Salons at Stowe

Welcome to the conversation!

Welcome to the conversation!

Harriet Beecher Stowe's (1811-1896) best-selling anti-slavery novel Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852), made her the most famous American woman of the 19th century and galvanized the abolition movement before the Civil War.

The Stowe Center is a 21st-century museum and program center using Stowe's story to inspire social justice and positive change.

The Salons at Stowe programs are a forum to connect the challenging issues (race, gender and class) that impelled Stowe to write and act with the contemporary face of those same issues. The Salon format is based on a robust level of audience participation, with the explicit goal of promoting civic engagement. Recent topics included: Teaching Acceptance; Is Prison the New Slavery; Traces of the Trade: A Story from the Deep North; Creativity and Change; Race, Gender and Politics Today; How to be an Advocate

This blog will expand the reach of these community conversations to the online audience. Add your posts and comments to keep the conversation going! Commit to action by clicking HERE to stay up to date on Salon and social justice news.

For updates on Stowe Center programs and events, sign up for our enews at http://harrietbeecherstowe.org/email.

Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Sarah Palin's comparison of the federal debt to slavery

Former Alaska Governor and Vice President candidate Sarah Palin recently compared the federal debt to slavery in a speech to the Iowa Faith & Freedom Coalition’s fall fundraiser:

“Our free stuff today is being paid for by taking money from our children and borrowing from China...When that money comes due—and this isn’t racist, but it’ll be like slavery when that note is due. We are going to beholden to the foreign master.”

What are your reactions to this comment? We're posting this quote and video clip for you to discuss openly in the Comments section below.

For more about her comments, check out the Desmoines Register's "Palin compares federal debt to slavery at Iowa dinner" and Newsweek/The Daily Beast's "The Right’s Slavery Obsession."

Monday, December 2, 2013

New monument recognizes women in the military

Last month, in time for Veterans Day, the US Army unveiled its first statue of a female soldier as part of a Fort Lee, VA monument. While other monuments recognize the contributions of women to the military, no other portrays a female soldier. In the words of Newsweek/The Daily Beast writer Mariette Kalinowski: "The simple truth is: the military cannot function without women, and it’s becoming more and more obvious."

Why do you think it took this long to portray a female soldier?

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To learn more about the monument, read Kalinowski's "A New Monument Recognizes Military Women’s Service and Sacrifices" or the Military Times' "A tribute to women warriors: New Fort Lee statue honors female soldiers."

We applaud the women and men who have served and sacrificed for our country, and the Army for finally recognizing the contributions of female solders.

Sunday, December 1, 2013

58th anniversary of Rosa Parks' stand against segregation

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks took a bold stand against segregation by refusing to give up her bus seat to a white passenger and move to the "colored" section at the back of the bus. Her small yet bold act of defiance is now one of the most iconic events of the Civil Rights Movement.

Just think - a small action you take today might cause a change much larger than you can imagine. What will you do? Be like Rosa Parks - take a stand!