In conversation with Derreck Kayongo, CEO of the Center for Civil and Human Rights (CCHR), renowned architect Phil Freelon, designer of the Center and co-designer of the National Museum of African American History and Culture on the Smithsonian Mall, will share stories and experiences from his extraordinary career as an architect of African American heritage, with highlights of select projects and conversation about his inspiration, creative process, opportunities and challenges.
Architect of the Museum of the African Diaspora in San Francisco, Emancipation Park in Houston, multiple library projects for the Washington D.C. Public Library System and the Durham County Human Services Complex in North Carolina, among many other major, national projects, Freelon is a President Obama appointee to the National Commission of Fine Arts, a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects (FAIA) and a recipient of the Thomas Jefferson Award for Public Architecture. He is currently the Managing Director and Design Director with global architecture and design firm Perkins + Will. As CEO of CCHR Derreck Kayongo speaks and acts on broad issues that affect the economic and physical health of diverse communities. Born in Uganda, he holds an honorary doctorate from Oglethorpe University and is a graduate of the prestigious Fletcher school of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. President Jimmy Carter recently chose Kayongo to interview him as part of the National Archives’ Amending America Initiative.