Black history exhibition to begin U.S. tour

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A letter from President Lincoln guaranteeing Frederick Douglass’ safety, Malcolm X’s Quran and diary, and Muhammad Ali’s robe from the “Rumble in the Jungle” are among the artifacts in a new touring black history exhibition.

“America I AM: The African American Imprint” will open at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia on Jan. 15, Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday. Presented by TV personality Tavis Smiley, the show includes more than 200 items from every period of U.S. history. It will travel to nine more cities over the next four years.

Other artifacts on display include the key to King’s jail cell and the stool on which he sat in Birmingham, Ala., where he composed his famous “Letter From the Birmingham Jail."