News and Updates – Page 23

Human Rights Education Review, Volume 8, Issue 1 (2025)

by hreusaMay 14, 2025Leave a comment

The latest issue of Human Rights Education Review, the official journal of the International Association for Human Rights Education is now published. I invite you to browse Volume 8 (1) in which you will find an editorial addressing ‘Education for human rights and hope in a turbulent world’, 14 articles and many book reviews.

Articles address human rights learning in Canada, Finland, Japan, Mexico, Norway, Rwanda, South Africa, Sweden, UK, USA and more and span early years to higher education. All the current content is either Open Access or free access for a limited period.

HRER is now published by Taylor and Francis.

>> Read now

Oral History in Practice: Documenting Refugee Stories

by hreusaMay 13, 2025Leave a comment

Join us for a conversation with Diya Abdo about oral history as a tool for documenting refugee experiences and advocating for immigrant justice. Diya founded Every Campus A Refuge (ECAR), which advocates for housing refugee families on college and university campuses and supporting them in their resettlement, and led an oral history project recording newcomer experiences.

In this conversation, we’ll explore topics including:

Practices around relationship-building, privacy, and ethics for storytelling projects with immigrants and refugees
Ṣawt (“voice” in Arabic), a new oral history project that records and amplifies the voices and experiences of refugees hosted by colleges and universities
Creatively adapting oral histories into a variety of formats, including comics, literary narratives, videos, and powerful visuals

May 21, 2025, 2pm–3pm (PDT), virtual

HRE USA Submissions to United Nations Universal Periodic Review of the United States of America

by hreusaMay 13, 2025Leave a comment

HRE USA has submitted two reports for the Fourth Cycle of the 50th Session of the UPR to the Human Rights Council with Amnesty International, Educators’ Institute for Human Rights, Right to Learn (R2L) Coalition, and Students of Human Rights and Education, Columbia University (SHRECU).

Special thanks to our co-authors and organizational partners for their work in producing these reports on protecting the right to education, academic freedom, and human rights in the United States!

>> Read the report: Protecting The Right to Education, Academic Freedom, And Human Rights Education in the United States
>>Read the report: Attacks on Academic Freedom: Columbia University and Beyond

>> See all International Advocacy reports

HRE Resources for Living Together in Peace

by hreusaMay 12, 2025Leave a comment

The UN recognizes May 16 as the International Day of Living Together in Peace to promote peace, tolerance, inclusion, understanding and solidarity – both inside and across borders. Sustainable peace is possible only when human rights are respected.

The Day promotes reconciliation to help ensure peace and sustainable development, including through education, by working with communities, faith leaders and other relevant actors, through reconciliatory measures and acts of service, and be encouraging forgiveness and compassion among individuals.

HREA has over 20 resources addressing peace education, including lesson plans, toolkits, teacher training manuals and multimedia materials.

In preparation for educational activities for peace and throughout the year, you are welcome to explore HREA’s Online Resource Center for HRE resources on topics at the intersection human and children’s rights.

Zinn Education Project: Free Speech Movement Teacher Workshop

by hreusaMay 9, 2025Leave a comment

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

Eleanor Roosevelt: Censorship, Past & Present Panel Discussion

by hreusaMay 8, 2025Leave a comment

When: June 12, 6 – 7 pm

Location: Rockefeller Hall at Vassar College, 124 Raymond Ave, Poughkeepsie, NY 12604

Tickets: $35 General Admission

Register

Join us for a dynamic panel discussion on the legacy of Eleanor Roosevelt’s fight for free expression and how censorship continues to shape our world today. Featuring Blanche Wiesen Cook (Roosevelt biographer), Yana Gorokhovskaia (Freedom House), Lee Rowland (NCAC), Daniel Shank Cruz (PEN America), and Miriam Cohen (Evalyn Clark Professor Emerita of History), this conversation will explore the past and present of intellectual freedom, global censorship trends, and what Roosevelt’s legacy can teach us in this moment.

This panel supports our 2nd Annual Bravery in Literature “Banned Book Awards” Ceremony on October 11th. All ticket proceeds benefit our October event which honors authors whose books are challenged or banned. Find out more at ervk.org/banned-books.

Episodes 54 & 55 with Dr. Rick Halperin & Julie Rinker are available on Human Rights Education Now!

by hreusaMay 7, 2025June 3, 2025Leave a comment

We are pleased to announce the availability of our latest installment of podcast episodes in Human Rights Education NOW! Episodes 54 & 55 feature conversations with Dr. Rick Halperin & Julie Rinker.

Dr. Rick Halperin, Director of the Embrey Human Rights Program at SMU, has spent over five decades immersed in human rights activism and education. With a Ph.D. in Southern History from Auburn University, he taught history in 1985 and human rights in 1990. Rick has led numerous human rights trips, worked as a monitor across the globe, and served on several high-profile boards, including Amnesty International USA—where he chaired the board three times—and organizations fighting the death penalty and supporting torture survivors.

Julie Rinker is a doctoral student in Special Education at the Cal State LA/UCLA Joint Doctoral Program. Her research bridges literacy and human rights, focusing on dyslexia intervention and teacher mentorship. An art quilter and activist, she protests the death penalty using her textile work, often seen at the Texas Huntsville Unit and the U.S. Capitol. In the Summer of 2022, Julie was the first Edmonds Teaching Fellow for Human Rights Educators USA.

Episode 54 – Dr. Rick Halperin & Julie Rinker

Dr. Rick Halperin and Julie Rinker reflect on their deeply personal and professional journeys into human rights education. Julie shares how her literacy work in public schools naturally evolved into human rights education through socially relevant texts. Rick discusses how his academic studies, visits to Holocaust sites, and the death of Jan Palach in Prague shaped his lifelong commitment to human rights. Their shared experiences underscore the transformative power of education, memory, and advocacy. Julie credits Rick’s teaching and activism with inspiring her own work, including impactful visits to historical sites. They also explore Rick’s decades-long involvement with Amnesty International, including its expanding mission and current challenges. Despite shifts in focus—such as the diminishing emphasis on death penalty abolition—both emphasize the enduring importance of centering human dignity, with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights serving as a guiding foundation.

Topics Discussed:

Origins of their human rights commitment and educational approaches
Julie’s literacy and dyslexia work tied to social justice themes
Rick’s scholarly development through genocide studies and historical tragedies
The influence of site visits (e.g., Holocaust memorials) on worldview and activism
Amnesty International’s shifting focus and internal challenges
Why upholding human dignity remains central to all human rights efforts
Reflections on teaching, mentorship, and the future of abolition activism

🎧 Listen now on your favorite podcast platform or HERE
📖 Learn more HERE

Full topic listing available for PDF download HERE

Episode 55 – Dr. Rick Halperin & Julie Rinker

In Episode 55, Dr. Rick Halperin and Julie Rinker continue their conversation on the intersection of human rights education (HRE), literacy, and activism. Julie discusses how her doctoral work uses HRE to support students with reading disabilities, merging social justice with practical interventions for literacy challenges. The episode delves into the harsh realities and evolving methods of capital punishment in the U.S., with both guests emphasizing the importance of public education to inspire change and action. Rick shares firsthand experiences as a human rights monitor in conflict zones like Gaza and Central America, while both highlight the influence of personal role models in shaping their advocacy. The episode closes with powerful quotes and concrete recommendations: make HRE a mandatory part of U.S. education from early childhood through higher education and ensure all teachers are equipped to help struggling readers through a human rights lens.

Topics Discussed

Using human right education to support students with reading disabilities
Challenges and decline in use of the death penalty
Concerns over execution methods, including nitrogen gas
Importance of rehabilitation and transformation in incarceration
Rick’s monitoring work in Gaza, Central America, and Northern Ireland
Harsh realities of daily life in Gaza
Role models: Fran Bowman (Julie), Charles Hamilton Houston (Rick)
Inspirational quotes on dignity, literacy, and hope
Calls to make human rights education mandatory from K–12 through university
Advocacy for equipping all teachers to support struggling readers through a human rights lens

🎧 Listen now on your favorite podcast platform or HERE
📖 Learn more HERE

Full topic listing available for PDF download HERE

Thank you for supporting the Human Rights Education NOW! podcast!

Pre-K–12 Books for May Heritage Months

by hreusaMay 6, 2025Leave a comment

The Black Lives Matter at School guiding principle for May of Black Villages invites us to consider how extended families, collective villages, and intergenerational relationships play a role in community care and justice.

These books celebrating Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, Jewish, and Haitian heritage (May heritage months) focus on community strength and revolution, with lessons that teach us true history and help us to imagine into the future. Booklist

Our Jewish Identity and History list includes stories of cultural traditions, people of note, and collective resistance to oppression. Booklist

Find ideas for teaching about Haiti at the Teach Pluralism blog and Teaching for Change. Booklist

To defend children’s right to read and learn, join us on June 7 for the 5th annual Teach Truth Day of Action.

Learn More and Sign Up

Zinn Education Project: Erasing History: How Fascists Rewrite the Past to Control the Future

by hreusaMay 6, 2025Leave a comment

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

Rethinking Schools: Teaching Palestine Book Launch Celebration

by hreusaMay 5, 2025Leave a comment

Join Teaching Palestine: Lessons, Stories, Voices co-editors to launch the new Rethinking Schools book. Palestine has long been one of the great silences in the official curriculum. Teaching Palestine: Lessons, Stories, Voices provides educators with powerful tools to uncover the history and current context of Palestine-Israel in the classroom — poetry, personal narratives, interviews, role plays, critical reading and writing activities, and more. Teaching Palestine offers a defense of Palestinian humanity centering Palestinian lives, uplifting and celebrating Palestinians’ struggle for justice, and critiquing racism and inequality.

The editors will be joined by musician and activist Macklemore.

Participants will need access to Zoom. Register for the Zoom link.

ASL Interpretation will be available.

The event is free. To make events like this available to more educators and activists, we would greatly appreciate your solidarity donation.

May 8, 2025, 4pm (PT)/6pm (CT)/7pm (ET), virtual

>> Register