NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 4, 2005--The National Basketball Association and Southwest Airlines, Official Airline of the NBA, are proud to give NBA fans the opportunity to witness and view the history of African Americans in professional basketball through the first ever tour of the National Civil Rights Museum exhibition titled, "The Quest for Equality." The exhibit debuting November 3, 2005 at the California African American Museum in Los Angeles provides a historical timetable of the pursuit of justice and equality that paved the way for today's players, coaches and owners. The exhibit includes artifacts and historical information dating back to 1891.

The goal of the exhibit is to raise awareness across cultural lines of the long history of civil rights pioneers who used basketball to help create a more level playing field.

The exhibit includes eight thematic sections: Pioneers of the Game, A League of Their Own, Ten Games in Seven Days, Invitation to the Big Leagues, Black Players at White Colleges, Opportunity Arrives, The NBA Today, and The Hall of Fame.

The exhibit, developed in collaboration with the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and academic support from Ron Thomas, author of the book "They Cleared the Lane", opened at the National Civil Rights Museum (2002) in partnership with the Memphis Grizzlies, as part of the community commemoration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The NBA and Southwest Airlines will bring the exhibit on the road for the first time ever to four NBA cities during the 2005-06 NBA season.

NBA fans will be able to view a number of historical artifacts including basketball shoes jerseys, and shorts dating back to 1910. In the basketball shoes case is footwear from a number of today's NBA stars such as Alan Iverson, Charles Barkley, Michael Jordan, and Shaquille O'Neal.

"From Bill Russell to LeBron James, African-Americans have changed the NBA and the way the game is played," said Mark Tatum, NBA Senior Vice President of Marketing Partnerships. "This exhibit and tour with Southwest Airlines is a tribute to all of the African Americans who contributed to building the NBA and the game of basketball to where it is today. It is also designed to give fans the opportunity to reflect on the challenges, accomplishments and sacrifices that were made by African Americans through the years."

"We're proud to work with the NBA to bring this fantastic piece of African-American history to cities on our route system," said Tena Griffith, Manager of Sports Marketing for Southwest. "At Southwest Airlines, we strive to reach out to the communities we serve, and this traveling exhibit allows us to do that in a very unique way."

About the NBA

Since its founding in 1946, the NBA has become a global phenomenon that transcends national boundaries. With 30 teams in the United States and Canada, NBA games and related programming are broadcast to
214 countries in 43 languages. The NBA is one of the largest suppliers of sports television and Internet programming in the world. Through NBA Entertainment, the league's award-winning production and programming division, the league produces NBA TV, a 24-hour television network, weekly television shows, and exclusive content for each of the NBA's team web sites, and the league's official sites, NBA.com, WNBA.com and NBDL.com. The league has also continued its partnerships with the leading Internet content and technology providers to bring the game experience even closer to its fans worldwide. For more information on the NBA, visit NBA.com.

About Southwest

Southwest Airlines (NYSE: LUV), the nation's largest carrier in terms of domestic passengers enplaned, currently serves 61 cities in 31 states. Based in Dallas, Southwest currently operates more than 3,000 flights a day and has 31,000+ Employees systemwide.

Copyright Business Wire 2005

NBA, The

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