Latest news with #MassHumanities
Boston Globe
13-07-2025
- Boston Globe
Today in History: Live Aid concerts
Advertisement In 1846, a fire destroyed most of Nantucket's commercial district, including 250 buildings. It began in a hat store on Main Street, then swept through town, fueled by exploding barrels of whale oil along the wharves. The fire, according to Mass Humanities, contributed to the demise of Nantucket as the world capital of the whaling industry. In 1863, deadly rioting against the Civil War military draft erupted in New York City. (The insurrection was put down three days later.) In 1923, a sign consisting of 50-foot-tall letters spelling out 'HOLLYWOODLAND' was dedicated in the Hollywood Hills to promote a subdivision (the last four letters were removed in 1949). In 1930, the first FIFA World Cup began in Uruguay. Advertisement In 1960, John F. Kennedy won the Democratic presidential nomination on the first ballot at his party's convention in Los Angeles. In 1973, former presidential aide Alexander P. Butterfield revealed to Senate Watergate Committee staff members the existence of President Richard Nixon's secret White House taping system. In 1985, the 'Live Aid' benefit rock concerts were held simultaneously in London and Philadelphia, raising millions for famine relief in Ethiopia. In 1999, Angel Maturino Resendiz, suspected of being the 'Railroad Killer,' surrendered in El Paso, Texas. In 2013, a jury in Florida cleared neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman of all charges in the shooting of Trayvon Martin, the unarmed black teenager whose killing unleashed furious debate over racial profiling, self-defense and equal justice. In 2018, a grand jury indictment, sought by special counsel Robert Mueller, alleged that the Russian government was behind a sweeping conspiracy to interfere in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. In 2020, Washington's NFL franchise dropped the 'Redskins' name and logo amid pressure from sponsors; the move followed decades of criticism that the name and logo were offensive to Native Americans. (The team was eventually renamed the Commanders.)
Yahoo
07-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Smithsonian Museum exhibit coming to Lee this summer
LEE, Mass. (WWLP) – The town of Lee has been selected to host the Smithsonian Institution's Museum on Main Street traveling exhibition, opening this Saturday. Non-profit organization Mass Humanities selected Lee as the exhibit's host site last summer. This traveling exhibition, 'Voices and Votes: Democracy in America,' details the history of the U.S. government over the past nearly 250 years, examining how each generation has contributed to forming 'a more perfect union' in the country. Agawam community breaks ground on $230 million high school project Visitors will get the opportunity to view historical and contemporary American photos and videos, participate in games and multimedia activities, and learn about historical objects collected across two centuries. 'Lee, Massachusetts, with its rich historical roots and vibrant community spirit, stands as an ideal location to host an exhibit on the history of democracy,' said Town Administrator Chris Brittain. 'Lee's charming downtown, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and its deep connection to American heritage make it a perfect backdrop for exploring the evolution of democratic ideals.' The exhibit opens on Saturday, June 7, at the Lee Premium Outlets and will be available for viewing until July 18. A grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony will take place on Saturday at 11:00 a.m. Lee is among six towns in Massachusetts to display 'Voices and Votes' across six weeks, alongside Buckland, Ashby, Douglas, Holbrook, and East Sandwich. The traveling exhibition is based on 'American Democracy: A Great Leap of Faith,' which is currently on display at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History. Free community events will also be hosted in Lee for residents to consider how the town's history is connected to democracy, freedom for citizens, and government participation. To learn more about 'Voices and Votes' and additional Museum on Main Street exhibitions, visit WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Boston Globe
25-04-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
‘Not everyone was Paul Revere': Mass. historians reimagine America's founding tale
Related : Advertisement These overlooked perspectives — included in the museum's ' 'Not everyone was Advertisement A more inclusive accounting of Massachusetts history is a massive undertaking in the current moment, local historians acknowledge. They are taking the charge when public history funding is scarce, the sector lacks few diverse perspectives, and mentions of The Trump administration's canceling of millions of Against these odds, though, 'this is really the time to hook people,' Folsom said. Governor The state closed a second, $2 million grant cycle for organizations marking the But the programming has drawn some Advertisement 'An important focus for us from the start has been on telling the untold stories and spotlighting underrepresented voices from the Revolution,' the spokesperson said in a statement. That focus includes 'Indigenous peoples, enslaved and free Black communities, and women,' along with cities and towns that aren't usually included in Revolutionary War-related tourism. Fifty years ago, or even a few years ago, Independence Day revelers might have heard a different Revolutionary War story. Globe coverage from America's bicentennial captures celebrations centered around figures such as George Washington, John Hancock, and Thomas Jefferson. Protests from Black and Indigenous groups about these figures' owning of people, and genocide of Native tribes, respectively, were mentioned in mainstream media, albeit briefly. Brian Boyles, executive director of MassHumanities, sits on the state's commemoration commission and co-chairs MassHumanities has allocated at least $600,000 toward ' Boyles said the nonprofit realized that philanthropic initiatives for more diverse public history isn't enough. Historians must also ensure their money will ensure that marginalized communities are shaping the stories visitors hear. 'Expertise lives in a lot of different ways and communities,' Boyles said. Also broadening the Revolutionary War's narrative are exhibits such as ' Advertisement The item, with its endless pattern of circles and focus on King Philip's War, 'serves as a touchstone to multiple stories' of the past, present, and future, Walley said. Related : Walley sees Concord Museum as a potential model for museums reckoning with their outdated interpretations of the nation's founding. It is using its privilege, Walley said, as an institution with extensive collections and funding to center voices such as hers. 'It's not like they're the only museum that's doing good things,' Walley said, but there are many museums that haven't even started improving. As the demand for more inclusive histories grows, community-bred, public historians such as Joel Mackall are in high demand. For years, he has led walking tours of Black history around Greater Boston, mostly among Black people like him. But recently, he has received several inquiries from outside the community to give tours, lectures, and speeches. The surge in popularity is something he's still getting used to, but at times, he feels he can't be as candid about America's problems with race. 'We always have to tone down or reshape our suffering" to ensure some audiences don't feel uncomfortable, Mackall said. 'It's a lot.' At popular Revolutionary War sites such as the Old State House in downtown Boston, historians don't shy away from the political aftershocks of violent protest. This touchy subject is fleshed out in the ' Advertisement But when it comes to race, things get tricky, said Nat Sheidley, CEO of Revolutionary Spaces, the nonprofit managing the landmark. 'It's dangerous, it's hard to create a space you can't control,' Sheidley said. 'You put other people at risk by inviting them to be in dialogue with it.' Joe Palumbo, a Concord native and historian, believes that learning a more complete story will benefit everyone. The state recently awarded the town a $25,000 grant for a project related to the 250th commemoration, which includes Palumbo's tours that highlight the different sites shaped by patriots of color. Take the Across the street from the famous span, there is The Robbins House. Its namesake, Caesar Robbins, was born into slavery in Chelmsford and fought in two wars. At 16, he served in the French and Indian War, and his enslaver received his wages. In his early 30s, he fought in the Revolutionary War and gained his freedom. He served at both Dorchester Heights and Fort Ticonderoga. And these are just two stories. For Palumbo, inclusion in the story of the town, and the nation, matters. 'The country was really built by everybody,' he said. Danny McDonald of the Globe staff contributed to this report. Tiana Woodard can be reached at
Boston Globe
09-04-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
A noble endeavor for a Great Society is being abandoned
Get The Gavel A weekly SCOTUS explainer newsletter by columnist Kimberly Atkins Stohr. Enter Email Sign Up Last week, those words rang hollow. Following a visit by Advertisement At 12:39 a.m. on April 3, I received two emails from an account unknown to me, one I later learned was DOGE-related. After being notified of the emails by a colleague in another state, I found them in the junk mail folder. The emails were duplicates, each attached to a letter from the acting chair of NEH informing me that the agency's two grants to Mass Humanities were being terminated. The termination was 'an urgent priority' and therefore 'the traditional notification process is not possible.' NEH would be repurposing the funds to follow 'a new direction in furtherance of the President's agenda.' Advertisement Similar messages were received by many other NEH grantees around the nation in the middle of the night. Many reported that they, too, had to search for the emails, the contents of which could trigger layoffs and even the closure of some organizations. Where once the federal government took pride in its investment in the humanities, today it breaks its word with little more than a form letter full of vague excuses. Given the history of the NEH, its midnight missive last week was akin to a parent suddenly texting a child not to come home anymore. While the National Endowment for the Arts supports the creation of visual and performing arts and arts education, the NEH supports interpretation, research, and public history. If the NEA is the painting on the wall, NEH is the text that accompanies it telling you about the artist, their history, and where and when the painting was made. Several years after the NEH launched, Congress was concerned that its funds weren't reaching local communities. So it amended the legislation to establish state councils that could disperse the funds. In 1974, a committee formed at UMass Amherst gave rise to Mass Humanities as our state's NEH affiliate. Advertisement Mass Humanities, like our sibling councils in other states, is a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) organization. Each council receives an annual grant from NEH through an allocation based largely on population. In 2024, $65 million was distributed among all the state councils, roughly 30 percent of NEH's annual budget of $207 million. You might even say this public-private partnership is efficient. The $1.3 million Mass Humanities receives in annual funding is minuscule in the federal budget, so there's not much of a case for these cuts eliminating wasteful government spending. A portion of our NEH grant goes to the Clemente Course in the Humanities, an adult education program that offers free college-level classes in six of Massachusetts' 'gateway cities.' Along with books, transportation vouchers, and graduation certificates, NEH dollars helped us provide free laptops for student writers who contributed to two anthologies, 'We, Too, Are America,' and 'This Is Your Democracy,' during the pandemic. Our annual NEH grant also supports our team's work with rural communities on 'Voices & Votes: Democracy in America,' a Smithsonian traveling exhibition set to kick off this month. Staff from local museums receive training on serving hearing-impaired audiences, partnering with immigrant communities, and marketing. One now-canceled NEH grant to Mass Humanities was supposed to cover supplies and travel to Boston for a workshop for more than 60 organizations that host public readings of Frederick Douglass's 1852 speech 'What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?' The organizations we support are not bastions of the elite. From historical societies in Lawrence to human service centers in Springfield, our partners are beloved by their audiences, but none of them can fall back on billion-dollar endowments. Advertisement Still, we are lucky to live in Massachusetts. We may still find private funders to help us fill the NEH gap. For many humanities councils in other states, last week's emails will serve as death sentences. In cash-strapped states or states with political climates hostile to cultural funding, the annual NEH grant can represent as much as 80 percent of the council's budget. Layoffs, cancellation of grant-making, and the end of public programs are already underway in red and blue states alike. There is still hope of stopping the NEH cuts. Humanities councils enjoy bipartisan support. But we live in a historically dangerous moment. In 1965, federal funding for the humanities began with a clear statement, made publicly in the presence of great artists and enshrined in legislation declaring that our democracy 'cannot rest solely upon superior power, wealth, and technology.' In 2025, the people running our government tell us that the humanities are nothing more than spam. Though clumsy and callous, that message was clear.
Boston Globe
04-04-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
NEH funding cuts hit Mass. groups focused on history, culture
On Tuesday, NEH officials told staff that DOGE had recommended staff reductions of as much as 80 percent, as well as the cancellation of grants made under the Biden administration that had not been fully paid out. Advertisement Brian Boyles, executive director of Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Since the 1960s, Massachusetts Humanities has provided funding to projects around the state focused on local history, literature and storytelling, 'We have received an annual grant from the NEH for 50 years,' Boyles said. In 2024, organizations in Massachusetts received grants totaling $7.4 million, according to the Mass Humanities website. 'While information is still forthcoming, we believe all of these grants were eliminated this week,' the organization said in a statement on its site Thursday. Advertisement Other local organizations have also been hit hard. The Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association saw a $300,000 NEH grant cut this week, said Timothy Neumann, the group's executive director. The funding supported historical research on Lucy Terry Prince, a Black woman poet who was well-known in the Massachusetts free Black community during the Revolutionary War. The NEH also cut a $40,000 grant for the Boyles said he learned of the Mass Humanities grant termination in an email he received at 12:39 a.m. Wednesday night. The email, from the NEH's interim director, Michael McDonald, originally went to Boyles' spam folder, he said, because it was sent from a non-governmental address. 'I am stunned at the manner it was handled,' Boyles said. Boyles said he was bracing for funding cuts, but did not expect them to come quite so suddenly. 'We were given no indication by NEH that this was coming,' he said. The letter sent to Boyles said, 'NEH has reasonable cause to terminate your grant in light of the fact that the NEH is repurposing its funding allocations in a new direction in furtherance of the President's agenda.' The letter also said the grant termination was an 'urgent priority' for the Trump administration, and that due to exceptional circumstances, 'adherence to the traditional notification process is not possible.' NEH-supported projects in Massachusetts that got grants starting in 2023 or 2024 are at risk because their grants are supposed to run for several more years, said Boyles, who is trying to keep track of cancellations. Advertisement A project list Boyles shared with the Globe includes more than 75 initiatives on topics including slavery, Native American studies, poetry, international relations, urban design, maritime history and musical instruments. In Hadley, the historic farmstead Sánchez-Eppler helps run was erected in 1752 and passed down in the same family for two centuries, allowing architecture, furniture, and documents including diaries to be preserved, she said. 'Because it has so much stuff, it really tells a broad social-historical story,' said Sánchez-Eppler, who is also an American Studies and English professor at Amherst College. Much of grant money that was canceled supported the museum's semiquincentennial exhibits, including restoring part of the home's garden to what it would have looked like in the 1770s, she said. Now, staff don't have the money to populate the garden with flowers and plants, Sánchez-Eppler said. Museum workers will have to describe to visitors what the garden would have looked like, she said, sighing. 'That's a tangible loss,' she said. Other museum exhibits tell the stories of two enslaved people who lived on the farm, and explore the diary of a woman who owned the farm during the Revolutionary War. The loss of the grant means visitors won't be able to learn about those important parts of US history, Sánchez-Eppler said. 'The basis of democracy is knowledge, having a knowledgeable populous that can deliberate and make decisions about the present, and also about the past,' she said. This is a developing story. Claire Thornton can be reached at
