We're approaching one of 2020's most-anticipated dates: the Women's Suffrage Centennial anniversary on August 26. In this week's mix, you can find ways to learn about some of the often-overlooked women who fought for the vote. And discover how another woman who made her mark on history-Eleanor Roosevelt-provided the creative spark for a contemporary composer.
They're all designed to make sure you continue to enjoy what you've come to value from Smithsonian Associates: programs and experiences that are entertaining, informative, eclectic, and insightful.
An Arrival to Celebrate
The recent birth of a male Hartmann's mountain zebra foal brought particular joy to the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) in Front Royal, Virginia. Six-year-old mother Mackenzie and 5-year-old father Rogan welcomed their first offspring on July 2, and his arrival held a significance for the facility: Hartmann's mountain zebras are a vulnerable species with less than 25,000 left in the wild, and the newest addition was the result of breeding carried out at SCBI. The yet-unnamed colt is spending his time close to Mackenzie in the Virginia countryside, and their interactions have provided the focus for some pretty adorable photo-ops.
Read the Zoo's Announcement
Retelling Suffrage Stories
Women fought long and hard for the vote-before and after the passage of the 19th Amendment. Diverse communities and organizations blazed the trail for equal voting rights across the nation. For many women, especially women of color, the fight didn't end when the 19th Amendment went into effect on August 26, 1920. Yet the stories of these suffragists have often been overlooked. To mark the centennial of the 19th Amendment, the Smithsonian, Library of Congress, and National Archives are collaborating to bring these stories to social media. Through August 26, you can follow #19SuffrageStories posts each weekday on Instagram and Twitter to learn voting-rights history drawn from all three institutions' collections. You can also dig deeper into the role unsung activists played in the fight for suffrage in a series of brief videos from the Smithsonian American Women's History Initiative, and in an August 13 Smithsonian Associates Streaming program with Lisa Kathleen Graddy, a curator of political history at American History Museum.
Learn More About #19SuggrageStories
Register for the Program
Virtual Eyes on the Skies
If the recent SpaceX splashdown has you pondering about what lies beyond Earth, spending a couple of Space Tuesdays with George Mason University will provide plenty of food for thought. In the Smithsonian Associates Streaming series, Peter Plavchan and Michael Summers, professors of physics and astronomy at GMU, offer a virtual welcome to the university's observatory. On Aug. 8, John Callas, former Mars Exploration Rover program manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, joins them to look at the prospects of life on Mars, past and present. On Sept. 15, they explore stellar evolution, tracing the life and death of red giants, yellow stars, and brown dwarfs. A remote telescope viewing of celestial objects follows each program, weather permitting.
Roving For Life on Mars
Stellar Astronomy
A Beautiful Day in the (Tiny) Neighborhood
The tiny house craze holds appeal for people beyond those who long to live off the grid and the people who like to watch real estate TV shows about them. Artists have found inspiration in creating their own whimsical miniature dwellings, and recently Marcie Wolf-Hubbard organized a Zoom tour of some of the tiny houses created by her mixed-media art students. Among them were mini-residences created by two participants in her most recent Smithsonian Associates Studio Arts workshop. Molly Pauker's green bejeweled bungalow featured a front balcony and a two fully furnished interior rooms. Jan Philower recreated her daughter's bay-fronted Capitol Hill townhouse, filled with details including wrought-iron front steps topped by pot of flowers and her 2-year-old grandson waving from his bedroom window. Marcie Wolf-Hubbard used her own vintage Sears house in Arlington's Woodside neighborhood as the starting point for a colorful interpretation. You can join a virtual tour of many of Arlington County's (non-tiny) Sears houses in a Sept. 26 Smithsonian Associates Streaming program.
Sears Houses of Arlington
Voices of Hope, Remixed
In creating his newest album, Voices, composer Max Richter found a touch point that connects the anxious post-WWII era with that of today: the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights. He interweaves his music with the words of the document-as spoken in recordings from people all over the world that he solicited on social media-to spotlight its power as what he terms "a blueprint for hope." One track even includes the voice of Eleanor Roosevelt, the force behind the Declaration's creation, reciting its preamble. Listen to it, and an NPR interview with Richter in which he talks about why he feels that the ideals that emerged from a war-torn world can provide a guide "for the world we haven't made yet."
Listen to the Interview
