National WWI Museum And Memorial Announces Final 2020 Pershing Lecture and Safe Holiday Activities For Families

The final Pershing Lecture Series event of 2020 will take place online on Tuesday, Dec. 15 at 6:30 p.m.

When the doughboys sailed back to the U.S. from Europe in 1919, they returned to a country riven by racial, political and economic tensions. The Bolshevik Revolution, a sputtering economy and the rising expectations of African Americans and workers created a combustible environment that sparked protests and riots across the nation. Dr. Shawn Faulkner will deliver a virtual lecture that examines the roots of the social conflicts that roiled the United States in 1919 and 1920, as well as an examination of the causes and course of the Red Scare.

The Museum and Memorial offers several family-friendly holiday programs during the month. On Sunday, Dec. 6, the Museum and Memorial welcomes Grammy-award winning KC Chorale for a socially-distanced concert on the Southeast Lawn. The 40-minute outdoor concert includes carols along with a few art song pieces that address the connection to a hundred years ago in both the global pandemic and the hope of Christmas Truce. On Wednesday Dec. 9 at noon, the Museum and Memorial will host Gary Lewis for an online discussion about the French film Joyeux Noël that recreates the events of the 1914 Christmas Truce, a historic holiday moment celebrating peace in a time of war. Get to know the man behind the holiday favorite, "It's a Wonderful Life" on Thursday, Dec. 17 at noon. This live virtual program hosted by the Young Friends of thea??Kansas Citya??Public Library, the Young Friends of Art and The Modernists features a discussion abouta??"Discovering James Stewart, a documentary about the legendary James "Jimmy" Stewart with local film buff Jerry Harrington of Tivoli at the Nelson-Atkins.

In 2021, the National WWI Memorial in Washington, D.C. will open. On Tuesday, Dec. 8 at noon, American Battle Monuments Commission General Counsel Edwin Fountain and National WWI Museum and Memorial President and CEO Matthew Naylor will be in conversation on the journey to opening the new memorial, the role of commemoration in the U.S. and the enduring impact of WWI. This event will take place as a webinar.

Other December events include Mrs. Wilson's Knitting Circle on Saturday, Dec. 5 at 10:30 a.m. Wreaths Across America volunteers will hold a wreath-laying ceremony in the Museum and Memorial's Courtyard on Dec. 19 at 11 a.m. to remember the fallen and to honor those who serve.

December National WWI Museum and Memorial events

• Saturday, Dec. 5, 10:30 a.m.: Mrs. Wilson's Knitting Circle (virtual event)
• Sunday, Dec. 6, 2 p.m.: KC Chorale Concert: Health, Hope and Peace (Southeast Lawn)
• Tuesday, Dec. 8, noon: Significant Memorials (webinar)
• Wednesday, Dec. 9, noon: Joyeux Noël: Conversation with Gary Lewis (webinar)
• Tuesday, Dec. 15, 6:30 p.m.: Pershing Lecture Series: The War After the War (virtual event)
• Thursday, Dec. 17, noon: Discovering James Stewart: Lunch and Learn (webinar)
• Saturday, Dec. 19, 11 a.m.: Wreaths Across America (Museum and Memorial Courtyard)

To learn more, visit theworldwar.org.

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