OPENING
“We Belong Here: Marking the 50th Anniversary of Title IX”
Opens June 23, 2022; Ongoing
1 Center
Coinciding with the 50th anniversary of the federal legislation that unintentionally helped bring equality to sports, this 30-foot display case illuminates three athletes’ stories while a large mural and access to digital content expand the narrative with additional accomplishments and struggles. “We Belong Here” features Naomi Osaka’s tennis racquet from the 2020 U.S. Open Tennis Championship, the U.S. National Soccer team jersey worn by Samantha Mewis when she was named U.S. Soccer Player of the Year in 2020 and a T-shirt skateboarder Leo Baker, a trans, non-binary athlete, made to express their identity in 2019. Baker made the cut for the inaugural U.S. Olympic Skateboarding team that year but declined to compete when faced with having to skate for the women’s team. This highlights case looks at the long trajectory of struggle for equal opportunity in sports that began long before the watershed legislation and athletes’ continuing journey with a law that is constantly evolving.
MAY OPENING
“Tracing Ukraine’s Distinct History Through Money”
New Acquisitions on display in “The Value of Money”
Opens May 20, ongoing
First Floor, West
“Tracing Ukraine’s Distinct History Through Money,” is featured in the New Acquisitions case within the museum’s “Value of Money” exhibition. The display traces Ukraine’s long and complex history through objects from the National Numismatic Collection (NNC) and features a recent 2022 acquisition – a “Peace for Ukraine” Zero Euro banknote created to raise funds for Ukrainian children in need. Together with medieval-era coins and ingots minted in Kyiv, intricate quadrilingual notes from the Ukraine People's Republic (1917-1920), and Ukrainian national notes printed after its democratic referendum for independence in 1991, this display uses money to tell the story of Ukraine’s origins, diverse population, and distinct history.
FLAG RAISING CEREMONY FOR U.S. TERRITORIES
Flag Raising Ceremony for U.S. Territories
June 14, 9 a.m.
National Museum of American History Terrace
National Mall, Madison Ave., between 12th and 14th Streets
A flag raising ceremony will permanently welcome the banners representing American Samoa, Guam, The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. The flags are being added to those of the 50 states, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia, which surround and fly outside the nation’s flagship history museum on the National Mall. There is limited public access for this event.
AWESOME CON
"Entertaining the Nation: Popular Culture at the Smithsonian" Awesome Con panel
June 4, 3:15 p.m.
Mt. Vernon Convention Center
Pass to Awesome Con required to access this panel: https://awesome-con.com/badges/
Expect the spectacular! Curators from the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History and the team behind the upcoming new popular culture exhibition "Entertainment Nation" will regale with tales of popular culture in the museum's collections and how the heck the museum of record decides what to put in this country's definitive pop cultural extravaganza.
SMITHSONIAN JAZZ
Women in Jazz: On and Off the Concert Stage
June 16; 7 p.m.
Purchase tickets here: https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/254320
Women in jazz—from educators to performers, and conductors to producers—have struggled for equal recognition. They get their due in a lecture-concert presentation featuring Charlie Young, SJMO’s artistic director and professor of jazz studies at Howard University. Young highlights the contributions of some of the leading women in jazz as the SJMO performs music they’ve made famous.
PK-12 VIRTUAL LEARNING
HistoryTime
HistoryTime is an object-based learning video series for children ages 5-8. For more information, visit HistoryTime on YouTube.
Rebecca Seel