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West side museum starts off online, focusing on women’s contributions

The first exhibit highlights “women who organized church tamaladas, circulated petitions... spoke out at city council meetings and women who led school PTAs."

SAN ANTONIO — Work is being done to create the first of its kind museum on San Antonio’s west side.

The first exhibit at Museo del Westside focuses on the accomplishments of women who have “marched, boycotted and rallied for social change.”

A description on the museum’s website depicts it as, “Women, who organized church tamaladas, circulated petitions and spoke out at city council meetings. Women who led school PTAs and shared their homes with families displaced by flooded neighborhoods. Women who celebrated their identity and culture and challenged male-dominated industries. Politicians, neighborhood activists, educators, labor leaders, journalists, ranchera singers and carpa performers. Women who intentionally worked toward the change they wished to see. Women who acted on what they believe. Women who are remembered by their daughters and granddaughters, who are vital members of la comunidad del Westside.”

This Thursday, December 10 at 7 p.m., Museo del Westside is hosting a “plática” (or talk) about the museum’s creation and its first exhibit called “Women and Activism in the Westside.” It will be on both Facebook and YouTube. The talk will focus on several activists like Isabel Sanchez, Emma Tenayuca, Beatrice Gallego and Eva Garza.

The physical museum itself is still being renovated inside the historic Ruben’s Ice House, located at 816 S Colorado St, which is about a mile away from UTSA’s downtown campus.

Dr. Laura Hernandez-Ehrisman is a co-curator of the exhibit. The cultural historian who lives in Austin has written extensively on San Antonio's history.

“The Museo del Westside is a community-centered museum. We work with the Westside community to create new projects and design exhibits that are oriented around community needs and desires,” Hernandez said. “The museo is created by, and responsive to, San Antonio's historic Westside.”

Hernandez wrote the book called “Inventing the Fiesta City: Heritage and Carnival in San Antonio,” which was released in 2016. She is currently working on a manuscript on the social history of Latinx workers at Kelly Air Force Base. She said Thursday’s event will be interactive for those who participate online because it includes a conversation that features distinguished panelists who are both profiled in the exhibit, and who contributed stories and artifacts of family members for the exhibit.

“We would like guests to appreciate the broad definition of ‘activism’ by learning about the many women who promoted positive social changes on the Westside. Some of the women we profile became well known outside of the Westside, but other women's stories are just now being made public through this exhibit,” Hernandez said. “We feature how their work is central to shaping the historic Westside. We want to encourage Westside community members to share their stories with us as well.”

To learn more about the plática and how to support the museum, click here.

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