Politics

"We have not endorsed or contributed to Sen. Sinema since her election in 2018. Right now, Sen. Sinema’s decision to reject the voices of allies, partners and constituents who believe the importance of voting rights outweighs that of an arcane process means she will find herself standing alone in the next election. "Electing Democratic pro-choice women is not possible without free and fair elections. Protecting the right to choose is not possible without access to the ballot box. So, we want to make it clear: if Sen. Sinema can not support a path forward for the passage of this legislation, we believe she undermines the foundations of our democracy, her own path to victory and also the mission of EMILY’s List, and we will be unable to endorse her moving forward."  more »

In the centuries before the self-inking notary public’s stamp, U.S. government clerks and secretaries used brightly-colored silk ribbons, wax seals, and embossed paper seals attached with wafers to verify the security of important documents. Ribbons were used to attach important documents together, but they also served a security function as proof against tampering. The clerk would cut slits in the paper or parchment, weave the ribbon through it, and then the signatories or government official would attach their wax seal, attach an embossed paper seal to the paper with sealing wax or a wafer, or emboss the paper itself. Sealing wax was used for a number of reasons: to verify a document hadn’t been opened, to verify someone’s identity, and for decorative purposes more »

Jo Freeman Reviews: The primary narrative is a biography of a man who spent his life taking photographs in order to document America. It’s not a full biography, as the focus is on the years of 1936-42, when Russell Lee worked for the Farm Security Administration. His life before and after is covered only briefly. It includes a biography of Roy Stryker, who was Lee’s boss and friend. A second theme is a history of the FSA’s Historical Section, headed by Stryker, who sent his photographers on assignments around the country. Their initial task was to document the effects of Depression and drought on rural American in order to justify the expenditure of federal funds to remedy problems. As war approached, their task shifted to documenting America’s strength and prosperity in order to convince enemies that it was a formidable foe. more »

"Bring patriotic cheer when you give unique gifts from the National Archives Store. As the exclusive store of the National Archives Museum, we support the exhibition and educational messaging through the development and presentation of a wide variety of high-quality merchandise highlighting the holdings of the National Archives." more »