Today in the Humanities... MLK Jr. Day of Service; OccupyArchive; and Colonial History in PG

History, Literature, Philosophy, Ethics, and More Wrapped Into a Regular Blog Feature

We want to know how you served on MLK Day 2012. You can share your story here, on our Facebook page, or by sending an email to MLKDay@cns.gov. Your stories will help us highlight the many ways Americans are honoring Dr. King through service, improving lives, and making a difference in our communities.

- Share Your Story, (Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service)

Currently, the archive includes a growing set of collections of webpage screenshots, movement documents, and digital images. These collections were built with a combination of individual contributions and automated feed importing. Now, with the launch of the OccupyArchive.org website, individuals can contribute and geolocate their stories and files from the movement. Together, these materials will provide an historical record of the 2011 Occupy protests.

- "Announcing OccupyArchive.org," (The Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media)

Each week, two writing workshops called “Writing for your Health” are offered for people with cancer and other community members in the Nina Hyde Resource Room. One begins at 11:00 am Tuesday during morning clinic and the other in the evening at 6:00 pm. For the morning session, patients are invited to the Resource Room for a brief demonstration of expressive writing while waiting for their appointments.

- "Writers' Group Offers Outlet to Patients and Caregivers," (Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center)

This year, the Chinatown Community Cultural Center will have a full day of program along with live cultural performances on Sunday, January 29th 2012 from 12pm to 5pm. Visitors will be able to browse the many displays that will teach about the traditions for New Year, participate in a hands-on arts and crafts project, and enjoy the live martial art performances and Chinese musical instrument all of which will be packed in throughout the day and coinciding with the parade.

- "Chinatown Lunar New Year Festival 2012: Year of the Dragon," (Chinatown Community Cultural Center)

Each student researches and acts the part of an historic character from the 1860s and traces President Abraham Lincoln's steps as he considered emancipation and its alternatives. These scenes are videotaped and transferred to a DVD for the class to keep. This field trip experience invites students to explore notions of bondage and freedom within the real historic spaces of Decatur House.

- "Paths to Freedom," (The White House Historical Association/Decatur House)

The district, located off Livingston Road between Oxon Hill and Fort Washington roads stretching along the Potomac River, considered to be the area first settled by colonists in the Washington, D.C., region, currently is recognized by the county as a historic site and includes Harmony Hall, a Georgian country house dating to the 18th century.

- "New Chapter in History, Preservation Starts for Fort Washington District," Mimi Liu, (Gazette.net, Maryland Community News Online)

Students in Cemeteries: Hands on History Learning

Students From a Recent HCWDC Funded Program to Debut Film

The Female Union Band Cemetery
As seen from Rock Creek Park

Recent grantee "I Saw! The Experience of Learning in DC," and its cadre of cemetery exploring youth will screen their film on Saturday, November 12 at 5PM. The event will be hosted by the African-American Civil War Museum at 1925 Vermont Ave, NW. The film titled "We Are Not Afraid to Make History! (Part 1)," was directed, filmed, and edited by the young participants.

Last Summer 30 young students braved the hottest part of the year investigating Washington, DC's historic African-American cemeteries. They met with historians, archeologists, and other researchers who mentored them as they reviewed primary source materials to reconstruct the lives of some of the people buried in the Antebellum era gravesites. The forthcoming film is based on the video documentation of the project.

"I Saw! The Experience of Learning in DC" is an organization that implements "Living Images in my World" as a program of community based education projects with outcomes promoting a social good, high intellectual value, and creative artistic vision.

Click Here to View Their Full Press Release

Living Images in My World: A History Beneath Us

DC Community Heritage Project Teaches Local Students the Historical Value of Cemeteries

DCCHP Intern Bridget Sullivan made a site visit to learn more about one of this Summer's grantee projects, "Living Images in My World: A History Beneath Us - Forgotten Ground Across the River Creek." The project, sponsored by the Columbia Heights Youth Club in partnership with I Saw! The Experience of Learning in DC, uses cemeteries to teach students about local history, and primary source research. In this article Sullivan recounts her experience spending the day with the students and staff.

From the Historical Marker Database

Yesterday I had the opportunity to join I Saw! The Experience of Learning in DC for the day during their summer program, A History Beneath Us-Forgotten Sacred Ground Across the River Creek. During the four week program, junior high students work with high school leaders to research and create a documentary to restore the identities of African-Americans buried in the Old Methodist-Mount Zion and Female Union Band Cemetery.  The students have delved into the history of those interred in the cemetery, and the rich history of the surrounding location. Most of the research has been done with the help of educational partners within the DC community. 

My experience with the program began with a bus tour of the area surrounding the cemetery led by historian, Dr. C. R. Gibbs. Gibbs introduced a number of important African-American heritage sites in the immediate vicinity of the cemetery. This dynamic tour was educational, enlightening, and kept everyone moving despite the summer heat. The students had the opportunity to learn the significance of the cemetery and its residents in the context of the historic greater Georgetown neighborhood. 

After an impromptu visit to Dumbarton House, an historic house museum near the cemetery, the students had the opportunity to speak with Mr. Neville Waters. Mr. Waters discussed the continuing work of the Afro-American Bicentennial Corporation to restore the cemetery. The AABC fought to save the cemetery in the 1970s against a movement to remove the graves to other locations in order to make room for residential construction in the area. It successfully argued for the historical significance of the site and began the work to clean and restore the cemetery. 

Following this discussion, the students visited the cemetery, poured libations in memory of those buried there, and placed flowers on the graves. Overall, this was a great experience and showed great potential for the final documentary. The students are taking full advantage of these unique opportunities to learn about their heritage within the DC community.