Inspired by 19th and 20th century suffragists fight for women’s suffrage, today the fight continues to keep the franchise and universal adult suffrage. What are impediments that keep eligible voters from exercising their franchise? What can be done to overcome barriers and encourage broader participation as we look to the November 2 election? How will the logistics of mail balloting impact equity and access? Speakers: Kat Kerwin – Providence City Councilor and community organizer Wendy Schiller – Chair of Political…

Ms. Helme is an enrolled member of the Mashpee Wampanaog Tribal Nation and an artisan, practicing and preserving traditional skills including weaving, pottery, and porcupine quillwork embroidery. She will describe the daily lives of historic Wampanoag women and will explain how the practices of earlier centuries are honored and lived in today’s world. This event is will take place via Zoom. Register link: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZItf-iorTsjE9bQ6ugzzLC-yCFCR5Nf9CUW. 

Joshua and Jane Verin were some of the first colonists in the settlement of Providence. Religious meetings happened in Roger Williams’ house: Joshua chose not to attend, while Jane did. For her “disobedience,” Joshua beat Jane, raising concerns amongst other colonists. Margaret Manchester, Associate Professor of History at Providence College, will discuss the historic Verin case, a situation of domestic violence and liberty of conscience. By reconstructing as much as possible the biographies of the founders, we can draw connections…

One of the issues suffragists in the 19th century campaigned for, including Rhode Island’s Elizabeth Buffum Chace, was prison reform. What is being done to address the reliance of community safety policies on policing and prisons, overcome biases in the criminal justice system, promote the exercise of justice with equity, and not unjustly burden communities of color? Speakers: Jill Harrison – Professor of Justice Studies, Rhode Island College James Monteiro – Reentry Campus Program Judge Judith C. Savage – Former…

Author and local historian Janet Lisle will detail the lives of a close-knit group of 19th-century women living at the corner of West Main and Swamp Roads, who, despite their youth, led Little Compton’s abolition efforts in the century’s early decades. This event will take place on Zoom. Register link: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZcud-iuqDIiGNReZnrVUUP32RbDMRL3gQgN

The fight for “Equal Pay for Equal Work” was a cause championed by American Suffragists starting in the 1850s. What can be done today to promote employee equity regardless of sexual orientation, gender, age, race, or ethnicity? The social ramifications of pay in-equity are brought to the forefront during the current public health emergency, especially for workers in service industries disproportionately impacting women. The growing numbers of working poor who work multiple jobs, with no health benefits, sick days, or…

Explore the lives of Quaker women in Colonial New England and the roles they played within the Society of Friends. Ms. Cazden will use her intensive research on Abigail Allen of Westport as a path to understanding the rights and responsibilities of local Quaker women. This event will take place via Zoom. Register link: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMlcuGrrTIiE9FkrozMxsFeanR_JjH7zkUw

Immigrants, emigrants, and summer colonists add their voices to our local women’s history. Ms. O’Toole will share the personal histories of local women as a way to explore major 19th-century developments. This event will take place via Zoom. Register link: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUrdeCoqDsqE92aDPuMDA3BIAk0O3YYiu3q