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January 2015
New Year's Resolution  
On New Year's Day in 1863, Frederick Douglass said that he “finally knew joy!” More than 150 years on, we have much to celebrate, examine, and reflect upon. This month—and indeed for the coming year—Mass Humanities will leverage literature, history, theatre, and the full power of the humanities in the same effort that humanists like Douglass pursued, to ask the most important questions of our time. We hope you’ll join us in making this resolution.
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Calendar
January at Mass Humanities. Receive monthly event emails for your area.

Mass Humanities
66 Bridge Street
Northampton, MA 01060
(413) 584-8440

www.masshumanities.org

Mass Humanities is a private, nonprofit organization that promotes the use of history, literature, philosophy, and the other humanities disciplines to deepen our understanding of the issues of the day, strengthen our sense of common purpose, and enrich individual and community life.

The National Endowment for the Humanities and the Massachusetts Cultural Council fund Mass Humanities grants. Encourage your state and federal legislators to support these agencies.
Fall Grantees Announced
Preview programming you have to look forward to in 2015
  Fall Grantees
Challenging, erudite theater and timely, investigative documentary film are just two examples of the many ways our grantees will better our lives through the humanities in the coming year. We’ve put all these upcoming and exciting opportunities into a slideshow, so you can see them in pictures. Find out what’s next for the public humanities in Massachusetts.
Race in America
How do the words of Frederick Douglass resonate after Ferguson?
  Reading Frederick Douglass
Frederick Douglass spoke widely in Massachusetts, spreading his abolitionist message in Lynn, New Bedford, Bristol, and many other cities. This year, we aim to bring his words back to those locations and more to examine how his words resonate in the context of events like the Black Lives Matter protests. Communities and organizations around the state are invited to host a reading. Funds are available to help!
Rethinking Empathy
Literature & Medicine begins in Northampton
 
Veterans’ caretakers and allied staff will consider what the youngest-ever Nobel Prize laureate has to say about human rights this spring. They will weigh the words of Shakespeare, too, as they explore the needs of their patients and co-workers through the power of literature. The reading list goes on. Find out why we’re expanding Lit & Med to serve those who served.
Chew on This
The 2015 Mass History Conference will focus on food and public history
 
Nourish your hunger for history with this year’s Mass History Conference. Food has been a key focus of negotiation for and among the people who live in Massachusetts since the before first immigrants arrived. We’ll trace the significance of these meals over centuries; how they were produced, prepared, and shared, and how they influenced our cultures. The conference takes place June 1st at College of the Holy Cross in Worcester.
Extending the Social Contract
Understanding the social contract, no matter the language
 
Students in Boston Public Schools speak seven major languages other than English. The social contract is difficult enough to negotiate in just one language, so when we saw the opportunity to give students a fuller understanding of historical and contemporary social issues through the historical dramas of Theatre Espresso, we jumped at the chance to fund it.
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