Newsroom Category: Democracy

Commemorating America at 250

October 15, 2025 — In 2026, Americans will celebrate the 250th anniversary of our country’s first founding document, the Declaration of Independence. To commemorate, the Alabama Humanities Alliance will offer an extra slate of grants and programming in 2026, helping Alabamians place the past in context, consider our present, and imagine what our shared future might look like.

Among AHA’s “250” highlights: Grant offerings to help Alabamians reflect on America’s founding and connections to today; two new Smithsonian traveling exhibits; American Village will host the 2026 edition of AHA’s annual Alabama History Day contest; new Road Scholars will present talks related to America’s founding era; and a fall Healing History convening aims to bring Alabamians together.

“We are very excited to bring an Alabama perspective to commemorations of our nation’s 250th anniversary,” says Chuck Holmes, AHA’s executive director.

“This work builds on what we do year in and year out — supporting opportunities for lifelong learning, impactful storytelling, and civic engagement. We know that when folks engage with history, culture, community, art, folklore, and storytelling — we learn more about who we are, where we come from, and what brings us together.”

AHA’s “America at 250” programming

AHA Grants: In 2026, Alabama Humanities’ grants program will prioritize applications that help Alabamians use the humanities to explore our nation’s founding history and principles. These include opportunities to reflect on how Alabamians have pursued a more perfect union, and to engage in community conversations about our shared future. Over 50 years, AHA has awarded more than $13 million to Alabama organizations.

Americans: Adapted from an exhibition at the National Museum of the American Indian, Americans focuses on four historical events: Thanksgiving, the life of Pocahontas, the Trail of Tears, and the Battle of Little Bighorn. The exhibit invites us to consider new narratives about each of these events, and reveals the richness and complexity of our American story. AHA will bring Americans to five communities across Alabama, beginning in Fall 2026.

Many Voices, One Nation: E pluribus unum: Out of many, one. Inspired by a permanent collection in the National Museum of American History, Many Voices takes visitors on a cultural journey through the rich and multifaceted stories that make up America. Starting on Independence Day, this exhibit will be on display in Dale and Washington counties. There, local hosts will customize the exhibit to reflect the stories, and people, of those respective regions of Alabama.

Alabama History Day at American Village: AHA’s annual Alabama History Day has a special, and apt, setting for its 2026 state contest: American Village. History Day engages students (grades 6-12) in robust and creative historical research. This year’s contest theme is “Revolution, Reaction, Reform in History,” and participating students will present their projects on American Village’s dynamic campus, which brings America’s founding history to life.

Road Scholars 250: AHA is expanding its popular Road Scholars Speakers Bureau to add new speakers with topics related to America’s, and Alabama’s, founding history. AHA’s Road Scholars provide fascinating talks at town libraries, senior centers, historical societies, and more. New “250 Scholars” include the likes of Mike Bunn, director of Historic Blakeley State Park; Gary Furr, author, musician, and pastor; and Christine Sears, associate professor of history at UAH.

Encyclopedia of Alabama resources: The EOA is a free, online resource covering all things Alabama. For 2026, staff have curated a new collection called “Alabama and America’s 250th Birthday.” Explore stories about Revolutionary War heroes in Alabama; Native American life in the state during America’s colonial era; the historic origins of Alabama’s boundaries; and iconic figures like William Bartram, the Marquis de Lafayette, and Tecumseh.

Healing History: An Alabama Convening: AHA kicks off its “America at 250” programming early, with this October 27, 2025, convening in Montevallo. Designed as a day of imagination and inspiration, attendees will hear from fellow Alabamians who are engaged in work that reflects AHA’s Healing History initiative. The goal is to learn how Alabamians are examining our shared past in order to bridge divides and bring communities together today.

*A portion of the brand-new Smithsonian exhibit, AMERICANS, coming to Alabama in 2026-2027.*

Share our “AHA: America at 250” flyer.

AHA’s 250 partners

None of these initiatives would be possible, of course, without the work of many partners across Alabama, many of whom are putting together incredible “America at 250” programming of their own.

Thank you to AHA’s initial 250 partners, including: American Village, Caroline Marshall Draughon Center for the Arts and Humanities, David Mathews Center for Civic Life, Dale County Council of the Arts and Humanities, Encyclopedia of Alabama, National History Day, Smithsonian Institution’s Museum on Main Street, and Washington County History Museum.

The Alabama Humanities Alliance is especially proud to be a partner organization for America250AL at American Village, the state’s designated Semiquincentennial celebration capitol. America250AL offers celebration grants, community toolkits, a Semiquincentennial Schools program, and an oral history effort called “Share Your Story.” To learn more about these offerings, and more, visit america250al.org.

Help make this all happen

Alabama Humanities remains committed to its Semiquincentennial commemorations, but AHA will need help from individuals and organizations across the state to make it happen. This is due to abrupt, and deep, federal cuts to AHA’s funding in 2025.

Since 1974, AHA has been part of a federal-state partnership to promote the arts and humanities across the United States. In that time, AHA has used federal dollars annually appropriated by a bipartisan Congress to support its statewide grantmaking and local programming in communities across Alabama.

In April of 2025, however, the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) terminated AHA’s longstanding partnership with the National Endowment for the Humanities, eliminating what amounts to two-thirds of AHA’s annual funding. Since then, we have been deeply grateful for support from individuals, corporations, foundations, and state lawmakers that has helped AHA preserve much (though not all) of our statewide offerings.

To support AHA’s 2026 programming, donate at alabamahumanities.org/support.

About the Alabama Humanities Alliance
Founded in 1974, the nonprofit and nonpartisan Alabama Humanities Alliance has served as a state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Through our grantmaking and public programming, we promote lifelong learning, impactful storytelling, and civic engagement. We believe the humanities can bring Alabamians together and help us better understand the communities we call home.

Photo at top: Residents of Ozark, Alabama, gather for the opening reception of a Smithsonian traveling exhibit in 2024. For America’s Semiquincentennial, AHA will bring two new Smithsonian exhibits to the state in 2026, which will help Alabamians explore the rich and complex history of our nation.

What we have in common

On August 25, at Birmingham’s Red Mountain Theatre, author and social psychologist Kurt Gray offered a new take on this current American era of outrage and polarization. At the heart of his message: We’re motivated far more by what we have in common than we might think.

“Most of our differences come from the same place,” Gray shared, “about protecting ourselves or others from harm. The disagreements come over our different perceptions of what might be harmful and of who’s being harmed.”

That finding from Gray’s research won’t magically heal our nation’s self-inflicted wounds, but it might help folks better understand each other and open up opportunities for productive conversations. Indeed, that hope inspired the entire evening.

Sharing our stories

Gray’s talk was offered as part of an ongoing Woven Together series, co-presented by the Alabama Humanities Alliance, Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham, and Leadership Birmingham, and sponsored by Alabama Power.

As AHA’s executive director Chuck Holmes shared at the start of the evening: “We’re going to learn more about Kurt tonight, but more importantly, we’re going to learn more about ourselves, and how we cope and how we process things in our lives and in the life of our nation.”

One of the most important takeaways came when Gray described how to try entering into conversation with someone who might have fundamentally different opinions than yours.

“Facts matter, but they’re not the best way to start a conversation,” Gray said. “You’re not starting an argument to win. You’re starting a conversation to understand someone. And when you approach it that way, storytelling — not facts — is a much more powerful way of bridging divides. Start with your personal experiences.”

So, how do we start difficult conversations, especially ones that might involve thorny topics?

“Talk with someone like they’re a full person,” Gray emphasized. “Nobody is just one thing. We all contain multitudes. So, start with something real that doesn’t have anything to do with politics. None of us like being talked at. People like being asked real questions.”

After Gray’s talk, he signed copies of his book, Outraged: Why We Fight About Morality and Politics – and How to Find Common Ground. The book-signing was courtesy of Thank You Books, and signed copies of the book are now available at the Birmingham bookseller.

Healing History

For those interested in other opportunities for coming together in conversation and exploration, check out AHA’s Healing History initiative. This collaborative effort helps Alabamians examine our shared histories in order to better know, and understand, one another.

On August 25, nearly 60 people arrived early to Red Mountain Theatre, to participate in Past Forward, a participatory introduction to AHA’s Healing History initiative. This experience offers a chance to explore, and reflect upon, our shared history — and consider how decisions made in the past affect our lives, livelihoods, relationships, and communities today.

September 11, 2025: Past Forward (Birmingham)
October 27, 2025: Healing History: An Alabama Convening (Montevallo)
November 20, 2025: Past Forward (Bessemer)
TBA: Additional screenings of Echoes of the Forks of Cypress (Statewide)

Lead image, at top, by Bob Farley.

Community journalism and democracy in rural Alabama

BIRMINGHAM / October 6, 2022 — A new podcast series from the Alabama Humanities Alliance explores the future of journalism in rural Alabama, and highlights a growing number of citizen-produced newspapers that offer a new path forward.

In an era when the definition of truth often can’t be agreed upon, community newspapers are one of the best tools at Alabamians’ disposal to combat disinformation, to help neighbors see past their differences and to know one another more fully.

“Democracy and the Informed Citizen” is a five-episode podcast series presented by the Alabama Humanities Alliance, in partnership with Alabama A&M University and WJAB-FM. All episodes are now available for downloading and streaming on AHA’s website: alabamahumanities.org/democracy-and-the-informed-citizen.

The series is part of a national initiative exploring connections between democracy, journalism, and an informed citizenry. Funding was provided by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation for “Democracy and the Informed Citizen,” a multiyear project administered by the Federation of State Humanities Councils.

Why a podcast on the need for service-oriented journalism in rural Alabama?

“Maybe the question isn’t: ‘Are community newspapers still worth publishing?’” says George Daniels, Ph.D., a former reporter and current journalism professor at the University of Alabama. “Maybe the question is: ‘Can we sustain a functioning democracy without community-minded journalism?’”

Indeed, community newspapers are often the only outlets covering locally relevant issues in rural communities. And when they cease to exist, it’s not just a local news source that’s lost; it’s a town’s historical record. Community papers “render lives in full,” as Daniels puts it, preserving portraits of local citizens in everything from birth announcements and graduations to marriages and obituaries.

“Democracy and the Informed Citizen” also highlights everyday citizens — from librarians and pastors to retirees and high school students — who are starting newspapers in their communities. Their aim? To engender goodwill among neighbors, highlight their towns’ histories, inform voters on local issues and much more.

These young newspapers are already making a difference. Neighbors drawn together by shared interests — realized through stories in these papers — are crossing symbolic dividing lines in their towns to visit with one another. County and state officials are taking note of rural communities’ concerns as expressed in news articles. And cherished community institutions — from schools and churches to sporting events and roadside businesses — are being celebrated in print to underscore their importance to quality of life in rural places.

Byron Williams serves as host of the podcast; Williams is an author and host of his own public radio podcast, “The Public Morality.” Original music for “Democracy and the Informed Citizen” is composed and performed by Grammy Award-winning artist Wu10 (aka Kelvin Wooten), a composer and producer based in Limestone County.

Project partners include PACERS Rural Community News Network; Auburn University School of Communication & Journalism; University of Alabama College of Communication & Information Sciences; Caroline Marshall Draughon Center for the Arts & Humanities; Alabama A&M’s Electronic Media Communications; and David Mathews Center for Civic Life.

Learn more about the humanities and the future of journalism in rural Alabama:
alabamahumanities.org/humanities-and-the-future-of-journalism-in-rural-alabama

About the Alabama Humanities Alliance
Founded in 1974, the nonprofit Alabama Humanities Alliance serves as a state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. AHA promotes impactful storytelling, lifelong learning and civic engagement. We provide Alabamians with opportunities to connect with our shared cultures and to see each other as fully human. Through our grantmaking, we help scholars, communities and cultural nonprofits create humanities-rich projects that are accessible to all Alabamians — from literary festivals and documentary films to museum exhibitions and research collections. Learn more at alabamahumanities.org.