A New Exhibit in Lee is Showcasing Voting Rights in America from the Smithsonian
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LEE, Mass – Saturday, June 7, the town of Lee welcomed "Voices and Votes: Democracy in America," an exhibit by the Smithsonian.
Lee Selectboard Chair, Sean Regnier, cut the ribbon welcoming people into the exhibit.
"This is quite an honor, and it's really just a showcase for how important voting rights are, and because of the great efforts of the past that it's because of that that we have this freedom to express our votes. And I'm sure that I'll learn a lot here, and I'm excited for that," Regnier said.
The exhibit takes viewers through the 250 years of voting rights in America.
Museum on Main Street is an outreach program that brings traveling exhibitions to small towns. They partnered with Mass Humanities to bring the exhibition to Lee.
Lee's executive assistant, Sabrina Touhey, applied for the exhibit last April and Mass Humanities chose to give Lee a $10,000 grant to cover the exhibit's cost.
Although Museum on Main Street originally wanted to have the exhibit downtown, there were no available locations. So they decided on Lee Premium Outlets who donated the space to use for six weeks.
The Eagles Community band played for guests inside and performed multiple songs throughout the day.
Representative Leigh Davis spoke about her time in Washington D.C. and visiting the Smithsonian.
"As someone who was born and raised in Washington, D.C., growing up, the Smithsonian was more than just a field trip. It was more than a rainy day outing. It was more than an escape from the heat. It was my playground, it was my classroom," she said. "It was my portal into the past. I wandered the Air and Space Museums. I wandered the natural museum history and, of course, the American History Museum, and I was drawn to the exhibits that told our story of democracy."
"From the beginning, our democracy has been shaped and reshaped by the questions we still ask today. Who has the right to vote, whose voices get heard? What does true representation look like? These questions aren't just historical, they're alive and they're pressing and they're being asked and answered right here in Lee, right here in the Commonwealth, right here in our nation," she continued.
Mass Humanities executive director, Brian Boyles, spoke about the exhibition and how it all comes together through volunteers.
"We brought people from all over Massachusetts, all six of those towns came together to unpack this and put it together. And what is maybe the biggest Lego set you can imagine," he said. "We didn't ask them for their party affiliation, we just asked them to put the parts together, and they did that work, and they took it back apart, packed it up, and sent it here. I think there's something really beautiful in that. It's something we can all learn from the work that they do."
The town of Lee is one of six towns chosen for the exhibition. Before, it was in Buckland, and it will travel to Ashby, Douglas, Holbrook, and East Sandwich after. It will be at the Lee Premium Outlets until July 18.
The exhibit is free to see and will be run by volunteers. It will be open Wednesdays and Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Fridays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
There is a schedule of events the town is hosting with the exhibit that can be found on the town's website. Those interested can also volunteer to be an attendant at the exhibit.
