Is a fence keeping you safe within, or is it leaving you out in the cold? Perhaps it is the same fence experienced by someone else, but from the other side. Fences in Southern Maryland assume many forms.  

Facing Fences – Southern Maryland was a collaboration between the Boyden Gallery of St. Mary’s College of Maryland (SMCM), the Community Mediation Centers of St. Mary’s and Calvert Counties, Historic St. Mary’s City, The Slack Water Center, The Center for the Study of Democracy at SMCM and numerous community organizations affiliated in a Neighborhood Network.  Together we explored the fences, boundaries and rights-of-way – both physical and metaphorical – that enclose us or divide us.

Exhibits is that were on display at the Boyden Gallery

from January 17 to March 4, 2011:

Opening the Gate to Peace, Shalom, Salaam

Daughters of Abraham of Southern MD

The Daughters of Abraham of Southern MD was formed to help break down the fence lines of prejudice and bias that were especially built up after the events of September 11, 2001.  Through understanding, friendship, and service the women of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are creating gateways into our shared belief in the One Merciful God, and thus contributing to the peace and well being of our world community.

Black Space/White Space in Calvert County

Calvert County African American History and Culture Committee

Southern Maryland has been a segregated landscape for much of its history.  This panel explores three ways in which the fences, visible and invisible, have separated churches, farms and households, and schools along racial lines.  It will also show the ways in which some of the apparent barriers were porous.

Striving to Excel, “Remember the Past, Look to the Future”

United Committee for Afro-American Contributions

The story of African-American education in St. Mary’s County spans 100 years of segregation, 1867-1967.  Excerpts of oral histories from citizens who lived during this era recount their struggles to get an education in one and two-room schools in St. Mary’s County.  Information reveals what desegregation was like for African-American students .

An Orderly and Peaceful Frontier

Jefferson Patterson Park and Museum

When colonists arrived on the shores of the New World they brought with them many things, including their notions of property.  Not only were these notions unfamiliar to Native Americans, but they ran counter to the Native view of land use.  Our exhibit will explore how the colonial use of fences to demarcate property not only created strife with their new neighbors, but also subverted their own goals of “civilizing” the inhabitants of the New World.

Man’s Inhumanity to Man

The ARC of Southern Maryland

This collection is a photographic exhibit with fictional stories. Rick Rowland took photos of the Rosewood Center shortly after it was closed in 2009.  The Rosewood Center, located in Owings Mill, Maryland, was originally named “The Rosewood State Training School for the Feeble Minded” and opened in 1888 under the auspices of the State Lunacy Commission. The photos reflect the physical and symbolic barriers and fences experienced by people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in the Maryland state institutional system.

Breaking Down Barriers: From Institution to Inclusion

The ARC of Southern Maryland

Through self-advocacy and organizations, such as The Arc of Southern Maryland, great strides have been made regarding raising awareness and creating opportunities for community inclusion for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.  This exhibit of photos features people currently supported by The Arc.   Some of the people featured are former residents of Maryland state institutions, who now have the opportunity to live fulfilling and rewarding lives.

The Calvert Cliffs Conundrum

Calvert Marine Museum

Divisive issues have surfaced concerning the Calvert Cliffs. This historic landmark was formed millions of years ago, shaped by climate change that created the Chesapeake Bay and its neighboring lands. The Cliffs hold secrets of an ancient prehistoric past. They provide critical habitat to endangered species. They are home to people seeking unparalleled views. And they erode ineluctably. Their natural evolution presents a threat and a danger to the humans who attempt to claim ownership, who would armor and riprap them. The Cliffs have become a natural “fence” between opposing forces.

Wildlife Movement on PAX NAS

Patuxent River Naval Air Station

Fences can prevent wildlife access to food and water necessary for survival and can put them in harm’s way by forcing them to cross busy roadways and the station’s runways which pose many threats to their well-being. The Patuxent River Naval Air Station’s Department of Natural Resources is constantly working to ensure the safety of both wildlife and humans who cohabit this space.

Stakeholders

Southern Maryland Agricultural Development Commission (SMADC)

This exhibit examines the high stakes of maintaining a healthy balance between agricultural and development. Southern Maryland’s transition from a tobacco-based culture to a more diverse and sustainable farming future is explained through the stories of area farmers.

Growth Boundaries in St. Mary’s County

St. Mary’s County Department of Land Use and Growth Management

To foster quality of life, lines have been drawn to guide development and to preserve resources and community character. Whether they are a help or a hindrance depends on which side of the line one finds oneself.This exhibit illustrates the history of the boundaries that balance public needs and private property, or that dictate where tax dollars are spent on public facilities.

Fences of the Mind: The Trouble with Culture

N.  Taylor Gregg, former National Geographic Magazine Asia Editor and cross-cultural studies specialist; Gaimusho, Japan America Society and The Asia Society

Featuring a life-size three dimensional figure suspended in the air, feet not touching the ground, and with a large inverted box over its head; its eyes stare at the inside of the box. The figure represents a Western Civilization Person as an “other” (not us, someone from outside) might see us. The single biggest barrier to seeing an other is that we also cannot see ourselves. We stare out at the world unconscious of the lens through which we look, and see only what we look for. Which side of the fence are you on? Are you inside the box, or on the fence?

Air It Out: The Clothesline Project

Walden Behavioral Health

Images and words painted on tee-shirts depict the experiences of victims of domestic violence and relationship abuse. This art is used to break through community denial and misinformation that still persists, as well as offer victims and survivors of trauma a venue for self-expression.

We See Recovery

Walden Behavioral Health

Recordings, commentary and photographs voicing the rich experiences of those seeking to manage addictive disease helps to remove stigma and celebrate recovery. Multiple barriers inclusive of stereotypes and denial surround those encountering addictive disease and recovery.

Boundaries, Power and Voice: Sexual Identity and the Contemporary College Student

Dr. Michael S. Glaser, Professor Emeritus & Dr. M.J. Raleigh, Director of Counseling Services, St. Mary’s College of Maryland

Boundaries shape our understanding of ourselves as sexual beings. How we perceive sexual identity, sexual boundaries, gender expectations, and cultural norms affects our relationships with one another.  Developing healthy “fences” can help us live happier, healthier, more empowered and more fully intimate lives.

And they all fELL down: English Language Learners in U.S. Schools

Katy Arnett & The Student Educational Association, St. Mary’s College of Maryland

This exhibit gives voice to the fences faced by one of the most marginalized school populations: English Language Learners. Fences largely result from language and cultural differences that often clash with the policies and context surrounding these children and their families. In order to remove these barriers for the continuously growing ELL population, it is time for those who have the power of the English language to make “the system” work for the ELLs, not against them.

Living Fence Sculpture

Vicki & Dusty Rhoades, Community Mediation Centers of Calvert & St. Mary’s Counties

Stepping through and walking around the Facing Fences sculpture, we contemplate the diverse barriers and rights of way that we experience. Do fences serve to help protect our values, our property, our way of life or do they make us feel excluded and left out?  What insight have you gained from the Facing Fences exhibit? Your thoughts when attached become part of this living sculpture - a collective narrative of our experience facing the fences in our lives.

Between Fences

A Smithsonian Institution exhibition exploring the multiple meanings of fences in American culture. This exhibition is a part of Museums on Main Street, a collaboration between the Smithsonian Institution and the Maryland Humanities Council traveling to six venues in Maryland.

Related Neighborhood Network events that took place:

• Paleontology, the Environment & Maritime History (PEM) Talks;  Begin at the Beginning: The Geology and Paleoenvironmental History of Calvert Cliffs at the Calvert Marine Museum, Saturday, September 18, 2:30 p.m.
• International Day of Peace discussion: Sponsored by the Calvert Interfaith Council, Tuesday, September 21, 2010, 7:00 p.m. at the Calvert Public Library, Prince Frederick.
• 2010 State of the River Summit; Friday October 8th at the Calvert Marine Museum
• Paleontology, the Environment & Maritime History (PEM) Talks; Uncovering the Past: The Paleontology of Calvert Cliffs at the Calvert Marine Museum, Thursday, Oct. 21, 7:00 p.m.

• Black Spaces / White Spaces; Thursday November 4th, 7:00 pm at the Calvert Library in Prince  Frederick – part of the continuing Facing Our Fences:  Naming the Barriers to Community series
• Partnership to End Childhood Hunger Summit: Sponsored by the Governor's Office for Children. Hosted by Chesapeake Church in Sunderland, Md.  Monday, Nov. 8, 2010, 10:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m  

• Paleontology, the Environment & Maritime History (PEM) Talks ;  The Inexorable Slide, Current Rates of Erosion of Calvert Cliffs. at the Calvert Marine Museum, Saturday, Nov. 13 at 2:30 p.m.
• Interfaith Thanksgiving Service: Sponsored by Calvert Interfaith Council. Hosted by All Saints Episcopal Church, Sunderland Md. on November 24, 2010. Sharing perspectives across the lines of Abrahamic faiths.
• Rosewood: Viewing and discussion of the movie on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2011 at Calvert Library. Rosewood is the true story of an almost unknown incident in a small Florida town, (fictionalized, but faithful to the known facts, as documented in a 1994 report by the Florida Legislature).

• Facing Fences – Southern Maryland exhibit and programming at the Boyden Gallery at SMCM;   17 January – 4 March 2011, featuring the Smithsonian travelling exhibition, Between Fences.  Exhibit opens January 17, 2011 (MLK day).
• Paleontology, the Environment & Maritime History (PEM) Talks;  Who Cares? The Human Perspective on the Calvert Cliffs at the Calvert Marine Museum, Thursday, January 20, 2011 at 7:00 p.m..
• Facing Fences Exhibition, Reception and Listening Circles: Boyden Gallery, January 22, 2011, 2:00 to 4:00 p.m.

• Human Rights Film Series, "The Lives of Others": Thursday, January 27, 6:30 PM | Cole Cinema at the St. Mary’s College of Maryland.  Film will be followed by a discussion with Professors Christine Wooley, David Ellsworth, and Katie Gantz

• Paleontology, the Environment & Maritime History (PEM) Talks; Tigers in the Cliffs: The Role of Calvert Cliffs as an Ecosystem for the Endangered Puritan Tiger Beetle at the Calvert Marine Museum, Saturday, Feb. 5, 20011 at 2:30 p.m.
• "Can our Country Lose its Addiction to Debt? The Causes and Consequences":  Tuesday, February 8, 6:30PM | Cole Cinema at the St. Mary’s College of Maryland.  Presentation and Discussion with Jeffrey S. Thiebert, National Grassroots Director of the Concord Coalition. 

• Black History Month program on Sunday, February 13, at 2 PM at Lexington Park Library.  Professional storyteller Janice Curtis Greene, President of the Griots' Circle of Maryland, Inc. will present a lively program with historical facts and life lessons woven in folktales, original stories and raps, will mesmerize all ages.   Ms. Greene is an accomplished storyteller of more than 20 years performing throughout the United States and as far away as Zambia, South Africa.  Light refreshments will be provided by UCAC (Unified Committee for Afro-American Contributions) and NAACP, co-sponsors.  This family program is free and for all ages children to adults.

• Intimacy, Power and Voice: How our hungers for intimacy and sex conspire to confuse and ennoble us. Michael S. Glaser, M.J. Raleigh, Megan K. Root and Kyle Bishop on Feb. 15 at 8:00 p.m. Montgomery Hall at SMCM.
• Food Production Systems: For a Backyard or a Small Farm on Saturday, Feb. 19th at 3 pm at the Cole Cinema (SMCM) .  Sponsored by:Environmental Studies, Sustainability Committee, and Campus Community Farm at St. Mary's College of Maryland; and by the Southern Maryland Agricultural Development Commission.

• Human Rights Film Series, “Papers: Stories of Undocumented Youth”:  Tuesday, March 1, 4:00PM  | Cole Cinema at the St. Mary’s College of Maryland. 

• Oysters: Economy, Technology and Environment Len Zuza (SMOCS), Fred Tutman (Patuxent Riverkeeper), Rachel Dean and others. Thursday, March 3, 2011, 7:00 p.m. at Calvert Library, Prince Frederick.
• Facing Fences Closing Ceremony and Final Listening Circle; Boyden Gallery, March 4, 2011
• FRESH film showing: March 9, at 8:00 p.m. at the Cole Cinema, St. Mary's College of Maryland, FRESH celebrates the farmers, thinkers and business people across America who are re-inventing our food system. Discuss related activities in Southern Maryland afterwards, led by Dr. Christine Bergmark, Southern Maryland Agricultural Development Commission The viewing is co-sponsored by the St. Mary’s College Environmental Studies, Sustainability Committee, and Campus Community Farm, along with the Southern Maryland Agriculture Development Commission (SMADC).
• Paleontology, the Environment & Maritime History (PEM) Talks; Shifting Shoreline: The Complex Case of Cove Point Marsh at the Calvert Marine Museum, Thursday, March 10, 2011 at 7:00 p.m.
• The Arc of Souther Maryland presents The 2011 Sprout Film Festival; March 12, at the College of Southern Maryland, La Plata Campus (Center for Business and Industry, Room BI-113) 8730 Mitchell Road, La Plata. This festival showcases films by, for and about people with developmental disabilities. Show times: 10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m.  Ticket price: $8.00.

•  “Religious Tolerance in Early America”, Discussion of Religious Tolerance at the Birthplace of ‘Freedom of Conscience’:  Friday, March 25 – Maryland Day, 4:30PM | TBD with Professor Owen Stanwood, Boston University.  Co-sponsored by the Department of History and Historic St. Mary’s City. 

• Chaney Visiting Scholar Public Lecture, War of 1812: Chesapeake’s Forgotten War: Thursday, March 31, 6:30PM | St. Mary's Hall at the St. Mary’s College of Maryland with David Healey, Author. 

•  Human Rights Film Series, “Enemies of the People” Wednesday, April 6, 6:30PM  | Cole Cinema at the St. Mary’s College of Maryland.  Hosted by Documentary Filmmaker Sherry Jones. 

•  The Benjamin Bradlee Distinguished Lecture in Journalism, “Politics, Policy, and Reality: What's Really Going on in Washington”:  Thursday, April 14, 7:00PM | St. Mary's Hall at the St. Mary’s College of Maryland.  Gwen Ifill, Managing Editor of PBS' Washington Week. 

• Patuxent Defense Forum, “Africa Rising”:  Tuesday, April 19 from 9:00AM – 4:00PM | Cole Cinema at the St. Mary’s College of Maryland and Wednesday, April 20 from 9:00AM – 12:00PM | Cole Cinema.  The 2011 Patuxent Defense Forum will provide an opportunity to dialogue with AFRICOM and inform U.S. investment in Africa. 

•  2011 Maryland Legislative Wrap Up, Tuesday, April 26, 4:30PM | Glendenning Annex at the St. Mary’s College of Maryland.   Annual discussion of the highlights of the session in Annapolis. 

•  Human Rights Film Series, “Nuremberg” Thursday, April 28, 6:30PM | Cole Cinema at the St. Mary’s College of Maryland.  Hosted by Documentary Filmmaker Sherry Jones. 

• Junteenth Celebration - 2011; Sponsored by the Unified Committee for Afro-American Contributions (UCAC), Saturday, June 18, 2011, 12:00 noon to 8:00 p.m.

        Program Partners and Neighborhood Network Participants

Contact:

Vicki and Dusty Rhoades

dustyvicki@comcast.net