Monthly Event

The Power of Place: Why Philadelphia Leads the Nation in Democratizing our Semiquincentennial

When

Wednesday, July 15, 2026

5:30 PM - 7:00 PM

Where

The Village of Industry and Art - 320 S. Broad Street, Philadelphia PA

What

Our national celebrations have been a time to reflect on the republic's creation, heritage, and ideals. The Black presence contradicts the "storybook" idea of this nation's founding as a "white republic." As a result, African Americans' founding-era contributions have been marginalized during the Centennial, Sesquicentennial, Bicentennial, and now the Semiquincentennial. The Philadelphia community has challenged this "storybook" conception of our nation's founding. Becoming American: Philadelphia's Story, a feature-length film about the founding era through the lens of Philadelphia's African community, is one example of how the Semiquincentennial is being democratized. This talk will review this project and others in the city.

This event will be held at The Village of Industry and Art at 320 South Broad Street.

Registration is not required for in-person events, however it is helpful for our planning. Light refreshments will be served.

RSVP

Previous DAG Monthly Events

Archived | 2026-06-17

Driving Change: Connecting Research, Policy, and Practice in the Transportation Sector

Archived | 2026-05-13

AveArts 2.0

Archived | 2026-03-26

Philadelphia After Dark: Designing a City That Works 24/7

Presenter

Oliver Franklin

Oliver St. Clair Franklin curated one of the first Black Film Festivals in the US (1972-78) and then produced documentary films. He became the first deputy City Representative for Arts and Culture for the City of Philadelphia (1984-90). After his municipal role Oliver became an executive at several financial services firms specializing in institutional investments and was Co-Managing Partner of the first US mutual fund to invest in The Republic of South Africa. He has served on many civic and cultural institutions including the National Endowment for the Arts, the Pennsylvania Humanities Council, The Philadelphia Foundation and The Independence Historic Trust. He served as the Honorary British Consul in Philadelphia; and received the OBE and CBE honors from the late monarch. A Baltimore native, Oliver is a graduate of Lincoln University (Pa) and Oxford University. He is also a Hon. Fellow of Balliol College, Oxford.