January 2025 Newsletter

Happy New Year! We're looking forward to many new offerings and partnerships in the year ahead. Join us online or in person for our upcoming Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day weekend programming. Then, log on for our first Justice 101 of 2025. Keep reading to learn more about what we're up to this month.

We are always grateful for your feedback! Each year we survey both daytime visitors to the historic site and people who attend Halloween Nights. As a token of our appreciation, all survey-takers who opt in are entered into random drawings to win $100 gift cards. Our 2024 winners are Catherine Wesslund (daytime) and Teresa Boche (Halloween Nights). Thanks again to Catherine, Teresa, and all who completed our surveys for the valuable input.

Watch the video above to learn about how Judaism was practiced by those who lived at Eastern State Penitentiary.

From solitary worship to the construction of the first ever prison synagogue in America, this month's Unlocking History video focuses on the practice of Judaism at Eastern State Penitentiary. How were Jewish High Holy Days acknowledged? How are we working to preserve the Alfred W. Fleisher Memorial Synagogue today? Learn more when your watch the latest installment of .

Celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. January 18 through 20

Programming from January 18 through 20 will explore the profound impact of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s writing and speaking, especially his transformative “Letter from Birmingham Jail.”

Visitors will have the opportunity to engage in discussions and activities that analyze how Dr. King and other civil rights leaders used the written and spoken word to inspire action and challenge oppression. 

Learn more >

Join us for the next installment of Justice 101 on January 21

Join us online via Zoom on January 21 for a free event centered around the work of Orisanmi Burton, author of Tip of the Spear.

This discussion will explore the 1970s Attica Uprising as a pivotal moment in both the history of prison resistance and the broader Black radical tradition. Burton will also discuss how the state's response to these uprisings continues to shape resistance strategies today.

Learn more >

A Closer Look at Pyrrhic Defeat:

Watch the video above to learn about the process of creating and installing Pyrrhic Defeat: A Visual Study of Mass Incarceration by Mark Loughney.

In partnership with Mural Arts Philadelphia, we recently unveiled a portrait mural by artist Mark Loughney as part of his ongoing project Pyrrhic Defeat: A Visual Study of Mass Incarceration. This portrait series humanizes incarcerated individuals, shedding light on the immense human cost of mass incarceration in America. Created during Mark Loughney's ten years of incarceration, these portraits offer a dignified, intimate view of his fellow prisoners, challenging the stigmatizing image of those within the prison system.

Mr. Loughney’s installation at ESPHS is installed along a historic wall that originally connected a series of solitary confinement cells to adjoining solitary exercise yards. The exhibition is now on view through fall 2025, included with admission to the historic site.

Want to dig deeper? Take our guide-led tour on January 18 at 11:00 am to learn more thanks to a special artist talk with Mark Loughney. Then, that same day from 12:00 to 4:00 pm, sit for a portrait to be included in the next phase of Mr. Loughney's Pyrrhic Defeat project.

Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site | Philadelphia, PA

(215) 236-3300 | EasternState.org

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