This February, humanities councils across the states and territories are commemorating the contributions, cultural heritage, and histories of Black Americans through their grants and programs. On February 4, Alabamans celebrated … Read more
For the last 41 years, March has marked “Women’s History Month” in the United States. While women’s collective contributions are central to our society, humanities councils also consider the ways … Read more
In a year that demanded so much from our humanity, these programs brought opportunities for community members to express themselves, gather together, and provide much-needed context for what we were experiencing as a nation.
Carol Ann Carl, a storyteller from Pohnpei Island in the Federated States of Micronesia, talks about how she uses poetry to advocate for historically marginalized communities, and two-term US Poet Laureate Natasha Trethewey describes how poetry can articulate acts of civic engagement.
Given the upheaval and tragic losses of the pandemic, among so many other unprecedented events that have since materialized, it makes sense that our ideas about civic tenets like community, responsibility, and involvement are changing.
For Pride Month, humanities councils join parades across the country with histories of change, LGBTQ ancestors, jazz, politics, literature, film, and stories past, present, and future. And people have noticed: among many, read stories about Vermont Humanities Council and Rhode Island Council for the Humanities programs that celebrate the contributions of trans and LGBTQ+ individuals and check out the list inside for additional programs.
The idea for a podcast about the diversity of the women’s suffrage movement took root after HNY’s 2017 centennial commemoration of women’s right to vote in New York state. Rebman said that as they were looking to 2020, the centennial anniversary of the 19th Amendment (which states that a citizen’s right to vote cannot be denied on the basis of sex), they noticed an appetite to learn and to grapple with what the suffrage movement did—and did not—achieve. Read more about Humanities New York’s Amended podcast here.
Here is a small sample of programs offered by the state humanities councils on race, inequality, Black history, interracial communications, and more. These programs use the humanities to provide historical context, share personal experiences, and build understanding to better foster empathy.
In partnership with The Pulitzer Prizes and supported by a grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, forty-nine councils will launch hundreds of programs and events exploring the importance of being an informed citizen and what that means in today’s society.
More than 30 events are occurring in October, making it one of the busiest in terms of council Campfires programming. These programs include festivals, poetry celebrations, distinguished lectures, and reading and writing workshops.
Councils launch programs geared towards summer, American history, food safety, the outdoors, and youth in honor of the 100th Anniversary of the Awarding of the Pulitzer Prizes.
Eight state humanities councils received a total of more than $1.4 million from NEH’s Humanities in the Public Square to conduct programs across the nation.