The African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund

About

In November 2017, the National Trust for Historic Preservation launched its African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund, a program that makes an important and lasting contribution to the American landscape by preserving sites of African American activism, achievement, and resilience.

Through this preservation effort—the largest ever undertaken in support of African American historic sites—we work to expand the American story.

Why the Action Fund, and Why Now
Black history is American history, and it is our responsibility to cultivate spaces to engage with it. We must ensure that everyone has the opportunity to draw inspiration and wisdom from African American historic places.

We must tell stories that reflect our complex and difficult past—and help us shape a better collective future. Though America may be rich in diverse history, our society has often been poor in representing that history and in funding its protection, conservation, and recognition. That’s why we actively invest in and restore cultural assets that hold exceptional cultural value.

The African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund is about making room—within our understanding of history, preservation, and social justice—for a movement that uses preservation as a force for enacting positive social change. In modeling this approach and in partnering with other organizations around the country, we challenge ourselves to realize equity-driven outcomes that benefit all Americans.

About the Host

Old places are where our lives, memories, and stories began. They connect us to the past, anchor us to the present, and lead us into the future. These places inspire us to create a stronger nation, because they belong to all of us.

For more than 70 years, the National Trust for Historic Preservation has led the movement to save America’s historic places. A privately funded nonprofit organization, we work to save America's historic sites; tell the full American story; build stronger communities; and invest in preservation's future.