For Memorial Day Weekend, we feature an article by David Blight about the early origins of the holiday, led by African Americans in Charleston, South Carolina, after the Civil War; an article by Howard Zinn urging us to never embark on mass slaughter again; and the documentary and companion oral history collection, Memorial Day Massacre: Workers Die, Film Buried.
Black education was a fugitive project from its inception — outlawed and defined as a criminal act regarding the slave population in the southern states and, at times, too, an object of suspicion and violent resistance in the North. — Jarvis Givens, Fugitive Pedagogy
We just posted Legalize Black Education: The Long Fight for the Right to Learn by Jesse Hagopian. This lesson reveals a pattern: When Black people make significant educational gains — or score victories in their broader struggles for freedom — there is a corresponding white supremacist backlash that often includes legal restrictions and violence.
Students explore laws passed to curb Black education in the wake of major victories for the Black Freedom Struggle, highlighting the historical context and motivations behind these legislative efforts. They also discuss quotes about Black education.
Check out the lesson and let us know if you use it in your classroom. We’ll send you books in appreciation for your teaching story.
Handouts from the lesson are also available to use as mini-lessons for the Teach Truth Day of Action.
Join us for an interview by Rethinking Schools editor Jesse Hagopian with activist scholars Bettina Aptheker, author of Intimate Politics: How I Grew Up Red, Fought for Free Speech, and Became a Feminist Rebel and Robert Cohen, author of The Essential Mario Savio: Speeches and Writings that Changed America. The workshop is co-sponsored by the University of California National Center for Free Speech and Civic Engagement.
Aptheker will describe her own involvement with the Free Speech Movement (FSM) and Cohen will trace the roots of the FSM back to the Black Freedom Struggle in Mississippi. Both will address the legacy of the Free Speech Movement and the current free speech crisis on campuses and other public institutions. We will share teaching ideas and there will be breakout group discussions about addressing the FSM in the classroom.
The first 100 teacher attendees to register and attend will receive a free copy of one of the books listed above. Professional development credit certificate provided.
May 21, 2025, 4pm (PT)/7pm (ET), virtual
>> Register
We are delighted to host scholar Jason Stanley in conversation with Rethinking Schools editor Jesse Hagopian for an online class on Monday, May 12.
Here is why: In Erasing History: How Fascists Rewrite the Past to Control the Future, Jason Stanley exposes the ways authoritarian regimes manipulate historical narratives to maintain power.
Stanley demonstrates how attacks on education and historical memory support authoritarianism, undermining public understanding of past struggles for justice.
By showing how history is weaponized to advance political agendas, Stanley underscores the importance of preserving historical truth as a safeguard against authoritarian rule.
Stanley doesn’t just diagnose the problem — he also offers strategies to resist these attacks, from advocating for historical literacy to supporting educators under fire. As one of those resistance strategies, he points to the role of teachers using people’s history lessons from the Zinn Education Project.
This class is in preparation for the 5th annual Teach Truth Day of Action.
May 12, 4pm (PT)/7pm (ET), virtual
>> Register
Teaching Activity. By Ursula Wolfe-Rocca.
In this lesson, students analyze who is to blame for the illegal, mass deportations of Mexican Americans and immigrants during the Great Depression.
Time Periods: 1920
Themes: Immigration, Labor, Latinx, Laws & Citizen Rights, Racism & Racial IdentityShare
Join the Teach Climate Network and presenter Tessa Anttila on Wednesday, April 16th from 5:00 pm – 6:00 pm CT for our final workshop of the season, which will focus on expanding emotional capacity to combat the climate crisis.
The Teach Climate Network’s three-day climate change education conference is built by educators and climate change professionals from across North America! We are planning the 2025 Summer Institute now. Please contact education@climategen.org if you have questions.
Are you seeking a space to reflect, recharge, and connect with a diverse network of educators? Join us for the 20th annual Teach Climate Network Summer Institute, happening over three days from July 14th – 17th! This event offers the chance to select from 30+ workshops and connect with local and national leaders in climate change education; leaving you feeling inspired, connected, and ready to teach climate action with your students and communities.
With more schools and public spaces named for journalist and anti-lynching crusader Ida B. Wells, it is time for students to learn about the courage and vitality of this radical activist.
They also need to be ready to resist any efforts under this administration to remove Wells’ name from public spaces and curriculum.
High school teacher Matt Reed offers a lesson to introduce students to the life and work of Wells.
Read about the lesson and download it for free at Rethinking Schools.
Join the Teach Climate Network and presenter Luke Gliddon on Wednesday, March 19th from 5:00 pm – 6:00 pm CT for a workshop about climate optimism and brighter possible futures.
HRE USA 