2015 SOS Summit attendees talking while sitting on the cocoa matting
President Lincoln’s Cottage features reproduction cocoa matting in major rooms on the first floor. Since opening to the public in 2008, over 250,000 visitors have walked these floors for tours, school programs, public events, and more. Because of this, the current matting, installed in 2008, now requires replacement. Ensuring that the cocoa matting meets fair labor standards is essential to our interpretation of the Cottage, where President Lincoln drafted the Emancipation Proclamation.
In collaboration with student leaders from Students Opposing Slavery (SOS) and with the support of GoodWeave, an organization that seeks to stop child labor in the carpet industry, we seek to raise the necessary funds to replace the floor covering in the Cottage with a certified slavery-free option.
Portions of the cocoa matting fraying from nearly a decade of use
Every single day of the 362 days we’re open to the public, visitors stand on these floors, exchanging ideas about Lincoln’s impact and unfinished work. Every time we guide visitors and students through the Cottage and discuss issues of fairness and equality, we come in contact with the cocoa matting. Having these conversations on a certified slavery-free flooring is a powerful demonstration that we are not only preserving this historic space – we are preserving President Lincoln’s brave ideas for our world today.
HOW TO DONATE:
Show your support for preserving Lincoln’s home in a way that upholds his legacy by donating to our campaign today via CrowdRise.
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Categories:Archive, Home for Brave Ideas, Preservation
