History Associates Celebrates the Opening of the New Dallas Holocaust and Human Rights Museum

    ROCKVILLE, MD, September 19, 2019 /24-7PressRelease/ -- The new Dallas Holocaust and Human Rights Museum, which opened to the public September 18, has expanded in size and scope – it not only tells the story of the Holocaust, but it brings the historical narrative forward to include recent human and civil rights events. History Associates Incorporated (HAI) is honored to have served on the content development team, responsible for acquiring the images to support the Museum's new permanent exhibits.

At a time when many Holocaust survivors and witnesses to World War II are no longer alive, the Dallas Holocaust Museum saw the urgency in capturing these stories and bringing the lessons home to visitors of all ages. They sought to create an immersive visitor experience, using digital and interactive technologies to help forge a deeper understanding of the vital role we all play in preventing such tragedies from happening again.

The interactive exhibits required a large amount of historical and modern imagery. "Finding the right images, videos, and sounds to bring the exhibition to life was a critical part of telling this story, and History Associates played a key role in this effort," said Mary Pat Higgins, President and CEO of the Museum.

"Our research led us to repositories across the world, from national archives to personal collections," noted Carlyn Swaim, VP of exhibits services at History Associates and lead historian on the project. Working in coordination with the design team, HAI acquired roughly 665 images for the physical exhibition, 1,500 images for multimedia experiences, and over 250 audio and film clips.

The permanent exhibitions feature three core wings: Holocaust/Shoah Wing, Human Rights, and Pivot to America. The Dimensions in Testimony SM Theater, created by the USC Shoah Foundation, uses holographic imagery to enable visitors to interact in real-time with a digital rendering of a real genocide Survivor:  Dallas's own local Survivor, Max Glauben.

History Associates was on hand for the Museum's Ribbon Cutting Ceremony and Open House on Tuesday, September 17, which featured guest speakers Governor Greg Abbott, Mayor Eric Johnson, and Holocaust Survivors as honorary guests.

About the Dallas Holocaust and Human Rights Museum

The mission of the Dallas Holocaust and Human Rights Museum is to teach the history of the Holocaust and advance human rights to combat prejudice, hatred, and indifference. Initially conceived in 1977 by local Holocaust Survivors, the institution was officially founded in 1984 as the Dallas Memorial Center for Holocaust Studies in the basement of the Jewish Community Center of Dallas. In 2005, the center relocated to downtown Dallas in a temporary space as the Dallas Holocaust Museum/Center for Education and Tolerance where demand from school groups and visitors soon proved the need for a significantly larger permanent home.

After decades of steady growth and recognizing greater educational needs, the new Dallas Holocaust and Human Rights Museum is a major advancement from its predecessors, featuring a new name, expanded mission, and a larger facility that will accommodate more visitors and students than ever before. In October 2017, the Museum broke ground on a new facility where visitors would experience a deeper immersion into human and civil rights, their centrality to our democracy, and their vital importance in preventing events like those of the Holocaust from happening again. The 55,000-square-foot permanent home covers three floors, and the main exhibition covers four wings: Orientation Wing, Holocaust/Shoah Wing, Human Rights Wing, and Pivot to America Wing.

About History Associates

For more than 35 years, History Associates has helped clients to bring knowledge forward – use the past to inform the present and prepare for the future. The company's historians and archivists research and write histories, create educational experiences, preserve and manage historical content, and conduct specialized historical research for corporations, government agencies, law firms, and nonprofit organizations worldwide. For more information, call (301) 279-9697 or visit www.historyassociates.com.

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