Kids 12 and under get in free.
Adult admission $17.

All discussions and performances will be livestreamed on Eastern State's YouTube.

This program explores the profound impact of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s writing and speaking, especially his transformative “Letter from Birmingham Jail.” Visitors will engage in discussions and activities that analyze how Dr. King and other civil rights leaders used the written and spoken word to inspire action and challenge oppression. This program will highlight the enduring power of communication as a tool for resistance and change, even under the most restrictive conditions.

This includes Eastern State’s newest exhibit Making Headlines, focused on the history of journalism at the Penitentiary. Through discussion, readings, reflections and hands-on activities, visitors will examine how words shaped the Civil Rights Movement and continue to resonate in today’s struggles for equality.

Special programming on Monday will also include a musical performance by the Black Breath Collective.

---

Saturday, January 18:

11:00 AM: Public Art Tour with Mark Loughney, artist of Pyrrhic Defeat.

12:00 PM: Panel discussion on Ida B. Wells-Barnett and the role of investigative journalism to bring about change.

12:00 – 4:00 PM: Visitors have the opportunity to have their portrait drawn by Mark Loughney, artist of Pyrrhic Defeat.

---

Sunday, January 19:

12:00 PM: Panel discussion with Ismael Jiminez on Malcolm X and the autobiography he penned during his incarceration.

---

Monday:

11:00 AM – 1:15 PM: Two-hour program featuring discussions about prominent civil rights leaders whose writing and speaking while incarcerated inspired the movement and a musical performance by the Black Breath Collective.