FOR RELEASE: A refugee is defined as a person with a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion, who is outside the country of their nationality and is unable to return to it. An immigrant is a person who chooses to leave their country of nationality for permanent residence in another county. Both topics are the focus of “One City, One Community,” a new exhibition opening Wednesday, January 10 at the Greeley History Museum, 714 8th Street. The exhibition is part of a collaboration between the City of Greeley Museums and the Immigrant and Refugee Center of Northern Colorado.
Artifacts on loan from refugees and immigrants who resettled to Greeley will be displayed at the museum, along with items from early Union Colony settlers. Visitors will also be able to try the museum’s virtual reality headset to experience a 360-degree view of life as a refugee through the eyes of a 12-year old Syrian named Sidra. The video shows Sidra’s daily life as well as how her family lives in a refugee camp in Jordan.
Additionally, a few Greeley-Evans School District 6 students lent some of their art and local photographer Emily Nelson lent photos to the exhibit.
“Part of the experience is trying to put the visitor in the shoes of a refugee or immigrant,” says Curator of Exhibits Nicole Famiglietti. “It’s also an opportunity for newcomers to share their history and their stories with the community.”
To reach a broader audience, facts and narrative in the exhibit are translated into Spanish as well.
Located in the Greeley History Museum’s west gallery, the exhibit runs through March 3, 2019. The Greeley History Museum’s hours are Wednesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday, Noon to 4 p.m. Admission is $5 for adults, $3 for seniors and children ages three to 17, and $15 for a group of five.
Current museum exhibits included with admission are “Well Dressed in Weld: Fine and Funky Florals” in the upper mezzanine; “Utopia: Adaption on the Plains” in the main gallery; the Smithsonian’s “H2O Today: A Global Water Story” in the east gallery; and “Curator’s Corner” on the lower level.
For more information about the history museum’s exhibits, visit GreeleyMuseums.com.
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For more information, contact:
Nicole Famiglietti, Curator of Exhibits
970-336-4184
[email protected]