A Celebration of African-American Culture in Baltimore

This is a place where it feels like Black History Month every day, and I can’t wait to come back.

'Our columnist, Jada Yuan, is visiting each destination on our 52 Places to Go in 2018 list. This dispatch brings her to Baltimore; it took the No. 15 spot on the list and is the 19th stop on Jada’s itinerary.

“So, I’m in Baltimore for a few days, what should I do?” I asked eagerly, at an airport rental car counter.

“Um, go to Washington, D. C.?” said the employee, laughing. I swear, the next four people I spoke to, even in the city proper, had the exact response. Baltimoreans have a deep pride in their hometown. But coming here reminded me of Bogotá, another city whose residents love where they live, but seem perplexed at its appeal to outsiders, especially, in Baltimore’s case, with the nation’s capital 30 minutes away. . .

It is built, unapologetically, for the people who live there, not for tourists, and movement in that direction seems to meet with admirable resistance.

Yes, you can do a great tour of conventional American history — from Fort McHenry, where Francis Scott Key wrote “The Star Spangled Banner” during the War of 1812, to the “real” Washington Monument (it predates the one in D.C.). But what really stood out were the lessons in African-American history and pride, and the creativity that comes from being next-to-center. This is a place that treats black history like just, well, history, and I can’t wait to come back.'>>>

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/29/travel/baltimore-african-american-culture-history.html?