Michelin Celebrates Diversity with Support for International African American Museum

The Michelin Corporate Foundation marked its support for diversity with a USD 500, 000 grant for the upcoming International African American Museum (IAAM). The generous grant will go a long way towards helping the museum to achieve its final USD 12.5 million tranche of the desired USD 75 million goal for its construction.

Commenting on the initiative, Michael Boulware Moore, IAAM president and CEO said that Michelin has a longstanding relationship with South Carolina since it opened its first factory there more than 40 years ago. He said that the USD 500,000 grant highlights Michelin’s commitment to the state and its support for diversity.

The IAAM is meant to serve as an institute for learning that will specialize in African American history and will explore the African American experience. The museum will be built on the historic site of Gadsden’s Wharf on the Charleston Harbor, which was one of the key points for the landing of enslaved Africans in North America. Dr. Henry Louis Gates, renowned Harvard professor and IAAM national advisor, called  Charleston the “ground zero of the African American experience.”

Pete Selleck, chairman and president of Michelin North America, Inc said that as a global company, Michelin appreciated the way that our differences make us stronger human beings.

He added, “With that in mind, we are proud to support the International African American Museum — an institution of history and education that will encourage the celebration of diversity and improve understanding about the diverse experiences of different ethnic groups that contribute to the fabric of our country.”

Michelin’s investment will acknowledged in the Stele Terrace in the museum’s African Ancestors Memorial Garden, a collection of gardens and artistic installations that will extend across the grounds of the museum. The Stele Terrace will also have an audio component that projects recordings of songs or spoken words in different languages from areas of origin in West and West Central Africa in order to help visitors connect with the African culture and language and to understand that Africa is not just one entity but comprises many unique peoples and traditions.