Field Trip

Today I went to The Women's Museum in Dallas with my friend Heather Goodman. I require the grad students in one of my classes to go, and I hadn't been in a couple of years, so it was time for a refresher.

With 15,000 square feet of exhibits, the museum is a Smithsonian affiliate with a gorgeous facility that focuses on the unique and diverse stories of American women.

Among other things we watched old clips of females in comedy (like Lucille Ball, Gilda Radner, Carol Burnett). We saw a corridor featuring American women in religion. And we watched some short film narratives featuring a Japanese American confined during WWII, a Native American woman who talked about midwifery, and a Latina whose daughter asked for a Quinceañera. We also read about how people in the past have assessed the female body and standards of beauty. (Heather raised a good question: did people who opposed foot binding overseas oppose the corset in their own country?)

If you live near Dallas, check it out. It's on the grounds of the State Fair of Texas, so consider dropping in if you attend the SFoT this year, which runs September 26-October 19. (Also, BTW, this year's SFoT Dallas Summer Musical is "The Color Purple"!)