Politics

Women in Civil Society

The debate over women’s equal rights and full access to all areas of society is persistent, and the archival records at the MA repeat a single story of limited access for over three centuries. What is inspiring is the unrelenting struggle for education, property, labor rights, suffrage, and quality of life. And most unnerving is the history on repeat.

We’ve recently begun documenting and highlighting within our collection guides the unique instances in which women spoke and government responded.

Inauguration Day

Monday begins a new year—2018— and it is also Inauguration Day in New York City. Unlike the mid-day presidential inauguration of January 20th, New York mayors traditionally begin their terms at 12:01 a.m. on January 1st. For an incoming mayor, this often means holding a private swearing-in at midnight, followed by a public ceremony the next day. For an incumbent mayor there is no need to transfer duties, but the mayor still has a swearing-in ceremony to begin the next term. Depending on weather conditions these have been large outdoor affairs or smaller indoor ones.