Races, Negroes: United States. Alabama. Tuskegee. Tuskegee Institute: Agencies Promoting Assimilation of the Negro. Training Negro Girls in Domestic Science. Tuskegee Institute, Tuskegee, Alabama: Dress-Making Division. 1902

Curator: Frances Benjamin Johnston made this gelatin silver print titled "Races, Negroes: United States. Alabama. Tuskegee. Tuskegee Institute" sometime in the late 19th or early 20th century. It depicts a dress-making division at the Institute. Editor: It's a somber, almost haunting image. The women are busy at work, yet their expressions seem…distant, burdened perhaps. It feels posed, self-conscious. Curator: Johnston's photography often documented educational settings. Here, the domestic science training is meant to symbolize progress and assimilation, but the title hints at something else. Editor: The sewing itself carries a complex symbolism. Traditionally a domestic skill, it becomes a tool for social mobility, for navigating the expectations of a white-dominated society. Curator: Exactly, and the repetition of figures, the almost uniform attire, reinforces that idea of conformity. The image is about more than just dressmaking. Editor: It is about the weight of expectation, the prescribed roles. And I can't help but wonder what these women truly felt about the promise—or the pressure—of assimilation. Curator: Well, the image certainly stirs a lot to reflect on, doesn't it? Editor: Absolutely, a powerful testament to the silent narratives woven into the fabric of history.