The George W. Bush Presidential Center opened a new exhibit on March 2, 2023, entitled, “Freedom Matters.”
The Dallas, Texas, presidential center is an institution that promotes opportunity, democracy and freedom through various museum exhibits and events, according to its website.
President George W. Bush served as the nation’s 43rd president. He was commander-in-chief during the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, that claimed almost 3,000 lives.
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The new exhibit will focus on how America achieved its unique freedom — and why the path was both challenging and rewarding.
Fox News Digital got an exclusive look at the exhibit before it opened to the public and spoke with the center’s chief communications counselor Hannah Abney about the exhibit’s goals.
A printing of the Declaration of Independence by Peter Force in 1831 is displayed in the new exhibit in Dallas, Texas. (Andrew Kaufmann / George W. Bush Presidential Center)
“Freedom Matters brings together historical documents with the voices of people throughout history and combines them to talk about the experience of freedom and this concept of freedom — what it really means,” she said.
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Walking through the four-room gallery exhibit, guests can travel the path to freedom — starting with historical documents that show the beginnings of our freedoms, and educational artifacts denoting the various types of freedoms Americans enjoy: personal, political, economic.
The interactive gallery allows visitors to test their knowledge of those types of freedoms.
It also brings to light national and international historical figures contributing to those freedoms — leaders such as President Calvin Coolidge, Genevan writer and philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Tibet’s spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama.
The Freedom Matters exhibit at the George W. Bush Presidential Center includes a copy of the Magna Carta. (Andrew Kaufmann / George W. Bush Presidential Center)
The third gallery room introduces visitors to the history of the U.S. government.
One of the unique artifacts on display is a copy of the 1305 Magna Carta.
The Magna Carta, or the “Great Charter,” served as a document that “guaranteed that government, royal or otherwise, would be limited by the written law of the land,” according to Britannica.
The exhibit also features various defining moments in history in which Americans’ efforts, time and energy went into living up to the ideals included in the Declaration of Independence — with one of the 31 copies of the Declaration of Independence also available for viewing.
“The Proclamation of Emancipation by the President of the United States” is included in the new exhibit. (Andrew Kaufmann / George W. Bush Presidential Center)
“We’re so fortunate to have a lot of artifacts that, at the end of the day, are representative of the way people interacted with the government,” Abney said of the exhibit’s offerings.
Other notable artifacts in the exhibit include an Emancipation Proclamation card, a copy of “The Federalist Papers” and Martin Luther King’s first and last books.
Most of the artifacts were donated or loaned to the library from various supporters or sources.
The exhibit will give members of the Dallas community an opportunity to experience history right in their own backyard, said Abney.
A quote about American freedom from former President George W. Bush is displayed in the exhibit and includes the words, “Freedom unleashes creativity, rewards innovation, and replaces poverty with prosperity.” (Andrew Kaufmann / George W. Bush Presidential Center)
“I just hope it brings people in to look at things we don’t usually get to see,” she said.
The president and CEO of the George W. Bush Presidential Center, Ken Hersh, told Fox News Digital that the exhibit came together through various resources.
The George W. Bush Presidential Center opened a new exhibit, Freedom Matters, to honor American freedom by displaying historic artifacts for the public to see. (Andrew Kaufmann / George W. Bush Presidential Center/Jemal Countess/Getty Images)
“We planned and sourced materials for one-and-a-half years, and it was made possible through the generosity of the Harlan Crow Library, David M. Rubenstein [co-founder and co-executive chairman of The Carlyle Group] and many other generous supporters,” he said.
The exhibit has just opened to the public on March 2, 2023.
It will run through Dec. 31, 2023, at the George W. Bush Presidential Center in Dallas, Texas.
Tickets can be purchased at bushcenter.org.
