JMM Insights: Upstanders Vote

Post author By RachelK
Post date 10/16/2020

In this week’s edition of JMM Insights, we’re focusing on something near and dear to our hearts – voting. Part of being an Upstander is taking part in our civic responsibilities, and that means exercising our right to vote.

You already know that this year is a big one for elections, and we all know that voting looks very different this year. Now is a great time to refresh your memory (or check out for the first time) on our summer #VoterEducation series from Visitor Services Coordinator Talia Makowsky. I particularly suggest her post on how to educate yourself about the ballot.

Make sure you have requested your mail-in ballot! The deadline for requesting a ballot is October 20th (next Tuesday), You can request one online right now. Once you’ve received your ballot, decide if you are mailing it in or dropping it off at any official ballot drop box in your county.

If you’re mailing your completed ballot, it must be postmarked by November 3rd. If you’re going the drop box route, you can find a list of locations for Baltimore City here and Baltimore County here. Looking for a different county? Contact your local Board of Elections. Your local Board of Elections can also give you information on in-person voting, both for early voting and for election day.

Here’s another important date to put on your calendar – October 21st. We hope you will join us (virtually) for Celebrating Sadie J. Crockin, presented in partnership with the Maryland Women’s Heritage Center.

Sadie Jacobs Crockin was a true Upstander, a talented orator, and a civic leader. In addition to teaching English in night classes for immigrant women, helping form the Baltimore Chapter of Hadassah, and representing Baltimore at the first American Jewish Congress in 1918, she also led the Baltimore chapter of the League of Women Voters!

Our Celebrating Sadie J. Crockin program is a companion to our current lobby exhibit, In Her Hand, which features writings and speeches of Sadie Crockin in our collections. This exhibit is only on display through November 1st, so make sure to reserve a ticket to visit the Museum soon.

You can also learn more about Sadie Crockin and her work in this podcast from Ballot & Beyond, created by Preservation Maryland in partnership with Gallagher Evelius & Jones in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment. You can check out more episodes about remarkable Maryland women here.

Sadie Crockin is also featured in Melissa Klapper’s 2013 book Ballots, Babies and Banners of Peace: American Jewish Women’s Activism, 1890-1940. Unfortunately, someone snapped up the last two copies from Esther’s Place last week, but we’ve got a couple of other suggestions available we think you’ll enjoy, like The Woman’s Hour: The Great Fight to Win the Vote by Elaine Weiss and America’s Jewish Women: A History from Colonial Times to Today by Pam Nadell.

Want to learn even more about the fight for women’s suffrage in America? Check out these great projects:

A Special Request from JMM Archivist Maggie Hoffman!
(If you missed her introduction, head here to meet Maggie.)

We’re excited to partner with the Jewish Women’s Archive (JWA) and the Council of American Jewish Museums (CAJM) to help preserve the stories of JMM community members during these challenging times. This is a moment in which Jewish life is responsive and changing in the face of the pandemic, the protests, and the election. We recognize this is a critical moment to be collecting the Jewish experience in America, and we want to learn about your experiences.

We invite you to share your story with us using Story Aperture—JWA’s story-collecting mobile app that guides people of all genders through the process of conducting an interview or telling one’s own story. The app features a set of suggested questions, “Reflections in Quarantine,” to help us capture this cultural moment as it continues to unfold.

As you save your story in the app, please make sure to include “Jewish Museum of Maryland” in the title of the recording to ensure the story is properly cataloged and shared with us. Download Story Aperture today from your go-to app store, and together we will preserve our communal narrative!

For more information about Story Aperture, visit jwa.org/stories. For questions about this story-collecting project, contact Maggie Hoffman at mahoffman@jewishmuseummd.org.

Now Available Online: All Things Mah Jongg!

From menorahs to mugs, all purchases help support the Museum.

Don’t see something you’re interested in at the online shop? Contact Shop Manager Chris Sniezek at csniezek@jewishmuseummd.org and let us know.