We are currently showcasing the Faces of Liberty digital exhibit on several computers throughout the library. This exhibit will be on display until the end of the semester. The Faces of Liberty, produced by the New York Civil Liberties Union, celebrates New Yorkers who over the years took difficult stands to defend civil rights and civil liberties for everyone. The New York Civil Liberties Union, founded in 1951 as the New York affiliate of the American Civil Liberties Union, is a nonpartisan, not-for-profit organization with chapters throughout the state.
The exhibit is composed of 29 panels, each telling a different story through words and pictures. The exhibit describes a range of issues, including racial justice, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, voting rights, the rights of students and the rights of the disabled. Several of the stories involve court cases that led to landmark decisions in the United States Supreme Court. In one, Engel v. Vitale, a group of parents in New Hyde Park sued to contest mandatory prayer in state public schools. In 1962 the Supreme Court held that the mandatory daily prayer violated the First Amendent, setting a precedent that remains to this day.
Graphic artist Chris Yong-Garcia created the digital exhibit. It was adapted from a traveling exhibit composed of framed photographs and accompanying text that the library also displayed in 2005 and 2008.
