he said his father was the deputy prime minister of jordan. i was like, "ok." minute court partner -- my moot court partner, he said his father owned three swiss banks. i think even before entrepreneurship, it is financial literacy. we need to educate ourselves about what these resources are. it is financial literacy and really wealth literacy, understanding that there are different kinds of wealth beyond just monetary wealth, but you need to understand monetary wealth, spiritual well, the social capital we have and understand how to cultivate those things and invest them properly. those are important skills. at the same time, i do not think black capitalism is the solution to the problems of black folks who have been the victims of

capitalism's boot. >> making sure that that kind of information becomes available. that could be the subject of what we deal with in black history month. you know? hal the wealth is developed. who developed it. loans what? how one gets to own it. we could do that. it could be touchy, but it could be useful. i'm just saying that we could use occasions for teaching about things that could make a difference. so i just say raise questions, and sometimes, raise hell when you raise the questions. [applause] >> i wanted to know if there was an african-american district attorney working in texas to review some of the cases that were -- i guess, tried, and some of the evidence was not valid. looking through investigating some of those cases to find out if they should be released

because of the false information that was acquired. >> the attorney who has been the lead on the team that i have been in communication with is a guy by the name of morris moon, and he would be the person i could ask to find out the answer. there is actually a be a working on that, but i know there have been so many cases -- there is actually a d.a. working on that, but i know there have been so many cases that have been exposed, especially with dna testing. it is almost like every other week. there does need to be somebody looking into it from that angle. of the top of my head, i do not know, but i could definitely get that information. >> how can we make it not just black history day, not just black history month, but every day be black history and honor that? thank you. and how do we really teach our children, our students really

not what the media portrays, not what -- but really, what happened? i did get a chance to experience "eyes on the price" and i thought that was just the tip of the iceberg -- experience "eyes on the priceze." >> i do not know how to go about it, but what i would suggest is the reason why i did what i did, why i was brave enough and courageous enough to not give up my seat, because so much history was in my mind, and one of the things they were always asking me was why i did not get up when i was asked, and my answer would always be history had me glued to the seat. [applause]

i think that what is left out of american history -- you should not be ashamed to say that we enslaved these people and mystery these people, a race of people. it should be included in the american history, and it would be every day. [applause] >> really quickly, it jolla i went to school with named sol williams said, "stealing as was the smartest thing you ever did. too bad you do not teach the true to your kids." that line says so much.

-- a scholar i went to school with. it is not just about changing lives of black people, but changing the lives of everybody by teaching true history, which includes jim crow and slavery before it -- but before that, the first people to walk the planet and develop situation -- civilization came along the nile river valley. if we teach african history as human history, history will require that you incorporate our story and tell it the right way. [applause] >> just to say that in terms of how teaching history can make a difference to these test scores that we are also obsessed with, i had a piece of news from mississippi where the book, "putting the movement back into civil rights" -- are you familiar with that? the superintendent has agreed

-- and your piece is in it, awele -- the superintendent has agreed that it be used districtwide. just this week, i was hearing that the rigor and relevance of the material actually got students engaged and got the score is up. while the score is being up is not the only thing, i do want to say there is real value in making curriculum relevant, truthful, and rigorous, and one of the ways of doing that would be to embed all of this into all subjects all year for all the students. [applause] >> if i could just show that on friday, ms. colvin spent the whole day at alameda county juvenile hall, and i think we saw eight different units of young men and women, 14 to 18, medium-security, and they were riveted to their seats. when we were looking like we were running out of time, we

were told not to worry about the time. they shared poetry. one young woman suggested how -- they share how they are trying to transform their lives, and listening to her story and transformation, and it was a very powerful date. >> this is for one of my heroes, claudette colvin. and a local hero of mine, because we have freedom fighters right here in our midst, and we do not always celebrate them. francisca sanchez, who is seriously about her business about getting the shackles off. i want to do this to honor them, and to thank you for being here. give yourselves a big round of applause. [applause] all i've got is some fish and a

few loaves of bread. and a whole lot of folks have got to get fed. but seven seats were made in under seven days, the first man was forgiven when he missed the hague, the branch was taken by a dove to a book that was built before a flood, if a rainbow sent out a sign, if someone was told to sacrifice his own son and told to hold up before he was done, then the fish and bread that i just said is all that i've got, is all that i need for me to get fed and for me to feed a whole lot of folks in need because they set me on fire. when they look back, i was chilling. i had to fight like 10 older brothers, and because i had this dream, so they sold me out to a band of bandits and one day was commanded to stop, drop, when i

got this fish that i found while fishing around, under water with the daughter of the pharaoh, the child was chosen to force the pharaoh to free his folks from a foreign land, repair everywoman, prepare every man, prepare every child, all you've got is that right in your hand. all i've got is some fish and a few loaves of bread, and a whole lot of folks have got to get fed, but i believe. i believe i can part the sea now and then, and then put it back together again. i believe i can kill any giant dead if i believe in my heart. back when we were kings, back when we were able to see processes. when a whole woman with no vote because she conceived immaculate, and a good baby daddy was something even got to be, where we could heal the sick and make the blind see.

we believe in believing, so i believe in believe, and i believe they can come in the night like a thief and knocked out each of uncertainty's teeth and take away all your disbelief because the fate that lived through leprosy is a fate that will live through a chevy, a fate that can make amounting get out of bed is a phase i believe that i believe can spread fish and a few loaves of bread. i believe i can make wine out of tap water, and i believe i can go break dancing and walk on water. i believe i can fly. i believe i can soar. i never thought i could be so free, but i believe on flying away on a wing and a prayer, and who could it be? believe it or not, it is just me.

believe it or not, the fish that we got and the bread i just said is all that we got, is all that we need for us to get fed and for us to feed a whole lot of folks in need. thank you. [applause] >> let me ask the audience to thank our two guests on stage. [applause] and then, i'm going to invite awele to come up.

thank you for your questions today and your participation. >> you are very welcome. >> before we go, i have one announcement and thank you, and then, we want to acknowledge the sponsorship for today's program. i want to give a big thank-you to linda brooks burton. [applause] because linda brooks britain last march invited me to plan this program, and i want to thank helen, who i work with in san francisco unified because she introduced me to bryonn bain, and she always introduces me to the various artists that come in to work in the school district. as i learned about bryonn and experienced his presence and i was thinking about putting

together this program, it just clicked -- why not bring the two together to bring this link from the past unsegregated jim crow to what is happening in the 21st century and that has been happening? i think i was inspired by michele alexander's booke." >> it is my pleasure to say, ms. colvin, without you we would not be where we are. [applause] thank you for sharing your story, and keep telling your story because we need to know, and our children need to know, and our children's children need to know your story. and we want to thank our sponsors today. we have the san francisco unified school district. we have marked as bookstores, who will be selling this -- ms.

colvin's book, written about her, by philip house. we have sponsorship from the african diaspora, and the friends of the san francisco public library. i serve as part of the african- american interest committee that helped put this program together, and i want to thank all of you for coming, and i want to thank sfgtv for taking the program today. we want to thank the department here at san francisco public library, and we are having a reception in l58, and we want to thank read your catering for providing some delicious food for us to nibble on today, so will you please join us and say thank you again to mrs. colvin and also to byrin bain for

telling his story, but thank you for coming so that we can say thank you to miss colvin for being a living history maker. join us. thank you. ♪ lift every voice and sing

>> welcome to culturewater. in 2001, the san francisco arts commission and tampa does go public library established an arts master plan for the city soon to be renovated branch library. almost 10 years later, the san francisco arts commission has integrated a collection of vibrant new artworks by bay area artists into five new libraries, and there is more on the way. here is a closer look at some of the projects. >> the branch library

improvement program is a bond funded program undertaken by the san francisco public library to upgrade each of the branch libraries throughout the neighborhoods. one of the great benefits of this opportunity is that each of these branches has a unique artwork that has been created specifically for that branch, based on input from people who live near that branch, in the surrounding neighborhood. >> trur- minded. there was a lot of community support for the project. i try to make it about the true hill and its history. they were something that natives used for making houses.

the construction of the pond is based on abalone house construction. at the bottom of the form, it is woven into a rope which transforms into a manufactured rope. that is a reference to the cordish company, a big industry at the waterfront that went along with the shipbuilding industry. other examples of art work in libraries that you might be interested in seeing it is dana zed's glass shatters in front of a library. there are a wall sculptures in the lobby of the glen park branch library. and then there is an illuminated book on the wall of the mission bay library.

>> "ocean current." we are on ocean avenue, so there is a connection to that. that is what this is about. culmination of all lot of dialogue, processing over a five-year period. that is longer than most art projects take, but i really feel like the product was enriched from that. making the sculpture involves forging and fabricating steel. we used to deal to create this flowing, central sculptor, heating, bending, grinding, painting, bending, and adding a patina to it. layers and layers of craftsmanship that went into this. >> of the artists who participated in this project are all bay area of projects.

they work in a wide variety of media. metal, glass, natural elements, photography, just a range of different approaches and aesthetics. so we have created a nice collection of art work that is reflective of the current date. art scenes. and we invite everyone to participate and to see the unique art works that have been developed. >> to learn more, visit >> as the city of san francisco has grown, there are a number of cultural organizations that have grown with it. the san francisco symphony, the

ballet, and ensure we are celebrating the 75th anniversary of the san francisco museum of modern art's. one of the things many of our viewers may not understand about museums is the way they grow and evolve is really about a broad. his patient and support from many individuals who give their collections -- and broad support from many individuals who give their collections to the museum. this year it will be celebrating and abolishing those individuals through exhibition -- and acknowledging those individuals throughout asia. joining me is janet bishop, the curator. i understand you have been with the museum quite a number of years. you remember its original home on van ness. now you are part of that transition to the center, the

civic center, and of course your museum has been really the anchor of cultural tenants that has helped us transform this area of the city. >> to my mind, it is wonderful to be part of such a rich cultural community. when visitors come to this area, that have so many different options. >> let's talk about the anniversary show, which will be a phenomenal opportunity for san franciscans and all visitors of the city to get a real sense of how the city has grown and the importance of culture. >> we focus on moments where it was involved in pushing the dialogue about contemporary art forward. the jackson pollock exhibition in 1945 is a perfect example of that. our founding director was deeply interested in abstraction and was engaged in dialogue with the

guggenheim about bringing the jackson pollack showed to the west coast. the original price for the painting, $750. are directors thought that was too much of a stretch before the board of trustees, so she convinced them to reduce the price to firefighter dollars. it was just -- to $500. it was what was needed to persuade the board. it is a very subjective history of art. it has been very much shaped by the individuals involved with the museum over the years. in 1935, would start with the gallery with works that came in through albert bender, one of our founding trusties. when we opened our doors in 1935, 181 of the 186 pieces in our permanent collection had been gifted. >> what are the names that pop out as the museum evolved?

>> we have another gallery that looks at the theories that the museum has since the late 1980's. we focus on a particular aspect of that program that developed under one of art curators. he arrived in 1989 and was especially interested in artists. >> are some of the highlights? >> one of the aspects of the museum program that i have been especially involved with have been the exhibitions that stand for society for the encouragement of contemporary art. it is encouraged to honor exceptional bay area artists during their careers. for instance, an early worked who showed here in 1996.

for this exhibition, he has extended an updated it to 2010 with the addition of photographs and other frameworks. >> thank you for joining us. >> my pleasure. >> as we examine the 75th anniversary, we cannot overlook its important role as an educational institution and how it brings public program to all of our citizens in the bay area. try me now to talk about that is dominick, the curator of education and public programs. you are vested with a multifaceted responsibility, with education and also multimedia. could you explain that? >> there are three main areas. we produce education activities

for all ages, k-12, and adults, and we also produce a lot of educational media, a lot of interviews with artists, stuff that we published online, and other galleries. there's also a public program, which include some educational activities, but also live cultural programming for the artists projects. >> what are all the ways that the museum reaches out? >> the latest platform for educational media is launching right now with his anniversary. we have gotten to the point where we could put a lot of the content about artists, the stories behind artists we have had on line, but those on to the ipod touch. >> could you talk about the education role that the museum plays in the city of san francisco?

>> we are in the middle of a new initiative to provide more resources and programs for families and the locality. we are benefiting from a grant from the wallace foundation, and in the last two years many more bay area families have come to the museum, participated in the programs, most of which take place on sundays. we will see more and more different offerings rolled out in the coming months. >> thank you, dominic, for being part of "culture wire." >> the museums are almost like a team sport. there is a tremendous amount of talented staff that puts together patrons to help support the institutions, but they all need a coach. the coach is the director.

neal, could you let the viewers know, you have been director how long? >> we are working on eight years. >> now you have the 75th anniversary. how does that feel? >> we opened this building in 1995. it was bought at that time as a move from the civic center and the veterans building 2 third street, into our new building, a much expanded space, better space. it will be wonderful for the museum for decades to come. and 15 short years we have been amazed by we have outgrown the building. the collection has grown to 26,000 works. >> was a challenging to decide what was going to be put on display during the anniversary year? >> 3 people on our staff spent 2

1/2 years of going through archives, the storage vaults, honor think all kinds of works that we have not seen -- uncovering lot of works that we have not seen but also history we uncovered about how we presented a television show produced by the museum, in the museum, in 1950. a lot of great stories that the presentation tells. >> the most recent news was the incredible decision on the part of donna morris fisher to give their collection to sfmoma. >> think it is commonly understood that the fischer collection was 1100 works by some of the great contemporary works, one of the great collections in the world. in fact, the