On Monday, 20 January, Donald Trump will become the 47th President of the United States at his second Inauguration in Washington D.C. What does the Inauguration involve, who participates, and what does it cost? The first Inauguration was George Washington’s in New York in 1789. The newly independent United States hadn’t built its new federal … Continue reading “Everything You Need to Know About: U.S. Presidential Inaugurations”
Jimmy Carter served just one term as the 39th President of the U.S.A., but his public service started long before his White House stay and continued to the end of his long life. He has died aged 100. Jimmy Carter often described himself as a Georgia peanut farmer. He was born in 1924 on the … Continue reading “A President Passes”
America, America is an exhibition of photos by esteemed American photojournalists and street photographers such as Lewis Hine, Gordon Parks and Helen Levitt. They are all part of the Marin Karmitz collection and are on show at the Lumière Institute till 5 January. The forty works on display span the 20th century, starting chronologically with … Continue reading “America, America Photography Exhibition in Lyon”
On 15 July, Donald Trump announced his running mate for the 5 November presidential election: Senator J.D. Vance. The new Republican candidate for Vice-President is a conservative serving his first term in the Senate and a former critic of Trump. James David Vance grew up poor in the mid-west, in Ohio, although his family roots … Continue reading “U.S Election: J.D. Vance”
Independence Day is a celebration for all Americans, but for some it has special significance. It’s a traditional day for holding naturalisation ceremonies, welcoming new citizens to the U.S.A. A total of 878,500 people obtained U.S. citizenship through naturalisation in 2023. Ceremonies take place all year round, but a lot take place in honour of … Continue reading “Becoming American on the Fourth of July”
The two main candidates for the 2024 U.S. Presidential election will participate in a TV debate on 27 June, months earlier than in usual campaign years. Donald Trump and Joe Biden aren’t even officially the Republican and Democratic candidates yet: that will happen when their parties hold their national conventions, from 15 July for the … Continue reading “Biden and Trump Debate”
The latest photography exhibition at the Musée Maillol in Paris is Andres Serrano: Portraits of America, and the museum is organising three teachers’ days, when you can visit for free. Serrano has tackled some tough subjects, like the Ku Klux Klan, so a pre-visit can let you prepare what you would like pupils to concentrate … Continue reading “Andres Serrano: Portraits of America Teachers’ Days”
A new documentary, Girls State, looks at a social experiment where 500 girls from Missouri try to form a government, running for positions like Governor and Supreme Court Justices. It makes a fascinating contrast with the award-winning 2020 documentary by the same team following 1000 boys in Texas participating in the same national project. Both … Continue reading “If Girls Were in Charge”
You may not be familiar with her name but you must be familiar with her struggle: fighting inequalities, defending minorities and women… Shirley Chisholm, a trailblazer in politics, the first African American woman to run for president in the 1970s paved the way for the following generations thanks to her determination. Her willpower and desire to … Continue reading “Chisholm for President”
A new TV film shines the spotlight on a trailblazer in U.S. politics: Shirley Chisholm, the first African American woman to be elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, and the first, and only, woman to run for the Presidential nomination. Regina King plays “Fighting Shirley”, who faced, and faced up to, obstacles all through … Continue reading “Shirley Chisholm the Woman Who Ran for President”