All around us, people are saving historic places. Whether they are community activists, grassroots advocates, architects, or formally trained preservationists, they each bring with them a passion for the past and a drive to protect the cultural heritage all around us. And during Women’s History Month—and as part of our campaign for Where Women Made History—we are interviewing five women who illustrate the many ways we can protect historic spaces. First up: Sidney Clifton, daughter of acclaimed poet and author Lucille Clifton, and president of The Clifton House, a workshop space for artists and writers based in the Clifton family's former home.

With over twenty years’ experience as an executive producer and development executive of animated live-action content, Sidney Clifton serves as Jim Henson Company’s senior vice president of animation and mixed media, and as a senior consultant with Black Women Animate. But the role closest to her heart is as the president of The Clifton House, a workshop and retreat space for writers and artists in the home she shared with her five siblings and parents—community activist Fred Clifton, and renowned poet and activist Lucille Clifton.

Located in Baltimore, Maryland, The Clifton House—an awardee of the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund—seeks to “ensure that emerging storytellers of all ages are equipped with resources to thrive in their respective artforms regardless of formal training.”

Listen to Sidney Clifton describe, in her own words, the work to restore and preserve The Clifton House, as well as her deeper connection to historic spaces.

In Her Own Words

My name is Sidney Clifton and I am the president of The Clifton House, a writers' and artists' workshop space I established to continue the legacy of my parents—community activist Fred Clifton and National Book Award-winning poet and children’s book author Lucille Clifton.

What excites me most about the project going forward is the ability for us to not only uplift and amplify my mother's legacy, but to serve the creative community. That's what her work was about. That's what her work does on such a deep and again, global level. Certainly, she has had fans worldwide for years, and her work serves the community by empowering and uplifting underserved voices. That's what we're going to be doing with this project, not only in serving her legacy, but providing this place for people to go and feel empowered and nurtured in their work. So, the service to community is the most exciting piece of this project.

My favorite sites of cultural heritage fall into a couple of buckets. There are places that are very specific. Some I may or may not have visited yet, like the Langston Hughes House, like the Smithsonian museum of African American history. But there are also places that are not necessarily that specific.

For example, when I was in North Carolina working on a project, I visited the God's Acre Cemetery in Winston-Salem. I visited the Moravian Church. I visited Old Salem. I love places where people worked, and lived, and walked, and you can feel what they felt. You can see what they saw, you can touch, and really be immersed in their worlds, any place that is available like that—I just love. So, I think the reality is I don't know that I have one favorite. All of them speak to me in very, very different ways.