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Welcome to your bi-weekly newsletter from Connecticut Explored with the latest stories, the newest Grating the Nutmeg podcast, programs and exhibitions from our partners to see/watch this month, and more!
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Game Changer: The Fight for Anti-Racist Pedagogy
Students from across the state rallied for passage of legislation requiring the teaching of African American, Black, Latinx, and Puerto Rican history in the public school curriculum (Public Act 19-12). The law took effect in Fall 2022. This game-changing student activism is represented by writer and activist Benie N’sumbu.
Growing up before the passage of this legislation, N'sumbu describes her public school education on Black history as a string of "fun fact sessions" - lessons that lacked critical historical analysis. N'sumbu writes, "I never learned about the construction of race and racism, the continent of Africa, or even about the present-day struggle for social justice. It was up to me to find this information myself."
N'sumbu joined Students for Educational Justice (SEJ) where she got involved in a youth-led campaign to get race and ethnicity studies in all New Haven Public Schools. SEJ students met State Representative Bobby Gibson and identified ways to work together to enact change in public schools across the state. Benie N'sumbu's gives her account of her experience and reflects on what she’s learned about the power of advocacy.
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For more information about PA 19-12 visit pa1912.serc.co/about/, and for more about Students for Educational Justice, visit students4edjustice.org.
A Shaker Treasure Comes to Light
M. Stephen Miller writes in our Winter issue's photo essay about his efforts to preserve a large piece of built-in Shaker furniture. The 156-year old piece was rescued from a derelict laundry-wash house in Enfield (pictured above). Miller provides historical background on this Shaker community. He describes the distinctive craftsmanship of this immense set of drawers and cupboards, designed to store linens, blankets, and towels.
Miller writes, "In 2014 when I was curator of the Shaker Collection at the New Britain Museum of American Art, I worked with a team of assistants to carefully remove this storage piece over a span of two days. We had it thoroughly cleaned and the wood 'fed' with restorative oils, then permanently installed at the museum—precisely recreating its original setting."
See historical preservation in action and view the incredible results. Read the entire story with your print subscription. (Subscribe at CTExplored.org/Shop.)
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The Latest From Grating the Nutmeg
158. Theodate Pope Survives the Sinking of the Lusitania
Theodate Pope, the architect and owner of what is now the Hill-Stead Museum in Farmington, Connecticut, was a passenger on the Lusitania - the British transatlantic luxury liner famous for sinking during World War 1. Why did she sail on a British ship when Britain was at war? The ship was hit by a German submarine torpedo and sank within an hour. Why wasn’t Pope in a lifeboat? Why did she jump from the ship into the water? And how did Pope survive and what were the after effects?
Author and historian Mary Donohue interviews Melanie Bourbeau, Senior Curator at the Hill-Stead Museum. Bourbeau shares Pope’s first-hand accounts of the sinking and its aftermath from Pope’s letters, telegrams, diaries, and newspaper accounts, many of which are in the museum’s archives.
Listen: Theodate Pope Survives the Sinking of the Lusitania
Programs and Exhibitions to Enjoy This Month
Educators in Conversation Panel Discussion
Thursday, February 16 at 5:00 PM, join Connecticut Old State House’s panel of Black educators from all school levels as they discuss Black History Month and its role in Connecticut classrooms. Moderated by Dr. G. Duncan Harris of Capital Community College, with panelists Shakira Pérez, Kevin Staton, and Professors Marcus Lawson.
The panel will be followed by an hour long round-table discussion with the audience. The table discussion will consist of 4 rounds of 15 minutes each. Refreshments will be provided at the end.
Register here: bit.ly/2023OSHBeyondBlackHistoryMonth
Panel to be held at the Old State House (800 Main St., Hartford).
Sargent, Whistler, & Venetian Glass Exhibition
Don't miss your chance to see Sargent, Whistler, and Venetian Glass: American Artists and the Magic of Murano at the Mystic Seaport Museum before it leaves on February 27. An exhibit that brings to life the Venetian glass revival of the late nineteenth century and the artistic experimentation the city inspired for visiting artists.
Mystic Seaport Museum; www.mysticseaport.org
Edward Burtynsky: Earth Observed
The New Britain Museum of American Art presents a large-scale survey featuring the work of acclaimed photographer Edward Burtynsky through April 16, 2023. Edward Burtynsky: Earth Observed includes examples from nearly every series of Burtynsky’s output from the early 1990s to today and examines the artist’s career-long documentation of human impact on nature and the landscape through manufacturing, mining, shipbreaking, and deforestation. It will explore topics including climate change, sustainability, and the legacy of American landscape art.
New Britain Museum of American Art; Nbmaa.org
Editor’s Picks
Want to explore the topics featured in this edition of the e-Newsletter? Check out these stories from back issues. We’ve also chosen a history lesson plan from TeachIt!
“Re-Indigenizing Connecticut History for Students,” Connecticut Explored, Fall 2022.
“Enfield’s Shaker Legacy,” Connecticut Explored, Summer 2005.
“Alfred Atmore Pope’s Art Collection at Hill-Stead Museum,” Connecticut Explored, Summer 2009.
“Saved.” Theodate Pope and the Sinking of the Lusitania, TeachIt, 2020. A history lesson plan designed for High School students.
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