Smithsonian Community Engagement Project Coming to Holocaust Museum Houston
Holocaust Museum Houston will host the “The Bias Inside Us” September 13 through October 6, 2024. The community engagement project from the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) will raise awareness about the social science and psychology of implicit bias, the impact of this bias and what people can do about it.
Through compelling images, hands-on interactives and powerful testimonials and videos, the exhibitionunpacks and demystifies the concept of bias. The exhibition features six sections: Introduction, The Science of Bias, Bias in Real Life, Serious Consequences—Bias is All Around Us, #RetrainYourBrain and Personal Reflection.
Visitors will explore the foundational blocks of bias, the psychology of how it forms and how it influences behaviors both consciously and unconsciously. Interactive elements display how implicit and explicit bias show up in the world and how bias influences systems and policies that have consequences for many people and communities. One interactive experience invites visitors to think about how bias is reflected in product design, advertising, architecture and technology. Among the videos in the exhibition is a series that features eight voices from diverse perspectives sharing personal experience with bias.
The exhibition also features Spanish photographer Angélica Dass’ Humanae project, which reflects on the color of skin that challenges the concept of race. In this work, Dass documents humanity’s true colors through portraits, rather than the labels “white,” “red,” “black” and “yellow.”
“The Bias Inside Us” draws from the scientific research and educational work by psychologists Mahzarin R. Banaji of Harvard University and Anthony G. Greenwald, professor emeritus at the University of Washington. They defined the term “implicit bias” through their work on unconscious and conscious mental processes. Their book Blindspot: Hidden Biases of Good People (Delacorte Press, 2013) explores the biases people carry based on their exposure to cultural attitudes on areas such as gender, race, social class and disability status.
An online version of the exhibition is available atbiasinsideus.si.edu.
“The Bias Inside Us” Educator Toolkit is a resource to assist in unpacking and demystifying the concept of bias. Meant to be used in conjunction with the online exhibition or a visit to the traveling exhibition, it includes a set of ten posters that help guide students through discussions about the meaning and real-world impact of implicit bias. It offers an educator’s guide that provides additional context around bias, starter questions, links to activities, and articles expanding on the research of bias.
Major support for “The Bias Inside Us” is provided by the Otto Bremer Trust. Houston exhibition sponsors include Presenting Sponsor Wells Fargo and Title Sponsor Enbridge.
“The Bias Inside Us” is based on an original concept developed by Tolerance in Motion: Steve Lear, Laura Zelle and Elyse Rabinowitz, founders; Ellen Glatstein, Laura Lipshutz, Alice Randall, Joanne Jones-Rizzi and Susan Shapiro, directors; Don Shelby, founding advisor; and the Jewish Community Relations Council of Minnesota and the Dakotas, Steve Hunegs, executive director.
SITES has been sharing the wealth of Smithsonian collections and research programs with millions of people outside Washington, D.C., for more than 70 years. SITES connects Americans to their shared cultural heritage through a wide range of exhibitions about art, science, and history, which are shown wherever people live, work and play. For exhibition description and tour schedules, visit sites.si.edu.
HMH’s Lester and Sue Smith Campus is located at 5401 Caroline Street in Houston’s historic museum district. The Museum is closed Mondays except Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Memorial Day and Labor Day from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; open Tuesdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sundays from noon to 5 p.m. Admission is $22 for adults; $16 for seniors (ages 65+) AARP members and active duty military; always free for children and students through age 18 and college students with valid student ID; and free to all visitors Thursdays from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. The Bagel Shop @ The Museum is open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sundays from noon to 5 p.m. Parking is available in the Museum’s adjacent lot for $8 for a four-hour period. Tickets are available exclusively online. For more information, visit hmh.org/visit.