National Public Housing Museum

11/29/2022

National Public Housing Museum updated their address.

National Public Housing Museum updated their address.

11/29/2022

National Public Housing Museum updated their business hours.

National Public Housing Museum updated their business hours.

11/29/2022

Today is Giving Tuesday! We are excited to participate in this global movement to unleash the power of people and organizations to transform their communities and the world. Join us to support our transformative programs that will be housed in our permanent museum space! https://www.nphm.org/donate

11/22/2022

Artist Talk: Marisa Morán Jahn

Did you miss our Artist as Instigator, Marisa Morán Jahn's talk with us last week? You can watch the whole conversation now on our YouTube channel!

https://youtu.be/RIqv-QsjF7c

Listen to NPHM’s 2022 Artist as Instigator, Marisa Morán Jahn, to learn about how she uses art and design to create civic innovations and tackle public polic...

11/15/2022

The newest episode of our oral history podcast, Out of the Archives is out now! This episode, "There's So Much Magic in a Place," shares stories from across the country about how residents and the relationships to their homes have shaped, and have been shaped by, their identities as individuals and communities.

The oral history narrators featured in this episode are: Ramona Ferreyra, who has lived in NYC's Mitchel Houses from 2019 to the present day, Dante Hamilton, who lived in the Garden Valley Neighborhood Projects from 1961-1979, Connie Lindsey, who lived in Milwaukee's Lapham Park Housing Project from 1965-1974 and Willie McShan, who lived in Chicago's Altgeld Gardens from 1944-1951.

Stream from your favorite podcast platform by following the link: https://linktr.ee/thenphm

11/11/2022

Happy Veterans Day from NPHM! In honor of this important moment, we acknowledge the nearly 1.5m veterans at risk of homelessness and the need for more coordinated efforts to provide secure and supportive housing assistance to those who have served this country.

(Image courtesy of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.)

11/10/2022

Join NPHM’s 2022 Artist as Instigator Marisa Morán Jahn () to learn about how she uses art and design to create civic innovations and tackle public policy issues. She’ll share projects like Carehaus, the U.S.’s first intergenerational care-based co-housing project co-founded with architect Rafi Segal, and Careforce, a collaboration with the National Domestic Workers Alliance, helping to amplify the voices of America’s fastest growing workforce — caregivers.

Also — sneak peek into how Marisa and NPHM are thinking about using art, storytelling, and play to impact public policy during her year-long residency with the Museum! Special guests including 2021 Artist as Instigator Tonika Lewis Johnson () join Marisa to share their ideas, feedback, and questions!

A live captioner will be present for this event. Please contact Mark Jaeschke, [email protected] for additional needs or requests for accommodations

Link in our bio to register for this online conversation!

10/19/2022

Thanks to all who attended the “Hypocrisy of Justice: Sights and Sounds from the Black Metropolis” Performances and Symposium, which happened on October 7 and 8, 2022!

Presented as part of “Hypocrisy of Justice: Sights and Sounds from the Black Metropolis,” HOME was a panel discussion that considers both the historical and current state of housing, and include the exploration of discriminatory practices, displacement, eviction, and strategies for change.

Panelists for the conversation included André Perry, Shana Griffin, Tonika Lewis Johnson. Moderated by: Natalie Moore

10/18/2022

Careers & Internships — National Public Housing Museum

We're hiring! NPHM is seeking applicants to be our Director of Communications & Community Engagement. Share widely and apply via the link below!

https://www.nphm.org/careers-internships

The NPHM Director of Communications & Community Engagement is responsible for curating and disseminating compelling, accurate content from the Museum’s programs, events, and exhibitions. Working with staff across the Museum’s departments, this position ensures that the Museum communicates and en...

10/15/2022

NPHM at the Taylor Streer Farm today with ABLA family, EHUB and friends. We picked the lettuce and ate it!

10/13/2022

Celebrate Latinx Heritage Month with the NPHM and Blu Rhythm Collective & the Crew. and our self-guided tour of a people's history of Lincoln Park, Stories from the Redline: Fire Fire Gentrifier!

The tour is available through PocketSights Tour Guide, a free mobile phone app.

This tour features music by Pinqy Ring (.ring), photos by Carlos Flores, and stories by Cha Cha Jiménez, Billy Che Brooks, and Professor Jacqueline Lazu.

This tour excavates some of the hidden and repressed history of urban renewal and explores the struggles of the Young Lords. The Young Lords were a Puerto Rican street organization turned human rights activists focusing on police brutality, housing inequity, racism, and more, to organize, raise political awareness, and resist gentrification and displacement from Lincoln Park in Chicago's north side.

https://www.nphm.org/stories-from-the-redline-fire-fire-gentrifier

10/12/2022

Amanda Williams, Artist and Architect | 2022 MacArthur Fellow

Happy Birthday and Congratulations to AW Originals (Amanda Williams) for being selected to be one of the new
MacArthur Foundation Genius Award Fellows. Amanda, in collaboration with Olalekan Jeyifous, is designing the entrance to the future home of the National Public Housing Museum.

10/11/2022

This is the day so many have dreamed of.

We celebrated groundbreaking on the National Public Housing Museum. Executive Director Lisa Yun Lee, Board Chair Sunny Fischer, the Board, and Staff were joined by Mayor Lori Lightfoot, CHA CEO Tracey Scott, Commissioner of Housing Marisa Novara, Khalia Ali, and many more to mark this incredibly special occasion at the site of the last remaining building of the historic Jane Addams Homes.

We wouldn’t be here without the unwavering support of people like you—public housing residents, city officials, housing advocates and activists, preservationists, donors, friends and family, who have helped make today possible. Also spotted in the crowd: Miss Mary Baggett (ABLA), JR Fleming (Cabrini-Green), Francine Washington (Stateway Gardens), Crystal Palmer (Henry Horner), Reverend Marshall Hatch (Jane Addams Homes), Jellystone Robinson (Ida B Wells Homes) and arts, humanities and culture leaders: Dr. Haki Madhubuti, Alex Kotlowitz, Elizabeth Todd Breland, Jamie Kalven, Ben Austen, Rich Cahan, Reginald Robinson, Laura Washington, Chirag Badlini, DCASE Commissioner Erin Harkey, Commissioner Rachel Arfa, Carlos Tortelaro, Anne Lazar, Amanda Williams, Ellen Alberding, Brad White, and more!!

10/03/2022

Now announcing 2022 Artist as Instigator, Marisa Morán Jahn!

New York City-based multidisciplinary artist Marisa Morán Jahn was chosen as NPHM's 2022 Artist as Instigator because of her history of making creative and innovative interventions in housing policy. Her past work with immigrant communities, and on issues related to housing as a human right as well as her own lived experience in an affordable housing complex in NYC, make her a sincere collaborator with the Museum.

Marisa is the Museum’s fourth artist in residence, joining Chicago-based artists William Estrada, Jen Delos Reyes, and Tonika Lewis Johnson.

10/03/2022

Now announcing 2022 Artist as Instigator Marisa Morán Jahn ()

New York City-based multidisciplinary artist Marisa Morán Jahn was chosen as NPHM's 2022 Artist as Instigator because of her history of making creative and innovative interventions in housing policy. Her past work with immigrant communities, and on issues related to housing as a human right as well as her own lived experience in an affordable housing complex in NYC, make her a sincere collaborator with the Museum.

Marisa is the Museum’s fourth artist in residence, joining Chicago-based artists William Estrada (), Jen Delos Reyes (), and Tonika Lewis Johnson ().

Click the link in our bio to learn more about Marisa!

09/28/2022

Careers & Internships — National Public Housing Museum

We are hiring!

The NPHM Director of Communications & Community Engagement is responsible for curating and disseminating compelling, accurate content from the Museum’s programs, events, and exhibitions. Working with staff across the Museum’s departments, this position ensures that the Museum communicates and en...

09/16/2022

The Power of Storytelling: Illuminating Dignity in the Face of Gentrification and Displacement — National Public Housing Museum

On Friday, September 9, the NPHM and Art Works Projects (AWP) hosted a panel discussion and launch of the exhibition Forest Cove: All of the Above by AWP’s 2021-22 Emerging Lens Fellow, Mark Anthony Brown, Jr.

For both AWP and NPHM, The Power of Storytelling: Illuminating Dignity in the Face of Gentrification and Displacement was our first in-person public event in our space since February 2020, and we were thrilled to welcome almost 50 new and familiar faces! A special thanks to our featured artist, Mark Anthony Brown, Jr., special guests W.D. Floyd and Maurice Edwards, and our moderator Chandra Christmas-Rouse. The speakers graciously shared insights on disinvestment in public housing communities, and communities of color across Atlanta and Chicago, and explored the power of storytelling in creating resident-led solutions that combat these systemic issues and illuminate dignity.

Curious how it went? Check out our full event recap below and learn more about the speakers on NPHM's website.

https://www.nphm.org/programs/events/2022/9/9/the-power-of-storytelling-illuminating-dignity-in-the-face-of-gentrification-and-displacement

The NPHM and ART WORKS Projects (AWP) hosted a panel discussion and launch of the exhibition Forest Cove: All of the Above by AWP’s 2021-22 Emerging Lens Fellow Mark Anthony Brown, Jr.

09/09/2022

Tonight, NPHM and our friends at are hosting a SOLD OUT panel discussion titled, “The Power of Storytelling: Illuminating Dignity in the Face of Gentrification and Displacement”.

This event will take place as part of the launch of the exhibition, Forest Cove: All of the Above, by Mark Anthony Brown, Jr. that highlights the experiences of residents as they navigate life in Forest Cove and illustrates an instance of severe housing disparity faced by many communities throughout the United States.

Brown will be joined by W.D. Floyd, Chicago-based multidisciplinary artist and youth educator, and Maurice Edwards, President, Cabrini-Green Local Advisory Council, in a conversation moderated by urban planner and artist Chandra Christmas-Rouse, about the power of documenting the lived experiences of those facing housing injustice amidst gentrification in Atlanta and Chicago.

09/02/2022

National Public Housing Museum updated their phone number.

National Public Housing Museum updated their phone number.

05/02/2022

Open call for local and national artists linking arts, culture, public policy!
SAVE THE DATE: The 2022 Artist as Instigator Residency is open for submissions May 9 - June 20, 2022. This annual residency runs July 2022 - June 2023.
NPHM’s Artist as Instigator Residency provides space for artists, activists, and cultural workers to incubate ideas and produce new work in collaboration with NPHM. The selected artist receives a $10,000 honorarium and a $10,000 budget for project expenses. NPHM also provides exhibition space, programming and administrative support, partner opportunities, and publicity.
Join previous Artists as Instigators Estrada (2019), Jen delos Reyes (2020), and Tonika Lewis Johnson (2021), in making creative public policy interventions that lead to more equitable communities.

04/29/2022

WBEZ Presents: Legally Stolen Live

Live stream Legally Stolen Live NOW! Learn about the legal theft of Black wealth from Tonika Lewis Johnson's Inequity for Sale project.

Legally Stolen Live is a podcast event hosted by Tiff Beatty of the National Public Housing Museum and Social Justice Artist Tonika Lewis Johnson as part of ...

04/27/2022

THROUGH THE PEOPLE // DERRICK CHAPMAN (he / him)

DRIVE DOWN MEMORY LANE

I grew up in the Robert Taylors project, Englewood, The Wild 100’s, Woodlawn, Back of the Yards, and Auburn Gresham communities. The pictures above are from around late 1996 inside of the 5135 building of the Robert Taylors projects which was located on the Southside of Chicago before the demolition of both The red and white project building . Before we stayed in the white buildings 5135 we stayed in the red buildings 5247 . By the way if you’re reading this I also grew up to be Southside Rico Nocap.

Submission by

04/21/2022

WBEZ Presents: Legally Stolen Live

Join us for Legally Stolen Live, a podcast event hosted by Tiff Beatty of the National Public Housing Museum and Social Justice Artist Tonika Lewis Johnson as part of her project, Inequity for Sale. Inequity for Sale is a virtual and physical exploration of Englewood homes sold on Land Sale Contracts in the 50s and 60s. Featured guests, Amber Hendley, Robin Rue Simmons, and Marisa Novara, discuss reparations and redress for legalized theft from Black people and communities impacted by predatory real estate practices and art as a catalyst for change.

Get your tickets from the link!

Join us for Legally Stolen Live featuring Tiff Beatty and Tonika Lewis Johnson. The event will focus on inequality in real estate.

04/18/2022

Wells Fargo Rejected Half Its Black Applicants in Mortgage Refinancing Boom

Shame.
https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2022-wells-fargo-black-home-loan-refinancing/?fbclid=IwAR0FWYXLvGOilHDUxjZiB5q-bbZi4wRPeFK-vVUWHF9DRWWtVrlWD1wx8Uk

Among all major lenders, Wells Fargo was alone in rejecting more Black homeowners than it accepted.

04/17/2022

WBEZ Presents: Legally Stolen Live

THIS. IS. GOING. TO. BE. SO. GOOD.

Join us for Legally Stolen Live featuring Tiff Beatty and Tonika Lewis Johnson. The event will focus on inequality in real estate.

04/14/2022

Celebrate Fair Housing Month with the NPHM! Our newest episode of Out of the Archives, “It's Certain Things That I Think Are Human Rights,” features an array of current and former residents from Chicago public housing, as well as some insight into the history of Fair Housing Month. The oral history narrators in this episode include Reverend Marshall Hatch (.hatch), Nakia Herron, Dr. Richard Morgan, Allen Schwartz, and Juanita Stevenson.

04/06/2022

THROUGH THE PEOPLE // DR. CRANSTON KNIGHT (he / him)

1963

This photo was taken in 1963, which was quite some time ago. Many buildings which would make up Horner hadn’t been constructed. However, it is a photograph of my family and the building we lived in, known as 150. In the background, before low-rise buildings were constructed is a dusty field, transversed by an “El” track which is still there to this day. Left to right, my sister, brother, and father; I’m at the end.

04/01/2022

THROUGH THE PEOPLE // Kelly Snider (she/her)

MEMORIES DON’T LIVE LIKE PEOPLE DO

“my great grandmother was my grandmother because she raised my mom. Lois Gilmore Marable was born in 1931 a capricorn of course, 1 of the eldest of 18 kids. So naturally her home in Marcy was the family meet up. She lived in the building where the marcy daycare center is and loved to live alone.

I spent the 1990’s summers in marcy playing in that park was the best times of my life. My grandmother had the windows in front but she would come to the hallway to the big windows to check on me every 20 mins (that’s love). Every morning she made me my fav breakfast grits w/ cheese or pancakes & hot tea sweetened already exactly how i wanted it. I would eat while she watered all her plants and played kiss FM. On sundays my great uncles would come visit her and always treat me like a real princess. One of my great uncles lived across the street in the other side of marcy and he would make me a gingerbread HOUSE bday cake.

In that 2 bedroom apartment i was taught how to cook, sew, garden, clean, gut fish, hand wash clothes, my true family history and how stand up for myself. I remember having to watch the entire Oj Simpson trial when I was 8 years old, to make it fun I painted my granny toenails and fingernails. My first unsupervised train ride was to Brooklyn from harlem to visit my granny. We were really close. Once covid happened I couldn’t spend time with her then I got pregnant and I was able to see her twice during my pregnancy and we had so much fun. My grandmother never wanted to move she said this was her home she was fine and it was other people that needed to move lol. A home is truly what you make it I learned that there. March 2021 my grandmother had a bad fall at her home in MArcy and passed away during her hospilation recovery.”

Submission by

03/31/2022

THROUGH THE PEOPLE / Arabia Simeon (she/they)

SUNDAY DINNER

“It seemed like every Sunday was a celebration in my family. We were super close, everyone would come over to my house because my grandma was living with us. My grandma was the nucleus of my family in NYC. She was hilarious and everyone loved her. She was honest. Before my grandma was bed bound she was huge in her community in Far Rockaway. I remember looking up to her and how much impact she made in her hood, while being a mother, having a job, etc. My mother took after her. She is loving, resilient and tells it how it is. I admire that.
My mother and sisters would spend Saturday night and Sunday morning prepping all the food. I can still remember the soul food aroma traveling through our 3 bedroom NYCHA apartment. My mom would open the door whenever she cooked big meals so we could get air circulating. My little sisters, cousin and I always used this as an opportunity to run up and down the hall with our neighbors. We would bring out our scooters, play tag, and climb the walls pretending to be Black spy kids. One of the beauties of growing up in the projects is that your neighbors become more like family.

On Sundays, my grandma’s 13 grandkids, kids, nephew, sisters and neighbors would all come together. The kids would be running around and the adults gathered around a friendly game of putty pat. We would blast all the cookout jams, eat great food, dance, and laugh until the sun went down.

Sundays were always filled with love. Especially on my floor.”

(Note: L-R: Arabia(me), Grandma Jackie, Sharena, Kaleena(Punta), Mommy, Amil(Nooshie), Uncle Prince, Auntie Eddie, Science, Shelia, Nubia, Niyea, and Kendell)

Submission by

03/30/2022

THROUGH THE PEOPLE / Clarissa Vargas (She / Her)

FEED THE BLOCK, AND IT'LL FEED YOU BACK

"My mom always looked forward to community events like the Old Timers reunion which was held annually. She loved when the block would come together like this – it gave her a reason to do what she loved to do best, feed the hood. She’d whip up her best plates for the community. My mom’s cooking was very well known on 143rd & 8th. You would've thought she was a world-renowned chef the way people would chase her down for plates!"