

 

 

What I love about Cincinnati is the amazing racial cynicism people have to that museum.  It's like white people are offended by it (I'm white, moved here a few years ago from the pacific coast). If you've been-- you know it's about a lot more than just one race-  there's a whole section on women, I've seen exhibits that cover south america, etc.  The domestic Terrorism exhibit right now isn't just about one race...  The touring exhibits that they have are really amazing.

 

And they cut the staff in half last year-- They paid off all their construction debt this year (obviously with help from the city).  They are open Tues-Saturday, 11AM-5PM. Not particularly excessive hours... less than the museum center, perhaps they could cut Tuesday if it's not very active. 

 

Remember-- Nearly every project talked about on this blog has city funding help-- Queen City Square?  $225 million in city bonds were sold to pay for it (the city, through the Greater Cincinnati Port, owns the building).  The banks just got an amazing city backed loan to bring profitable companies in after already getting millions from the city.  The fact that the Freedom Center has gotten some money as well (Gateway quarter has city money all over it!) isn't particularly surprising-

 

I'm not saying it should continue to be funded... but considering we throw money at for profit corporations all the time, we shouldn't be that shocked to spend money on a cultural treasure such as the freedom center-

 

If the Banks get developed (so it's not just an island between two empty stadiums for most of the year) and it's still not growing then that's clearly a problem- I'm just a little more hopeful-

Idea: Open up the "Freedom Museum" to include more than one race. Lay off employees. Reduce hours and operating days. It's a recession.

 

I'm pretty sure the freedom center has an exhibit on modern slavery that is not about one race and has laid off a lot of employees

 

edit: What OCtoCincy  said.

Idea: Open up the "Freedom Museum" to include more than one race. Lay off employees. Reduce hours and operating days. It's a recession.

 

The Freedom Museum DOES include more than one race (even YOUR ancestry), if you've ever been.

Crazy idea, but it seems that having all of our museums spread out over the entire city is not beneficial to any of them. What if they were centralized, and when you paid entrance to one you could go to all of them. I know that would mean trouble for Union terminal and the art museum, but what if they were all centralized onto the caps over Ft Washington Way and that area became the Cincy’s version of the Mall. 

Idea: Open up the "Freedom Museum" to include more than one race. Lay off employees. Reduce hours and operating days. It's a recession.

 

I'm pretty sure the freedom center has an exhibit on modern slavery that is not about one race and has laid off a lot of employees

 

edit: What OCtoCincy said.

 

 

I've only been once (right after it opened) and I found it to be fairly heavy handed and slavery focused.  I would have enjoyed it more if there had been more exhibits like those described above and if the actual underground railroad had been featured more.  I had expected it to be more of a celebration of those who risked their lives to smuggle slaves out of the south. 

Art Museum is supported by an endowment that allows for free admission. Additionally, their buildings are paid for and historic and works of art themselves and serve as a major draw to Eden Park. The Museum center may need to consider new buildings in the future if Union Terminal is reactivated in to a major train station. The NURFC is already there, in a brand new, paid for building. The CAC is in a brand new building which is also a work of Art itself. It would make no sense to concentrate the museums in to one area and leaving all those other building abandoned.

Sorry!! I was on my phone and that was a typo... supposed to say "a little over 100,000 visitors last year. It's a great museum-"

 

 

What I love about Cincinnati is the amazing racial cynicism people have to that museum.  It's like white people are offended by it (I'm white, moved here a few years ago from the pacific coast). If you've been-- you know it's about a lot more than just one race-  there's a whole section on women, I've seen exhibits that cover south america, etc.  The domestic Terrorism exhibit right now isn't just about one race...  The touring exhibits that they have are really amazing.

 

Racial cynicism, you ain't neva lied.  The mere suggestion that the Freedom Center "would be a great theater" instead of one of those slave museums is downright insulting.  Can you imagine if someone suggested the Holocaust Museum in Washington DC be converted into a H&M?  The Native American Museum converted into an IKEA?  It's a bomb ass location next to the Capitol.  Boehner needs his Swedish meatballs!  This latest installment in this thread is damn-near proving Jeffrey's comments about how Cincinnati isn't cosmopolitan.

 

Insulting, really. 

 

The reason the museum does poorly is marketing.  The museum is fine.  The exhibits are fine.  The marketing aspect is not.  Cincinnati is notoriously bad for marketing its tourist attractions (sans Warren County) to visitors.  There should be wayfinding signs throughout the city, national press ads, television commercials and magazine prints (re: Pittsburgh) showcasing the city's Freedom Center, Art Museum, CAC, Museum Center, blah blah.  Hell, most people in the city don't even know about the Taft Museum or Carew Tower Observation Deck.

Hell, most people in the city don't even know about the Taft Museum or Carew Tower Observation Deck.

 

Something I discovered in my 11th year of living in the city and 33rd year in the tri-state area...

I am really hoping for a movie theater at the Banks.  Does anyone know if that is a possibility?

 

To this day, I still wish the Freedom Center would be converted to a theater.  Its a cool looking building, big enough, and at the center of The Banks, perfect.  The subject matter in the building is definitely important but the location sucks and interest is very low.

 

That sounds like a good idea.  The Freedom Center should be a wing in a museum somewhere else in the city, not a standalone building on such prominent real estate.  Hell, the Creation Museum gets 3 times as many visitors.

I am really hoping for a movie theater at the Banks. Does anyone know if that is a possibility?

 

To this day, I still wish the Freedom Center would be converted to a theater. Its a cool looking building, big enough, and at the center of The Banks, perfect. The subject matter in the building is definitely important but the location sucks and interest is very low.

 

The Freedom Center should be a wing in a museum somewhere else in the city, not a standalone building on such prominent real estate.

 

I hope you're joking, for intellectual sake.

Idea: Open up the "Freedom Museum" to include more than one race. Lay off employees. Reduce hours and operating days. It's a recession.

 

I'm pretty sure the freedom center has an exhibit on modern slavery that is not about one race and has laid off a lot of employees

 

edit: What OCtoCincy said.

 

I've only been once (right after it opened) and I found it to be fairly heavy handed and slavery focused. I would have enjoyed it more if there had been more exhibits like those described above and if the actual underground railroad had been featured more. I had expected it to be more of a celebration of those who risked their lives to smuggle slaves out of the south.

 

The one time I was there several years ago, that was what it was all about. I have little reason to return, and apparently, outside of the "free" days they offer, there is little reason for others to return. If it's changed to be more inclusive, then it may be worth a visit back, but I doubt that it has shifted its focus to be more of a broader spectrum. Heck, their nameplate still reads "National Underground Railroad... Freedom Center," which makes the center appear all but specific on one genre. Their web-site highlights two major points: Slavery Today, and the Underground Railroad, and their current exhibit listing provides little outside of those two specialized topics.

 

I couldn't find any exhibit relating to Asians or other ethnic groups, so it is assumed that the museum is focused on one specific race and movement.

 

It's odd that a privately funded museum - the Creation Museum of all places, receives record-breaking visitors in the rural southwest part of the Cinci metro.

 

And while someone made a comparison that the stadiums receive funding, it is at least partially justified. Paul Brown's Stadium is money-losing and is open only a few scant days a year, and is a project that has been widely and appropriately panned for, but the Great American Ballpark is on the opposite platform. Their economic return-on-investment is far greater than that of a specific museum, and they have greater chances at recouping any taxpayer investment.

 

It's not good when a museum is bleeding money so heavily that they are practically begging for donations or looking to be federalized. The Dayton Art Institute is in a similar boat - their membership has dropped, their building is clearly aging and deteriorating (per a Dayton Daily News feature a few days ago) and they are in need of some money, but they are not seeking more taxpayer bailouts or federal handouts. They are doing the right thing and downsizing, by eliminating days they will be open, reducing staff where needed and operating more lean in a time where everyone is penny pinching.

The one time I was there several years ago, that was what it was all about. I have little reason to return, and apparently, outside of the "free" days they offer, there is little reason for others to return. If it's changed to be more inclusive, then it may be worth a visit back, but I doubt that it has shifted its focus to be more of a broader spectrum. Heck, their nameplate still reads "National Underground Railroad... Freedom Center," which makes the center appear all but specific on one genre. Their web-site highlights two major points: Slavery Today, and the Underground Railroad, and their current exhibit listing provides little outside of those two specialized topics.

 

I couldn't find any exhibit relating to Asians or other ethnic groups, so it is assumed that the museum is focused on one specific race and movement.

 

Name one museum you actually return to sans special exhibits?  When is the last time you went to the CAC?  Any of the Museum Center museums?  Hell, the Cincinnati Art Museum?  Taft Museum?  See where this is going?  It isn't about you but potential visitors to the region to visit unique attractions.  If a museum cannot market itself properly (which the Creation Museum, of all places, has done a bang-up job), then it's a no-brainer it isn't going to draw the desired attendance.  And if you want a more current example of Asian presence at the Freedom Center, last year they had an "Asian Girls Endure Torture as Sex Slaves" exhibit.  And it actually was quite powerful (yes, I went).

 

It's odd that a privately funded museum - the Creation Museum of all places, receives record-breaking visitors in the rural southwest part of the Cinci metro.

 

No it is not.  The Creation Museum has billboards all over this state and Kentucky, let alone advertising play within church groups.  Name one Freedom Center, Cincinnati Art Museum, Taft, or CAC billboard to attract visitors?  Again, marketing, marketing, oh, and marketing.  Harping on a museum that is "inclusive" is about as ridiculous as calling a streetcar and 3C Rail a "train cult."  The Freedom Center is about as "inclusive" as MoMA is to Degas.

Idea: Open up the "Freedom Museum" to include more than one race. Lay off employees. Reduce hours and operating days. It's a recession.

 

I'm pretty sure the freedom center has an exhibit on modern slavery that is not about one race and has laid off a lot of employees

 

edit: What OCtoCincy said.

 

I've only been once (right after it opened) and I found it to be fairly heavy handed and slavery focused. I would have enjoyed it more if there had been more exhibits like those described above and if the actual underground railroad had been featured more. I had expected it to be more of a celebration of those who risked their lives to smuggle slaves out of the south.

 

 

I couldn't find any exhibit relating to Asians or other ethnic groups, so it is assumed that the museum is focused on one specific race and movement.

 

 

Go here. http://www.freedomcenter.org/slavery-today/

 

Click "Where is Slavery Today?"

 

"The bulk of the ILO's estimate of 12.3 million in forced labor is in Asia, where some 9.5 million persons are in some form of exploitative agricultural, industrial or sex work."

I am really hoping for a movie theater at the Banks. Does anyone know if that is a possibility?

 

To this day, I still wish the Freedom Center would be converted to a theater. Its a cool looking building, big enough, and at the center of The Banks, perfect. The subject matter in the building is definitely important but the location sucks and interest is very low.

 

The Freedom Center should be a wing in a museum somewhere else in the city, not a standalone building on such prominent real estate.

 

I hope you're joking, for intellectual sake.

 

Why would that be a joke? And what do you mean "for intellectual sake?"  The Freedom Center is not a successful museum, and the subject matter is far too specific to merit being a standalone establishment (at least in a city like Cincinnati that does not have a lot of tourists).  I guess the only thing wrong with my prior statement is that it should be "somewhere else in the city;" it shouldn't, it should probably be in Washington, perhaps as a part of the forthcoming Smithsonian National Museum of African American History.

The Freedom Center is not a successful museum, and the subject matter is far too specific to merit being a standalone establishment (at least in a city like Cincinnati that does not have a lot of tourists).

 

It's not successful because no one knows about it.  People know about the even MORE niche (or as you say, specific) market of Andy Warhol in Pittsburgh and it's quite successful.  People like to "Experience" Jimi Hendrix in Seattle.  Dali has an excellent and successful museum in St. Petersburg, Florida.  Why?  Marketing.  Again, "subject matter that is far too specific to merit being a standalone establishment" is quite silly.  If that were the case, close up half the museums in the country, move them to either New York, Washington, or San Francisco, and put them in Smithsonian wings off Constitution.  If anythin, the Freedom Center should ATTRACT tourists to the city like the Rock Hall did for Cleveland in the 90's.  And if you want to head the "niche market," it should attract AFRICAN-AMERICAN visitors to the city (and if ANY city in this state needs that press, it's Cincinnati).

 

I guess the only thing wrong with my prior statement is that it should be "somewhere else in the city;" it shouldn't, it should probably be in Washington, perhaps as a part of the forthcoming Smithsonian National Museum of African American History.

 

Washington's role within the Underground Railroad movement was minuscule compared to Cincinnati (really, Ohio in general).  You can't just stick all that "black history" into one museum in the nation's capital.  And if we are going by attendance numbers, then close the CAC and move the work in there to the Wexner Center in Columbus and call it a day.  After all, the CAC is PRIME real estate for another Jean Ro Bistro and maybe he can bring one of those nifty Angelika Film Centers to the second floor!  And on the third floor...I'm sensing "ZARA!!!"

 

Ugh.

The Creation Museum is not a museum... It's a science fiction amusement place. 

 

All you did was say people in this region don't like to learn but do like to go to fictional museums that don't have any basis in reality or history.

 

It's like saying-- Disneyland does well- Why don't we make our historical museums like disneyland. 

 

- and i love that because you went once 5 years ago- right when it opened and didn't like what you saw, it's a horrible place.

 

I guess the only thing wrong with my prior statement is that it should be "somewhere else in the city;" it shouldn't, it should probably be in Washington, perhaps as a part of the forthcoming Smithsonian National Museum of African American History.

 

You're saying- since cincinnati isn't well cultured, we should just get rid of museums that relate to our history.

1. First off, I agree marketing is what's lacking. Not enough people outside Cincinnati know about the museum. Also remember the museum is still pretty new. It will take time for attendance figures to rise.

 

2. Second, it's a huge asset, and the location makes sense from an historical perspective. The Ohio River was the major crossing point. Ohio was in fact the leading Underground Railroad state. It should be right on the Ohio River and stay there forever. I'm glad Cincinnati landed this museum and in that location.

 

I guess the only thing wrong with my prior statement is that it should be "somewhere else in the city;" it shouldn't, it should probably be in Washington, perhaps as a part of the forthcoming Smithsonian National Museum of African American History.

 

I disagree, an Underground Railroad museum belongs in Ohio because of the key role the state played. DC does not have the same history as Cincinnati. And Cincinnati could attract more tourists. That's a problem of Ohio in general. We have these great historic cities with lots of attractions, but not enough tourists. I'm not sure who is to blame for that, but it's holding this state back. Ohio's problem is image, not substance.

 

It's not successful because no one knows about it.  People know about the even MORE niche (or as you say, specific) market of Andy Warhol in Pittsburgh and it's quite successful.  People like to "Experience" Jimi Hendrix in Seattle.  Dali has an excellent and successful museum in St. Petersburg, Florida.  Why?  Marketing.  Again, "subject matter that is far too specific to merit being a standalone establishment" is quite silly.  If that were the case, close up half the museums in the country, move them to either New York, Washington, or San Francisco, and put them in Smithsonian wings off Constitution.  If anythin, the Freedom Center should ATTRACT tourists to the city like the Rock Hall did for Cleveland in the 90's.  And if you want to head the "niche market," it should attract AFRICAN-AMERICAN visitors to the city (and if ANY city in this state needs that press, it's Cincinnati).

 

Colday hit the nail on the head.

The one time I was there several years ago, that was what it was all about. I have little reason to return, and apparently, outside of the "free" days they offer, there is little reason for others to return. If it's changed to be more inclusive, then it may be worth a visit back, but I doubt that it has shifted its focus to be more of a broader spectrum. Heck, their nameplate still reads "National Underground Railroad... Freedom Center," which makes the center appear all but specific on one genre. Their web-site highlights two major points: Slavery Today, and the Underground Railroad, and their current exhibit listing provides little outside of those two specialized topics.

 

I couldn't find any exhibit relating to Asians or other ethnic groups, so it is assumed that the museum is focused on one specific race and movement.

 

Name one museum you actually return to sans special exhibits? When is the last time you went to the CAC? Any of the Museum Center museums? Hell, the Cincinnati Art Museum? Taft Museum? See where this is going? It isn't about you but potential visitors to the region to visit unique attractions. If a museum cannot market itself properly (which the Creation Museum, of all places, has done a bang-up job), then it's a no-brainer it isn't going to draw the desired attendance. And if you want a more current example of Asian presence at the Freedom Center, last year they had an "Asian Girls Endure Torture as Sex Slaves" exhibit. And it actually was quite powerful (yes, I went).

 

Repeat visitors is what museums wants. The Dayton Art Institute is seeing a drop in attendance because it has few big blockbusters to continue drawing in visitors, and those blockbusters are nothing more than short-term attendance games and need not be counted into long-range planning. If the exhibits are not changed up enough, or if it is not marketed properly that the museum fails to showcase its ongoing efforts to be inclusive of more than one particular race or ethnicity, then it is failing in its efforts. A name change would be a great start - simply renaming it to the Freedom Center would help. Plus, the National Underground Railroad Museum in Maysville, Kentucky (opened in 1995) has had the name for a few years earlier (The Freedom Center opened in 2004).

 

It's odd that a privately funded museum - the Creation Museum of all places, receives record-breaking visitors in the rural southwest part of the Cinci metro.

 

No it is not. The Creation Museum has billboards all over this state and Kentucky, let alone advertising play within church groups. Name one Freedom Center, Cincinnati Art Museum, Taft, or CAC billboard to attract visitors? Again, marketing, marketing, oh, and marketing. Harping on a museum that is "inclusive" is about as ridiculous as calling a streetcar and 3C Rail a "train cult." The Freedom Center is about as "inclusive" as MoMA is to Degas.

 

Are you stating that the Creation Museum is not privately funded (based on your first sentence)? Construction on the $27 million museum was all privately financed, with not a shred of taxpayer funding used in its construction or design. And any advertising is privately financed through attendance revenues and donations - so they do have the financing for marketing materials.

 

Now, Answers in Genesis is seeking state funding for their Ark Adventures theme park, which I strongly disagree with.

 

Going on attendance figures alone, from May 2007 to October 2008, they had 550,000 visitors. In 8 weeks, it drew in 100,000 - or what the National Underground Railroad Museum drew in 52 weeks. For the first 11 months of 2010, the Freedom Center drew in a mere 108,000, which is more than all of 2009.

 

--

 

I think people forgot to read about this gem:

 

Freedom Center seeks federalization

By Mark Curnutte • [email protected] • January 6, 2011

 

Representatives of the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center continue to push to have the federal government take over its operation despite improvements to its financial health.

 

"Discussions of this go back to 1998, with different members of Congress, and more conversations need to be held," said John Pepper, Freedom Center board co-chairman and former chief executive of Procter & Gamble. "Federalization would help our financial sustainability, but we're not placing all of our eggs in that basket."

 

--

 

With that bold statement alone, they are acknowledging that by handing it over to the federal government, so all taxpayers can shovel money to the center, that its financial solvency will not be solved.

 

For FY 2011, the city will give the museum $300,000 to an exhibit. At least the Freedom Center has paid off its original debt.

It's amazing to me how many people here are against the URFC. I'd expect this on Enquirer comments, but not here.

 

The museum's place on the river is important and symbolic. It plays up something about the city that is unique. It does everything right, or so it seems. I don't now for sure that marketing is the issue, but it probably is. It doesn't makes any sense that the museum does as poorly as it does.

 

I have a feeling local animosity to the museum plays a big part in the lack of success. If there were a big marketing campaign, it would probably draw ire from the peanut gallery since it would be funded at least partially by public money.

 

It's tempting to say that the main source of this is racial animosity, but I think that's a bit too simplistic. Sure, it's part of it. It's also part of anti-streetcar sentiment, but the NAACP is in on that too. I think it has more to do with the "nothing will work" mentality. People don't believe that the city can distinguish itself by emphasizing its unique attributes. It's the mythology that a winning baseball team and low taxes are the only things the city can do to get some positive attention.

 

It does also suffer from the idea that black history is not "my" history. Cincinnatians only want to support things they perceive as directly relevant to them. Same with other Ohioans: see 3C. This is wrong-headed, for sure, but I think it's more insular than racist. Then people can't get beyond that to see that the museum does not focus exclusively on blacks; it's been tagged in the public mind.

 

It seems unlikely the advertising money will come about, given the animosity and reputation. There would need to be someone with some vision and leadership who pushes the idea until it is realized (this person would likely have to be non-black to get sufficient support). The only other possibility is that people start drifting there naturally when the Banks starts kicking. I'm not so optimistic about that; I think the Creation Museum is a model for how such a unique-themed museum can become popular, and that's through press and advertising.

 

The Creation Museum gets tons of free advertising through its position in the modern culture war. If Cincinnati had built the Freedom Center in the 60's or early 70's, it probably would be iconic by now.

 

Going on attendance figures alone, from May 2007 to October 2008, they had 550,000 visitors. In 8 weeks, it drew in 100,000 - or what the National Underground Railroad Museum drew in 52 weeks. For the first 11 months of 2010, the Freedom Center drew in a mere 108,000, which is more than all of 2009.

 

You stated a year and 4 months-  that may have been a typo-- but you're comparing a "museum" that is purely science fiction (people go for the silly idea that humans and dinosaurs lived at the same time!) with a historical museum that documents slavery and injustice across the world in all cultures.

Repeat visitors is what museums wants. The Dayton Art Institute is seeing a drop in attendance because it has few big blockbusters to continue drawing in visitors, and those blockbusters are nothing more than short-term attendance games and need not be counted into long-range planning.

 

The DAI is seeing a drop in attendance because it does not market itself properly to anyone outside the city limits of Dayton.  The DAI is fine, the collection is fine, it's the marketing that is abysmal.  There are no wayfinding signs to the museum.  When you look at advertisements for Dayton, it's just "Aviation."  Period.  Not "we have a great Art Museum across the river from downtown!"  That's on page 5.

 

If the exhibits are not changed up enough, or if it is not marketed properly...

 

Almost got it...and then...

 

that the museum fails to showcase its ongoing efforts to be inclusive of more than one particular race or ethnicity, then it is failing in its efforts.

 

And *crash*  The museum DOES make ongoing effords to be inclusive with the later exhibits.  Again, have you been there?  The entire third floor is about Modern Slavery and ongoing efforts to stop it (re: Asian and Latino traffiking).  It isn't just about "slaves" and even if it WERE just about slaves, it's STILL a subject matter for which many people are interested in IF THEY KNEW THE MUSEUM EXISTED.  I don't get why you are harping about this whole "inclusionary" bullshit.  The museum exists to the dedication of world freedom.  US Slavery is a huge aspect of this and yet the museum continues to push the envelope in regards to OTHER subject matter for OTHER groups.  It's just that YOU are the one not attending it to understand.  Who's fault is that?  Well, partly yours but mostly the museum not marketing itself properly.  And thus, it fails.

 

A name change would be a great start - simply renaming it to the Freedom Center would help. Plus, the National Underground Railroad Museum in Maysville, Kentucky (opened in 1995) has had the name for a few years earlier (The Freedom Center opened in 2004).

 

Most people know it as the Freedom Center so that wouldn't really help.

 

Are you stating that the Creation Museum is not privately funded (based on your first sentence)?

 

And where did I state or imply this?  I stated the Creation Museum is advertised QUITE well for being such an "inclusive" market.

 

With that bold statement alone, they are acknowledging that by handing it over to the federal government, so all taxpayers can shovel money to the center, that its financial solvency will not be solved.

 

It should've been federal to begin with, much like the National Aviation Heritage sites up I-75.  It's a shame when the federal government can advertise and market sites better than an entire city.

It's amazing to me how many people here are against the URFC. I'd expect this on Enquirer comments, but not here.

 

I have a feeling local animosity to the museum plays a big part in the lack of success.

 

I think you have this reversed.

 

The animosity is DUE to the lack of success. Which is normal.

 

The place cant pay for itself, said it wouldnt need funding, and now is trying to ask for some.

 

Sounds erily similar to our losing bengals team that many are showing animosity to.

Kevster, have you been to the museum?  Just curious.

It's amazing to me how many people here are against the URFC. I'd expect this on Enquirer comments, but not here.

 

I have a feeling local animosity to the museum plays a big part in the lack of success.

 

I think you have this reversed.

 

The animosity is DUE to the lack of success. Which is normal.

 

The place cant pay for itself, said it wouldnt need funding, and now is trying to ask for some.

 

Sounds erily similar to our losing bengals team that many are showing animosity to.

 

Chicken or the egg?

 

People didn't like it before it was built. Their minds were made up.

Yes, Chris, and I see no reason to return to the UGRFC (shortened it for typing sake). It's much of the same content, with some rotating exhibits, but nothing that particularly interests me enough to go back and pay again. It's a subset of the museum genre that I've been interested in for a while - I've written articles and photographed numerous similar sites, notably the National Underground Railroad Museum in Maysville, the Ranklin House, the Parker House and over three dozen Civil War heritage sites and reenactments. I've also been to the Muhammad Ali Museum down in Louisville multiple times (which is seeing YTY traffic growth and is not subsidized) for assignments. It's not that I don't respect the UGRFC, it's just that I personally find it to not be a repeat attraction in my opinion.

 

As for the Dayton Art Institute, I was using that as an example since it was recently posted about several times in the Dayton Daily Times. It is suffering from some of the same parallels to the UGRFC, but it's not entirely comparable.

 

@OCtoCincy: It is irrelevant whether you think the Creation Museum is a "museum" or not. It's an attraction, and one that is worth comparing to for how it was funded and how much attendance it generates. There is also no need to badger people on whether or not they have been to the museum; all opinions can be equally weighted. There are many who believe museums on the whole should not be subsidized on the backs of taxpayers, for instance.

 

 

Kevster, have you been to the museum? Just curious.

 

Yes - I've been there once. When they first opened the Invisible Slavery exhibit, after hearing talk about it on the radio.

 

 

Yes, Chris, and I see no reason to return to the UGRFC (shortened it for typing sake). It's much of the same content, with some rotating exhibits, but nothing that particularly interests me enough to go back and pay again. It's a subset of the museum genre that I've been interested in for a while - I've written articles and photographed numerous similar sites, notably the National Underground Railroad Museum in Maysville, the Ranklin House, the Parker House and over three dozen Civil War heritage sites and reenactments. I've also been to the Muhammad Ali Museum down in Louisville multiple times (which is seeing YTY traffic growth and is not subsidized) for assignments. It's not that I don't respect the UGRFC, it's just that I personally find it to not be a repeat attraction in my opinion.

 

And that's fine.  But it is false to portray the image of the museum is about "one race."

 

As for the Dayton Art Institute, I was using that as an example since it was recently posted about several times in the Dayton Daily Times. It is suffering from some of the same parallels to the UGRFC, but it's not entirely comparable.

 

Sure.  For one, the DAI is free.

 

There are many who believe museums on the whole should not be subsidized on the backs of taxpayers, for instance.

 

So should every "free" museum in Washington start charging admission and be owned by News Corp.?  Would that be preferable?  What kind of Tea Party Preamble is this?!?

The marketing (now) isn't the problem.  The marking reports (or lack thereof) that allowed the thing to get built in the first place were the problem.  Taft and the CAC serve a relatively large niche of art culture that exists in Cincinnati, and are thus successful.  There's not a big enough niche for the Freedom Center, and there's not enough draw that it can, by itself, increase tourism like the Rock and Roll hall of fame might have.

 

I guess the only thing wrong with my prior statement is that it should be "somewhere else in the city;" it shouldn't, it should probably be in Washington, perhaps as a part of the forthcoming Smithsonian National Museum of African American History.

 

You're saying- since cincinnati isn't well cultured, we should just get rid of museums that relate to our history.

 

No, we shouldn't pour money down the drain on niche museums that aren't successful. As I said, the CAC, the Museum Center, the Taft, etc. are all successful and deserving of tax dollar support.  The Freedom Center, by comparison, is way, way too large and expensive for what it is.  It's almost twice the size of the CAC, (by square footage) for example.

 

Also, I saw ColDayMan mentioned it should have been federally funded.  I'd completely support it if that were the case, if it truly was a national museum.

Part of the battle the Freedom Center has been battling against its whole life is a connection to the racial antipathy that was so nasty at the beginning of the last decade.

It has an odd vision - mixing a memorial to the underground railroad museum, a history of slavery, and a broader social justice museum. The slave pen is entirely too clean to drive home the experiential aspect.

Unfortunately, the fact that the Cincinnati Historical Society museum hasn't had more churn in its own presentations doesn't allow the Freedom Center to engage in a fruitful dialog w/ a more dominant narrative.

I don't think the problem is that the center is too focused on one group, but rather they spent too much on the building and not enough on developing interesting exhibits in its first few years. The American I Am exhibit that they just finished developing and have sent off to travel the country is supposedly quite good.

 

I do think that the atmosphere of race relations in Cincinnati has retarded its potential. Many Cincinnatians aren't interested in the more challenging aspects of the narrative they want to present, while others consider this to be blood money paid after April 2001 and that it isn't radical enough.

The marketing (now) isn't the problem.  The marking reports (or lack thereof) that allowed the thing to get built in the first place were the problem.  Taft and the CAC serve a relatively large niche of art culture that exists in Cincinnati, and are thus successful.  There's not a big enough niche for the Freedom Center, and there's not enough draw that it can, by itself, increase tourism like the Rock and Roll hall of fame might have.

 

I'd say there is a big draw if it were marketed properly, particularly nationally to African-Americans.  I'd argue the Taft is more of a niche market than the Freedom Center and has to compete with the much-larger Cincinnati Art Museum.  But I'm presuming you aren't suggesting that Cincinnati doesn't have the market to support a museum devoted toward its own unique history.  If a steel parabola can be supported in St. Louis, a prominent museum devoted toward the history of slavery should do well in Cincinnati.  The problem is that Cincinnati doesn't know how to market shit, and that isn't just the Freedom Center's problem.

 

No, we shouldn't pour money down the drain on niche museums that aren't successful.

 

So what should they do?  Just throw it into a wing of the CAM?

 

The Freedom Center, by comparison, is way, way too large and expensive for what it is.  It's almost twice the size of the CAC, (by square footage) for example.

 

The more visitors, the more space utilized.  The more space utilized, the more unique exhibits can be shown.  The more exhibits, the attendance grows.  The attendance grows, so does the money tree.  The problem: visitors.  Solution: advertise.  The problem again: Cincinnati.

 

Also, I saw ColDayMan mentioned it should have been federally funded.  I'd completely support it if that were the case, if it truly was a national museum.

 

Hey, we both agree on something in this thread!