This pinback button urged Washington, DC residents to vote in 1988, a presidential election year heightened by the Rev. Jesse L. Jackson’s name on the ballot in the primary. In 1984, Jackson became the second African American to campaign nationally for a major party’s nomination in the presidential primary. The red, white, and royal-blue button belonged to Ethel L. Payne (1911-1991), a longtime Di
This pinback button’s design is as plain as its message, “sounds like Bull Shit to me.” On a white background, four lines of lettering alternate between red and black. The button belonged to Ethel L. Payne (1911-1991), a journalist whose piercing questions called out racial and gender discrimination, among other inequities. Known as the First Lady of the Black Press, Payne moved from her native Ch
On this yellow pinback button, a line-drawn cartoon depicts a smiling figure wearing a sandwich board that reads “Vote the Rascals Out.” The barefoot figure, the sandwich board’s straps and back placard, and row homes in the background are all rendered in red. Bold, yellow letters glow against the black of the sandwich board’s front placard. Sandwich boards, or large placards worn by a person who
This pinback button promotes “Washington’s No. 1 Crew” in red lettering and four red stars on a white background. It belonged to journalist Ethel L. Payne, (1911-1991), who moved from Chicago to Washington, DC in 1952 to cover national and international news for the preeminent African American newspaper, The Chicago Defender. Known as The First Lady of the Black Press, Payne collected political bu
Pink orchids bloom in a blue pot on this cross-stitch bordered in brown. Invoking the conventions of still-life paintings, a single flower has fallen off the plant in a memento mori. Between the detached blossom and the three still clinging to their stem is the Chinese character for good fortune, “fú”. These details, deftly rendered in an index card-sized space, reflect artist Ira Blount’s (1918-2
This natural-colored, plaited wood splint basket has a flat bottom. The splints vary in thickness, and the repetition of the weave achieves a formal balance. Coatings on the splint handle highlight the natural grain of the wood. The single-lashed rim includes a round reed. Pencil marks remain as evidence of the artist’s process.
In the early 1980s, archaeologists excavated land along Howard Road, SE before construction began on the Anacostia Metro Station in southeast Washington, D.C. Objects unearthed in the excavation revealed nearly 10,000 years of human settlement in the area. Their discoveries included household objects, such as pieces of a plate made in Japan, likely between 1920 and 1940. The pieces show two women
In the early 1980s, archaeologists excavated land along Howard Road, SE before construction began on the Anacostia Metro Station in southeast Washington, DC. Objects unearthed in the excavation revealed nearly 10,000 years of human settlement in the area. Among their discoveries were stones shaped by human hands as well as prehistoric rocks. While the story of Washington, DC is most often told as
This press pass admitted journalist Ethel L. Payne (1911-1991) to the Republican National Convention held August 21-23, 1972 in Miami Beach, Florida. The two-part pin resembles a military medal worn on a uniform. Suspended by a white grosgrain ribbon, a metal rectangle hangs below a narrow bar. Embossing etches the word “Press” on the upper bar, while the lower one features a stylized flag with ei