When: Tuesday February 27th, 2024 | 7:30pm EST
Where: Virtual Panel Discussion
For decades now, women’s historians and independent scholars have linked 18th and 19th centuries women’s activities to a bonded, communal space where women could express their inner lives. Sewing activities, and quilting in particular, recorded women’s responses to the social and political environments in which they lived. Abolition, Civil War, temperance, suffrage—women pooled their thoughts, their fears, their attitudes, and their participation in tense, politically charged themes, and fused them into their quilts.
This political awakening, however, was not open to all women, but only to those who had the advantages of being white and affluent in American society. Sewing, after the advent of industrialization, was a pursuit that mostly pertained to the leisure class. Women of color and immigrant women also sewed, but they were largely excluded from these emerging political arenas. Thus, sewing helped to forge a restrictive and elitist conception of American womanhood, one that overlooked the diversity and complexity of women's lives and achievements and consequently, defined a specific type of American womanhood--one that still persists today.
Using textile arts as a vehicle for activism and social change, the Social Justice Sewing Academy (SJSA) is turning this history on its head and invites
all to stitch their voices into quilts that speak to the pressing issues of our time. The SJSA was founded in 2017, after the fatal shooting of Trayvon Martin, as a way to honor his memory and to empower youth to challenge the systems that oppress them. Through its educational programs, the SJSA teaches the history and craft of quilting, while also fostering a space for self-expression and dialogue. The quilts that emerge from these workshops are stunning and provocative, confronting the viewer with the harsh realities and injustices that many communities face. From racism and sexism to violence and incarceration, the SJSA does not shy away from tackling difficult topics through its bold and visionary work. Join the
Gender Equity in Museums Movement and the
Social Justice Sewing Academy for an important conversation about gender, textile art , and the art of becoming.
Meet The Panelists:
Sara Trail learned to sew at the young age of 4, and is now a successful author, sewing teacher, and pattern and fabric designer. At age 13, Sara wrote a nationally published book, Sew with Sara, that teaches teens and tweens how to sew cute clothes and accessories for fun and profit. At 15, Sara starred in a nationally published DVD, Cool Stuff to Sew With Sara. She then designed two fabric collections, Folkheart and Biology 101, and a pattern collection with Simplicity, Designed with Love by Sara. Sara's pattern collections feature prom dresses, backpack patterns, hoodies, and jackets as well as aprons and tote bags. While attending UC Berkeley, Sara created a quilt in memory of Trayvon Martin, and her love for sewing and passion for social justice intertwined. After graduating from the Harvard University Graduate School of Education, Sara founded the Social Justice Sewing Academy (SJSA). As the Founder and Executive Director of the SJSA, Sara actively travels to facilitate lectures and workshops. She is also key in developing and implementing the artistic vision of the organization.
Stacey A. Watson is a passionate educator and community change agent, Stacey recently served the community as both a history professor at West Kentucky Community Technical College and the director of equitable partnerships at the National Quilt Museum in Paducah, Kentucky. She has devoted twenty years to teaching students to think critically, creating her own nationally recognized teaching technique. Stacey has used her passion to educate others by curating her quilt exhibition Say Your Piece-Black Women: Mothers, Martyrs and Misunderstood. She is the recipient of the NAACP Rosa M Parks Power of One award and received the Phelps Award for Excellence in Teaching from her institution. Stacey is a museum specialist in Washington D.C.
Dyese Matthews is currently a PhD candidate in Apparel Design at Cornell University. She earned her B.A.A. in Fashion Merchandising and Design from Central Michigan University, and M.S. in Apparel Merchandising and Design from Iowa State University. In her research and curatorial practice she explores experiences of dressed embodiment, identity expression, and self-definition with a focus on Black identity and fashion.
Jocelyn Gama, a 23-year-old raised in East Oakland, CA, and born in Jalisco, Mexico is dedicated to empower communities to unlock their own potential through the power of art expression and visualization. She studies at UC Berkley, while remaining committed to critical dialogues and amplifying youth voices throughout the city, nation, and world via lobbying and education to advance the cause of justice. When she is not studying she spends her time designing projects through Hyphy x Educated, an Intergenerational Hub Academy to bridge art, and creativity with civic education.
