Upcoming Programs
Because of Covid-19, we are offering our programs via Zoom — due to a wonderful collaboration with the Westwood Public Library!
Tuesday, February 9, 2021, from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m.
The 100th Anniversary of the “Spanish Flu”
Anthony M. Sammarco, Speaker
A noted author and historian, Anthony M. Sammarco will talk about the Boston of 1918 and the disease that decimated the world population at that time — relating it to today’s Covid-19 epidemic. “Unless precautions are taken, the disease, in all probability will spread to the civilian population of the city” wrote Dr. John Hitchcock, the head of the communicable disease section of the Massachusetts State Department of Health. On September 25, 1918, Mayor Andrew Peter’s Emergency Committee recommended that not just schools but all places of public amusement (e.g., theaters, movie houses, concert halls, lodges, concert halls, etc.) be closed indefinitely. Sound familiar?
Tuesday, March 9, 2021, from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m.
A Legacy of Colonialism via Literature from Those in Exile
Dr. Nancy Milner Kelly, Speaker
Recently retired from teaching at Tufts University, Nancy will focus on today’s increasingly diverse world and how the pain of writers displaced from their respective homelands manifests itself in their writing. During this program, Nancy will talk about the work of novelists and a poet who relocated from Asia and Latin America as well as Africa and Caribbean countries. Their works include images and themes of geographical, cultural, emotional, and linguistic exile. However, these writers also talk about the solace they seek (and receive) in writing, with writing becoming a new kind of “homeland” for them.
The Sign-Up Process. Please visit the library website at https://www.westwoodlibrary.org/calendar (or call 781-320-1045) to register. Find the program on the calendar and use the “Click to Register” button to sign up for the program(s) you want. You will receive an e-mail the day before the event with the information you need to join the event.
As always, we welcome ideas for speakers, including yourself.
Just send us an e-mail at westwoodhistorical@comcast.net.
