Partnerships

Celebrating Hispanic Educators in Delaware
Statement from artist, Maia Palmer: As an educator, I have observed over the years a lack of diversity among faculty and staff. With this project, I aim to raise awareness of this issue, while also celebrating those individual teachers and Hispanic educators that are making a difference in our community here in Delaware. Throughout these collaborative works, I was guided by several inquiries. How can I capture multiple inner perspectives of a person through portraiture? How can I best highlight the disparities between these multiple perspectives – a person’s inner self-reflection versus their outward projection? Through collaborative discourse, how will my understanding of self, their understanding of self, and our collective understanding of societal expectations and norms expand and collapse?

These large-scale portraits are drawn on paper coated with black chalkboard paint, referencing the didactic methods of teaching used in the past. I am reminded of history lessons in high school with dates, facts, and names written on the chalkboard. Rarely, however, was information about the invisible and silenced members of our culture, such as the African American, Hispanic, or other minorities, reflected in those notes. With this project however, participants hand wrote their own personal stories directly onto the chalkboard to share with our community. The Latinx population is a group that is often silenced by the voices of the majority; to this end, I want to empower community members to take command of their own stories by sharing them in writing, by taking an active part in the portrait process, and participating in audio recordings.

Celebrating National Hispanic Heritage Month
The National Hispanic Heritage Month project was created by Nancy Lopez and Charito Calvachi-Mateyko. This is an ongoing project with the aim of capturing the Latinx/Hispanic contributions in Delaware.

Latinxs in the Media – 2022

Hispanic Public Servants in Delaware – 2023

2023
CAMP (Creating A More Positive) Rehoboth is the largest and only organization of its type serving the needs of LGBTQ+ people in Rehoboth, greater Sussex County, and throughout the state of Delaware.  For over 33 years, CAMP Rehoboth has been dedicated to creating a positive environment inclusive of all sexual orientations and gender identities in Rehoboth Beach and its related communities.  It seeks to promote cooperation and understanding among all people as they work to build a safer community for all.

2022
I Am Me Inc. was formed to offer safe social spaces with programs that uplift and unify the LGBTQ community. To show them through action that you are not alone, and you are loved by a community of LGBTQ+ and Allies. A space where you can “Be You” and build positive social connections. The Board at I Am Me Inc. believes that together we can heal, support, and collectively eliminate discrimination one person at a time by educating them about our community.

2021
“Existence is Resistance” (2021) is the Delaware History Museum’s first project about queer history. Research centered around how queer Delawareans built community and also examined how structures of power influenced how queer people were allowed to organize. 

The project incorporates information from oral history interviews, archival research, and object-based research. The oral history interviews with Delawareans provided a subjective, primary resource into queer history. Additionally, utilizing the University of Delaware Archives helped to track the emergence of queer student organizations. 

Because queer history has often been relegated to the margins, methods of rapid collecting and crowdsourcing of photographs were employed to provide a visual representation of the queer community in Delaware. Together, these methods scratched the surface of the rich queer history in the First State.

In September 2022, Claymont Elementary School invited Joan Anderson, one of the Claymont Twelve—the eleven African American students who integrated Claymont High School in 1952, plus Louise Belton (Belton v. Gebhart)—to share her firsthand experience. To honor Ms. Anderson and the Claymont Twelve, 5th grade students created dynamic portraits of the Claymont Twelve and participated in the ceremony celebrating the 70th anniversary at the Claymont Community Center, the former Claymont High School.

The Delaware Historical Society thanks Principal Stewart, Mr. Horne, Ms. Smock, Ms. Noble, and the Claymont Elementary School Community for sharing these portraits with us and allowing us to share them with our audiences.

2022

Photos courtesy of the Brandywine School District

Founded in 1994, the Delaware Juneteenth Association (DEJA) is a statewide community-based organization that not only commemorates and celebrates Juneteenth, but serves Delaware’s African American communities through cultural events, educational workshops, and youth empowerment.

2021

2022

The Jewish Historical Society of Delaware has documented Jewish history since its founding in 1975. Through their work, they preserve and collect the history of Jewish settlement and Jewish life in Delaware. Their collections contain resources relating to Delaware synagogues, Jewish organizations, Jewish-owned businesses, and Jewish families and individuals in all three Delaware counties. Their papers, memoires, and photographs can be used for academic and genealogical research.

2022