Labor Day at the Museum of Work & Culture

Join the Museum of Work & Culture, a division of the Rhode Island Historical Society, on Saturday, Sept. 3, 2022, as they celebrate Labor Day with free admission and events for the whole family.

At 10 a.m., the museum will host a panel on Latino labor history in Rhode Island that will shed light on some of the themes in the current changing gallery shows, Bittersweet Harvest: The Bracero Program, 1942-1964 and “This Kind of Love, Our Love”: Latino Stories in the Blackstone Valley, 1960s-Today. The panel will be moderated by University of Rhode Island Professor Emeritus Scott Molloy and will feature Progreso Latino Executive Director Mario Bueno, Fuerza Laboral Executive Director Heiny Maldonado, RI Latino Arts Executive Director Marta V. Martínez and RI AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Patrick Crowley.

The museum will also begin its celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month by kicking off its weekly Spanish-language museum tours. The first tour will begin at 11 a.m. and be led by Woonsocket City Councilwoman and VIDA Church Pastor Valerie Gonzalez, and the second will begin at 2 p.m. and be led by Miss Woonsocket 2021, Kaitlynne Santana.

At 3 p.m., filmmaker Christian de Rezendes will present a preview of season one of his documentary series, Slatersville: America’s First Mill Village. Following the screening, de Rezendes will host a panel featuring participants and the creative team of the series including Gail Denomme, co-producer; Joey DeFrancesco, co-writer; Stephen Gilbane, composer; and Barbara Tucker, Slater historian and author/project consultant.

This free event is sponsored by the RI Labor History Society. This program is also part of the Rhode Island Historical Society’s Bicentennial Celebrations, sponsored by Amica Insurance.