Final Events for Journey Stories in Winslow
The Old Trails Museum and Homolovi State Park are hosting the final week’s events for the Journey Stories tour stop in Winslow. The last presentation in the museum’s Journeys to Winslow Speaker Series will take place at La Posada Hotel on Thursday, August 1, and Homolovi State Park hosts its annual Suvoyuki Day on Saturday, August 3. The Old Trails Museum will conclude this wonderful community project with the Journey Stories Closing Event on Sunday, August 4, at La Posada. This event, which will be the last chance to see the Smithsonian’s Journey Stories exhibition in Winslow, will include a performance by the Hopi Dancers and a free Journey Stories in Arizona postcard set for every attendee.
Dr. Karen J. Leong will present “Japanese American Internment in Arizona” at La Posada on Thursday, August 1, at 7 pm. After the outbreak of World War II, all persons of Japanese descent residing in the western states were removed from their homes and relocated. This visual presentation explores the reasons for internment, the impact upon Japanese Americans, and the unique circumstances that divided the Japanese American community in Arizona. The talk also explores everyday life in the camps, and touches upon the American Indian communities who served as unwilling hosts, including the nearby community of Leupp.
Dr. Leong is Director of the Asian Pacific American Studies Program and an associate professor of Women and Gender Studies and Asian Pacific American Studies at Arizona State University. She received her doctorate in US History from the University of California, Berkeley. Her own research focuses on the intersections of gender, race, and culture in U.S. History. Dr. Leong is co-coordinator of the Japanese Americans in Arizona Oral History Project and is currently writing a book for that project.
This year, Homolovi State Park’s annual Suvoyuki Day is part of the closing events for Journey Stories in Winslow. “Suvoyuki” means to accomplish work through a joint effort, and Suvoyuki Day is an open house that celebrates the partners who have helped protect Homolovi’s archaeological and cultural sites. Come to the park on Saturday, August 3, from 8 am to 3 pm to explore the history, language, lifestyle, celebrations, and cultural perspectives of the Hopi Tribe. Starting with the opening of the corn roasting pit at 8 am, the day’s activities will include special archaeological site tours at 9 am, 11 am, and 1 pm; cultural artists and demonstrators presenting their work throughout the day; and the Homolovi Dancers performing two social dances. For more information, call Homolovi State Park at 928-289-4106.
Join the Old Trails Museum for the Journey Stories Closing Event from 2 to 4 pm on Sunday, August 4, at La Posada. The Winslow Harvey Girls will serve as greeters, and the Hopi Dancers will perform from 3 to 4 pm on the hotel’s South Lawn. The closing event will be the last chance to see Journey Stories in Winslow before it moves on to five other rural Arizona communities through April 2014. The museum’s companion exhibit, Journeys to Winslow, which explores the city’s many historical connections to Journey Stories, will also be on display. Every attendee at the event will receive a free Journey Stories in Arizona postcard set, developed by the Arizona Humanities Council to commemorate their statewide tour of this traveling Smithsonian exhibition.
Follow this “News” feed and “like” the Old Trails Museum on Facebook for the latest details on all Journeys to Winslow exhibits and programs. Journey Stories has been made possible in Winslow by the Arizona Humanities Council. Journey Stories is part of Museum on Main Street, a collaboration between the Smithsonian Institution and State Humanities Councils nationwide. Support for Museum on Main Street has been provided by the United States Congress.
