Mass Humanities, Northampton, MA Videos

Douglass Public Speaking Map, 1841-1844
Curious if Frederick Douglass gave a speech in your town? Check out our interactive map to see all 120 locations he visited in Massachusetts, from 1841-1862! https://masshumanities.org/following-in-douglass-footsteps/ Research by Anne Mattina, one of our 2023 Reading Frederick Douglass Together research fellows. Funding made possible by National Endowment for the Humanities #FrederickDouglass #RFDT24 #Douglassmap #Douglaspublicspeeches

"Lift Every Voice and Sing" at the 2024 Salem RFDT event
Today, Mass Humanities celebrates #Juneteenth with communities across Massachusetts. To kick things off, we're sharing a performance of "Lift Every Voice and Sing" by vocalist Janey David . This hymn is known as the "Black National Anthem" and was written by James Weldon Johnson in 1900 and composed by his brother John Rosamond Johnson. David delivered the performance in Salem, Massachusetts - City Government, on June 18, during the city's Juneteenth celebration. Nicole McClain, president of the North Shore Juneteenth Association Inc., Dominick Pangallo, mayor of Salem, and other community leaders raised several Juneteenth flags during David's performance. McClain led a spirited reading of Douglass' speech following the hymn. #Blacknationalanthem #lifteveryvoiceandsing #Juneteenth2024 #FrederickDouglass #RFDT2024 #salemmassachusetts

Looking back on "Rebuilding the Temple: Cambodians in America"
Filmmaker Larry Hott reflects on the origins of "Rebuilding the Temple: Cambodians in America", a film he produced with Claudia Levin in 1991. “It's called 'Rebuilding the Temple' because it's both a metaphor for actual, literal temples that they were building, and also rebuilding the lives that they lost in Cambodia," said Hott. In early May of 2024, the Amherst Historical Society held a public screening of "Rebuilding the Temple" at Amherst Cinema in Amherst, Massachusetts. The event was designed to spark conversation about Cambodian history, culture, and identity leading up to the debut of a new exhibit at the Amherst Historical Museum titled “Cambodians in Amherst: A History of the Khmer Community,” which is partially funded by an Expand Massachusetts Stories grant. The exhibit is on display through November 2024 and includes oral histories, photos, archival documents, art and artifacts, and footage of Khmer television programs. Read the full story on our website here: https://masshumanities.org/looking-back-on-rebuilding-the-temple/ CC: Amherst History Museum

Museum on Main Street debuts in Mass. in 2025.
“It really is a manifestation of what’s possible and the richness that exists here.” Leo Hwang, assistant academic dean at the UMass Amherst College of Natural Sciences, speaks about the transformative power that Museum on Main Street can have on rural communities. Leo served as the tour scholar for “Crossroads” in 2022-2023 and attended events in Turners Falls at The Great Falls Discovery Center. Apply by May 10 to host MoMS in your community: masshumanities.org/grants. CC: Friends of the Great Falls Discovery Center #museumonmainstreet #ruralcommunities

Apply to host Museum on Main Street by May 10.
KD Montgomery of the Essex Historical Society & Shipbuilding Museum shares some insight into what it was like hosting Museum on Main Street in 2022. May 10 is the deadline to apply for “Voices and Votes”, the new MoMS exhibition coming to Massachusetts in 2025-2026. Apply at masshumanities.org/grants. #museumonmainstreet #ruralcommunities #nonprofitgrantsinMA

Clemente Course students visit MFA Boston.
In early April, students from the Clemente Course in the Humanities visited the Museum of Fine Arts Boston (MFA) for a day of art appreciation and community building. Students from Springfield, Holyoke, Worcester, Brockton, and New Bedford Clemente sites explored an array of galleries and exhibits featuring a diverse range of artists and media, from paintings by Monet to classical sculptures from antiquity. Art history professors from each city led their groups through the gallery spaces, offering insights and inviting questions along the way. Check our our recap video to see what the day was like!

Clemente Course students visit MFA Boston.
In early April, students from the Clemente Course in the Humanities visited the Museum of Fine Arts Boston (MFA) for a day of art appreciation and community building. Students from Springfield, Holyoke, Worcester, Brockton, and New Bedford Clemente sites explored an array of galleries and exhibits featuring a diverse range of artists and media, from paintings by Monet to classical sculptures from antiquity. Art history professors from each city led their groups through the gallery spaces, offering insights and inviting questions along the way. Check our our recap video to see what the day was like!

Clemente Course students visit MFA Boston.
In early April, students from the Clemente Course in the Humanities visited the Museum of Fine Arts Boston (MFA) for a day of art appreciation and community building. Students from Springfield, Holyoke, Worcester, Brockton, and New Bedford Clemente sites explored an array of galleries and exhibits featuring a diverse range of artists and media, from paintings by Monet to classical sculptures from antiquity. Art history professors from each city led their groups through the gallery spaces, offering insights and inviting questions along the way. Check our our recap video to see what the day was like!

Clemente Course students visit MFA Boston.
In early April, students from the Clemente Course in the Humanities visited the Museum of Fine Arts Boston (MFA) for a day of art appreciation and community building. Students from Springfield, Holyoke, Worcester, Brockton, and New Bedford Clemente sites explored an array of galleries and exhibits featuring a diverse range of artists and media, from paintings by Monet to classical sculptures from antiquity. Art history professors from each city led their groups through the gallery spaces, offering insights and inviting questions along the way. Check our our recap video to see what the day was like!

Douglass Week in Belfast - preview
A cohort of Mass Humanities staff, board members, and friends of the organization will be traveling to Belfast, Northern Ireland, this month to participate in #douglassweek, an international symposium dedicated to contemplating the life and legacy of Frederick Douglass. Be sure to follow us April 14-20 for updates from our group, including photos and videos from the cohort’s time in Northern Ireland. CC: DouglassWeek #readingfredericksouglasstogether #RFDT

"The Future of Storytelling" - Worcester recap
Watch our recap video of "The Future of Storytelling" featuring board members Deb Hall and Erin Williams. Then, head to our website to view a photo gallery of the event, watch additional videos from grantees, and to read about the workshop and gathering. Holyoke and Boston - stay tuned for information about events in your cities later this year. https://masshumanities.org/the-future-of-storytelling-in-worcester/ #MH50

Vanessa Unicorn Gonzalez Oyola reads her poem "The Walk"
Vanessa Unicorn Gonzalez Oyola, an alumna of the The Clemente Course in the Humanities , reads her poem "The Walk" at our recent gathering in Worcester, Massachusetts. For more information about "The Future of Storytelling", visit our website at https://masshumanities.org. #poetry #worcesterpoetry #worcesterarts #MH50 #expandmassachusettsstories

María Aybar shares the story behind her great grandfather's book about Santiago.
We celebrated 50 years of Mass Humanities last week in Worcester, gathering a group of grantees from central Massachusetts to discuss the power of storytelling. María Aybar of the Latinx Community Center for Empowerment - LCCE in Lowell shares the story behind a book that her great grandfather wrote about Santiago, Chile. #lowelllatinxarchive #MH50

Sha-Asia Medina shares what her djembe drum means to her.
Our first grantee workshop and gathering, “The Future of Storytelling”, is a wrap! On Friday we met with grantees from central Massachusetts to discuss how storytelling figures into their work. Part of the day included a discussion of meaningful objects that folks brought in, as a way of exploring storytelling, history, and memory. Here, Sha-Asia Medina of The Village Worcester explains why she chose to bring a djembe drum to the gathering. Thank you to everyone who visited Worcester and celebrated our 50th anniversary with us yesterday. Your work matters, and we are so grateful to play a small part in funding your projects. Thank you to Mass Cultural Council and Barr Foundation for your continued support. More coverage of our event will be shared this week. Stay tuned for more information about future workshops and gatherings, too. #MH5 #storytelling #masshumanities #thevillageworcester

BTS of "Resiliency in Chinatown"
Boston’s Chinese Economic Development Council received an Expand Massachusetts Stories grant to produce an oral history of Boston Chinatown residents. Go behind the scenes with filmmaker Kenneth Eng and project manager Nancy Lo to learn about what went into making “Resiliency in Chinatown: Stories of Survival and Community Building.” #expandmassachusettsstories #EMS #nonprofitgrant #chinatownstories #bostonchinatown #immigrationstories

RFDT at UMass HFA 2024
Each year, Mass Humanities organizes and funds free public events where communities gather together to read and talk about Frederick Douglass’ influential address, “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?” We began 2024 with a shared reading at the College of Humanities & Fine Arts at UMass Amherst. Fittingly, the gathering took place on February 14, Douglass's chosen day of birth. As Marco, a Ph.D. student featured in the video, explains, the fact that such a reading took place during Black History Month underscores the importance of the abolitionist movement. #RFDT #FrederickDouglass #readingFrederickDouglassTogether #sharedreading

Celebrating 50 years of Mass Humanities
Mass Humanities is celebrating 50 years of championing storytellers in Massachusetts! In this short video, Executive Director Brian Boyles shares an overview of the exciting special events and projects we have on the way to commemorate the occasion. #masshumanities #MH50

Check out our recap of Creative Sector Advocacy Day at the State House!
Incredible gathering at the State House yesterday celebrating the power of arts, culture, and creativity in Massachusetts. Thank you to all who attended, all who performed and exhibited their work, and all who sparked conversations with their elected officials to emphasize the vital importance of creative expression. Intro music by Boston Music Project #powerofculture #CreativeMA MASSCreative Mass Cultural Council Massachusetts College of Art and Design Massachusetts Music Educators' Association Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) ArtsBoston

Expand Massachusetts Stories grants for 2024

2024 EMS grants
Mass Humanities is thrilled to announce upcoming opportunities for its 2024 grant season. Application materials for Expand Massachusetts Stories (EMS) grants are now available on our website: https://masshumanities.org/grants/ The application window opens February 5, but you can get a jump start by reviewing guidelines, letter of interest forms, and a sample application. Materials are available in English and Spanish. This year, Mass Humanities is offering a new grant track for projects that explore different aspects of climate change. Applicants are eligible to receive up to $20,000 for projects that illuminate community knowledge, experiences, and values in response to the climate crisis. Please share this post with your networks!