CHICAGO (CBS) — Instagram and history lessons – if you think those two things don’t go together, think again.
As CBS 2’s Tim McNicholas reported, the DuSable Museum of African American History has teamed with a film studio to launch an 80-minute Instagram story – with a very important lesson.
Our knowledge of West African history comes from relics and written accounts, such as the story of Olaudah Equiano, an 11-year-old kidnapped into slavery who, as an adult, wrote a book about his experiences.
But what if there had been smartphones and social media to document daily life in the 18th century, and the horrors Equiano lived? That is the idea behind a new film launched by the Stelo Stories studio and the DuSable Museum.
“This is our real origin story – one that begins in freedom, not in slavery,” said DuSable Museum chief executive officer Perri Irmer.
Irmer explains the 80-minute film is posted in Instagram stories on the page Equiano.Stories. It asks the question, “What if an African child in 1756 had Instagram when he was enslaved?”
“You don’t have to subscribe to anything. You just need a smart phone,” Perri said. “It will bring the attention particularly of young people, who need it so badly.”
The Instagram story is also played throughout the day at an exhibit at the DuSable Museum, surrounded by authentic African artifacts never publicly displayed before.
And the first guests invited to see the film are local students from all walks of life — who headed into the museum for a history lesson unlike any other.
“When you come to the DuSable to see the Equiano exhibit, you really are transported into a village, into a hut, in West Africa,” Perri said.
If you’d like to watch the film online, it’s on Equiano.Stories on Instagram. If you want to see the exhibit up close, the DuSable Museum at 740 E. 56th Pl. in Washington Park is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday to Sunday.