Ella Baker graduated from Shaw University as valedictorian in 1927. A girl who grew up listening to her grandmother tell stories of her life when she was enslaved on the land her family later owned, Ms. Baker wasn't just her ancestors' wildest dreams -- she was more than they ever could have dreamed. She helped build Dr. King's organization, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, while running a voter registration campaign in Atlanta. She left the SCLC in 1960 after the Greensboro 4 -- four students from North Carolina Agricultural & Technical University -- organized a sit-in at a local Woolworth's drugstore counter, aided by students from Bennett College. Ms. Baker felt there was a tremendous amount of potential in the younger generation, and she gathered student leaders on the campus of her alma mater to help form the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. She helped coordinate the Freedom Rides of the 1960s, and mentored many of the leaders of the movement. She became an outspoken voice against not just racism in American society, but sexism and misogyny within the Civil Rights Movement -- and the Black church after which the movement was modeled. Ms. Baker believed Civil Rights and Human Rights to be intrinsically tied, saying "Even if we all can vote, but people are still hungry, we will not be free." Discussion Questions
Young Students (K3-2nd Grade) Ella Baker said, "I didn't break the rules, but I challenged the rules." In what ways can you respectfully challenge rules that seem unfair? Middle Students (Grades 3-8) Ella Baker believed young people were the key to progress in the movement. What will you do to take up the fight for equality, focusing on love, justice, and what is right? High School Students (Grades 9-12) Ella Baker had a hand in almost every Civil Rights organization -- the NAACP, SCLC, SNCC. She worked with King, Du Bois, Thurgood Marshall. Served as a mentor to Stokley Carmichael, Diane Nash and countless others. Few were as instrumental in organizing and progress as she was -- and yet, she was also deeply critical of the focus on charismatic heroes and the sexism on display in the movement. In other words, her intersectional identity as someone who was both Black and woman led her to call out the ways women were being oppressed even in a movement for freedom. Have you ever experienced a time when it felt like different parts of your identity were in conflict? How did you handle it? For Educators/Adults Ella Baker believed "strong people don't need strong leaders," rather they need. to have their leadership skills developed. In what ways are you working to develop the students in your classroom as leaders, rather than rote followers of rules that don't serve them? How are you empowering them to see themselves as leaders? How are you helping them to understand their potential and strengths so they can lead?
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Dr. Walter Massey doesn't just belong on the HBCU presidents Mt. Rushmore. He belongs on the higher ed Mt. Rushmore. He does it all: Physicist and leader in humanities. The only person to ever serve as both President and Chairman of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and as Chair of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design. Morehouse Man and President Emeritus of "Da 'House," as its called by students and alumni, and President Emeritus of School of the Art Instiute of Chicago. Former Chairman of Bank of America. Chairman of the board overseeing construction of the Giant Magellan Telescope. Man of Omega Psi Phi, and a giant among men. In 1979, Dr. Massey became the first African-American director of the Argonne National Library at the University of Chicago. In 1990, President George H.W. Bush appointed him as director of the National Science Foundation. Throughout his career, Dr. Massey has fought to increase the representation of women and people of color in the sciences, believing two things to be foundationally true: Science and technology are necessary to sustain the nation's quality of life and the standard of living of its citizens; and the general public's understanding of science and technology is a critical component of a democratic society. Discussion Questions
Young Students (K3-2nd Grade) Dr. Massey didn't let anyone paint him as "just" a physicist -- he explores all of his talents and interests to try to create a better society. How can you leverage your talents and interests to make the world around you better? Middle Students (Grades 3-8) Science is propelled by curiosity and a desire to find the answers to the questions we can't answer. What big questions do you have -- about the world, yourself, your school, your family -- that you don't have answers to yet? How can you find those answers? High School Students (Grades 9-12) Throughout his career, Dr. Massey has worked to get more women and people of color involved in the sciences, believing diverse representation in these fields will lead to a better informed society. Why do you think this idea of representation is important in a field like science? How does including voices that are normally excluded from the conversation impact research? For Educators/Adults Dr. Massey took up physics as a discipline of study, in part, to escape the racism he faced growing up in segregated Mississippi. In science, one could set his own research agenda without having his experiences negated. But even science isn't completely Black and white, or without bias. Are you working to make sure your students see themselves represented in all course material, including math and sciences? How are you bridging gaps between science and the arts to provide students with a complete picture of the world? When Nikole Hannah-Jones accepted a tenured position as the inaugural Knight Chair in Race and Journalism at Howard University in July 2021, she called it a "dream job." But it probably would have never happened if the Pulitzer Prize winning faculty member had her tenure promotion denied at the University of North Carolina, where she earned her master's degree, because Conservative donors objected to her presence. Hannah-Jones won the Pulitzer for her work on "The 1619 Project" when she was on staff at The New York Times. The project, released in August 2019 to commemmorate the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the first enslaved Africans in the U.S., details how slavery shaped the nation's political, social and economic institutions. Conservatives argue its intent was to make white people feel guilty about the action of their ancestors, and the project's release sparked a nationwide backlash against critical race theory (which details how racism has shaped the nation's system) that has led to bills in 36 states, and counting, banning this more complete portrayal of racism in American history. For her part, Hannah-Jones knows well the impact of that history. Her father was born to sharecroppers on a Mississippi plantation. He emigrated to Iowa as a young child, where Hannah-Jones and her sisters were bussed across town as part of the school desegregation effort. She started her career as a journalist covering the predominately Black Durham Public School System in North Carolina, where she repeatedly witnessed the disparities in the education system. Discussion Questions
Young Students (K3-2nd Grade) Have you ever told someone a story and left out important parts? Why did you do it? Has anyone ever told you or someone you know a story and left out important parts? How did it make you feel? Middle Students (Grades 3-8) The 1619 project examined "the idea of America," wrestling with the notion that the ideals of the Declaration of Independence and other founding documents of the United States were a contradiction when they were written. In fact, the same men who wrote "all men are created equal" lived on plantations built and staffed by enslaved people. African Americans, Native Americans, and women of any race didn't have rights. Imagine the United States was starting over as a country, and you were writing new founding documents. What values would you include as important for the new country? How would you work to make sure everyone was included and could equally experience those values? High School Students (Grades 9-12) Nikole Hannah-Jones has spent much of her career examining inequities in education and addressing school segregation, which is just as much a problem in 2022 as it was in 1954 when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against separate but equal in Brown vs. Board of Education. Do you think racism has become less of a problem in America since the end of the Civil Rights Movement? Why or why not? For Educators/Adults It is impossible for students to make text-to-self connections to texts in which they cannot see themselves. It is even worse when the text contradicts their lived experiences. In what ways are you working to make sure stuents see themselves and their experiences reflected in your classroom? Before he broke baseball's color line, Jackie Robinson was a four-sport letterman at the University of California at Los Angeles. He was the first athlete in school history to earn varsity letters in four sports -- and some say he was a better basketball player than baseball player. And for a time, he coached and served as athletic director at Samuel Huston College, an all-male historically Black institution in Austin, Texas that would later merge with Tillotson College to form what is now Huston-Tillotson University; the only HBCU in Austin. When he left UCLA, he first pursued football, integrating the Honolulu Bears, a semi-pro football team in Hawaii. Then the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor and Robinson was drafted into the Army. It was while in the Army and stationed 60 miles north of Austin at Fort Hood, Texas that Robinson was first introduced to the campus of Samuel Huston College. Then, one day in 1944, Robinson refused to sit in the back of the Army bus. He was court martialed, and called out the racist questioning practices. He was dishonorably discharged, and went back to what he knew: athletics.He called his mentor and former pastor, Karl Downs, who was president of Huston College at the time, and the rest, as they say, is history. Discussion Questions Young Students (K3-2nd Grade) Jackie Robinson is famous for breaking the color line in Major League Baseball, but he had a long history of being the first to achieve something, and standing up for how he believed he should be treated as a Black man in segregated America. What are some ways you stand up for what you believe in? Middle Students (Grades 3-8) One of Jackie Robinson's most famous quotes is, A life is not important, except in the impact it has on other lives." What impact do you think you are having on others now? Is it a good impact, or bad impact? Are you generally kind to others, or mean? Do you stand up for what you believe in, or are you too shy to speak up? Think of three ways you can make a positive impact on others, then write them down as a promise to yourself and those around you. High School Students (Grades 9-12) Because sports is a universal language, athletes are often in a position to lead change. From Jackie Robinson to Muhammad Ali to Jim Brown to LeBron James, many athletes have used their platforms to speak up about injustices in the U.S. But some have criticized this, with statements like, "shut up and dribble." Why do you think people feel threatened by athletes speaking up for what's right? What does that say about society? For Educators/Adults Most educators get into the field of eduction because they believe tey can make a difference. In what ways are you converting "belief" into action to make a difference for the students you encounter? Dr. Betty Shabazz (born Betty Dean Sanders and also known as Betty X) is best known as the wife of Malcolm X. But she was herself a force in the fight for Black liberation. In healthcare and nursing. In the field of education and her unwavering commitment to educating students who looked like her. Mother of six daughters. Daughter of Tuskegee -- though she didn't finish her education at Tuskegee because of the racism she encountered in Alabama. Sister of Delta Sigma Theta. And doctor of education. Dr. Shabazz grew up in an upper middle class adoptive Black family in Detroit that instiilled in her the importance of education and self-determination. After the death of her husband in 1965, Dr. Betty Shabazz became an important voice in the fight for equality, centering her efforts on education and human-rights causes, as well as issues crucial to women and children. Her work focused a lot on issues of health and education for children. She was an administrator and key fundraiser at Medgar Evers College of the City University of New York (CUNY) system until she died in 1997 of burn injuries. In 2002, the college created the Dr. Betty Shabazz Distinguished Chair in Social Justice in her honor. Discussion Questions Young Students (K3-2nd Grade) Dr. Shabazz and her husband, Malcolm X, both believed education is an important piece of the fight for human rights and increasing self-respect. What role do you think school plays in your life and your future? What do you enjoy about school? What do you think your teachers and the other leaders at school can do to better prepare you for your future? Middle Students (Grades 3-8) Dr. Shabazz's family didn't like to talk about race. They believed that if one didn't make trouble, they could live comfortable lives unimpacted by racism. When she got out on her own, first in Alabama, then in New York, Dr. Shabazz was shocked by the racism she encountered. Has there ever been a time in your life when you thought if you just ignored a problem, it would go away? What happened? High School Students (Grades 9-12) One of Dr. Shabazz's most well-known quotes is, "Most people can't deal with reality, but indulge heavily in fantasy and fear." What does this quote mean to you? Do you agree or disagree? Why? For Educators/Adults Both Betty and Malcolm Shabazz (X) believed that education is a key piece of a people's liberation and ability to advance. How are you approaching this task of education for liberation? Do your students feel free or bound in your classroom and school? Are they free to be their full selves, or are they subject to rigid structures for the sake of compliance and a false sense of order that doesn't actually encourage student learning and curiosity?
Andrew Young graduated from high school at the age of 15 and spent a year at Dillard University before following in his father's footsteps and going to Howard University. He is a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Spingarn Medal, which is awarded for the highest or noblest achievement by a living African American during the preceding year or years in any honorable field. He is a preacher. A Civil Rights leader. Friend and close associate of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and a man of Alpha Phi Alpha like Dr. King too. He was the first Black person elected to Congress from Georgia since Reconstruction, and the first Black U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. Ambassador Young used his platform to speak up for those jailed during the Civil Rights Movement, calling them "political prisons" of the U.S. After his time as an ambasador came to an end, he ran for mayor of Atlanta, at the urging of many, including Coretta Scott King. He has been a champion for voting rights, an outspoken advocate for the eradication of poverty, an advisor to presidents, and most recently a social entreprenuer. He continues to focus on expanding educational opportunity and working to alleviating hunger and poverty in the U.S. and abroad. Discussion Questions
Young Students (K3-2nd Grade) Andrew Young suffered from both dyslexia and attention deficit disorder (ADD). "I still read with a highlighter, but I've always loved to read," he said. Think of a time you had to do something that seemed difficult for you to do, or that others said you couldn't. How did you overcome the perceived limitations? Middle Students (Grades 3-8) Andrew Young said he never wanted to be mayor of Atlanta, or an ambassador, or work for Dr. Martin Luther King. He just wanted to be a writer who wrote about the movement, but he felt led to do something more. Can you think about a time when you felt led to do more than you'd planned? What did you do? High School Students (Grades 9-12) As an ambassador to the United Nations, Andrew Young was responsible for helping to resolve conflicts between people with different backgrounds, experiences, and interests -- and he always said that's a skill that has to be developed early in life. How do you work to resolve conflict with people who are different than you? How can you do more to develop these skills? For Educators/Adults Throughout his time in school, Andrew Young "wasn't predicted to be anything." In fact, he said his 4th grade teacher was the only one who ever said anything nice about him -- she complimented his penmanship, and he says she is the reason why he still writes well to this day. What words are you delivering to your students? How might they be impacted by the little things you do or don't say to them? Are you coupling emotional support with academic instruction? Today, we celebrate Dr. Johnetta B. Cole. Fiskite. Woman of Delta Sigma Theta. First Black woman president of Spelman College, founded for the education of Black women -- and she served as president of both all-women's HBCUs, coming out of retirement to take the helm of Bennett College in North Carolina, too. She is the granddaughter of Florida's first Black millionaire, Abraham Lincoln Lewis. And she helped build the W. E. B. Du Bois Department of African-American Studies as a faculty member at the University of Massachussetts. She has been a college president, a museum director -- upon retiring from Bennett, she served as Director of the National Museum of African Art in Washington, D.C. -- and she served on former President Bill Clinton's transition team for education in 1992. Dr. Cole is currently the president and chair of the National Council of Negro Women, an advocacy organization for women’s rights and civil rights. She is living Black history. We call her doctor because she has a doctorate of philosophy degree, and even though she isn't a medical doctor, she has dedicated her whole career to helping others and making a difference through education, civic activity, and even art. Discussion Questions Young Students (K3-2nd Grade) Dr. Cole once said, "Faced with what seems like an impossible task, a group of folks will do well to remember the African proverb: When spider webs unite, they can tie up a lion." What is something that you think is really hard or even impossible to do alone that can be made easier by coming together with other people? Middle Students (Grades 3-8) Dr. Cole served as president of Spelman College, an all-women's school in Atlanta, Georgia, from 1987-1997. The school's motto, "A Choice to Change the World" is in some ways a testament to Dr. Cole's own life. What choice will you make to change the world around you to make it better place for everyone in it? High School Students (Grades 9-12) Dr. Cole believed that "The content of the curriculum should never exclude the realities of the very students who must intellectually wrestle with it. When students study all worlds except their own, they are miseducated." Amid debated in 36 states to limit the way Black history -- American history -- is taught in schools, what do you think is the impact of these bills on Black and Native students who have to hear a different version of their histories in school? For Educators/Adults How are you showing up for the Black students in your classroom? Are you perpetuating miseducation by asking them to intellectually wrestle with content that negates their lived experiences? How can you help students them to properly contextualize what they're reading in curricular materials with information that validates their lived experiences?
Happy Birthday to Langston Hughes, graduate of Lincoln University of PA, Man of Omega Psi Phi, Classmate of Thurgood Marshall. A pivotal figure in the Harlem Renaissance who believed the American education system reinforced systemic racism as much as the country's political systems, and who sought to write books for young readers that showed Black children themselves and told stories of those who looked like them. Culturally responsive pedagogy before it had a name. While a student at Lincoln University, Hughes published his first book of poems, "The Weary Blues." He also published an essay, "The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain," which was considered one of the cornerstone documentations of the Harlem Renaissance. In it, he said the true problem Black artists -- and Black people --- faced was "this urge within the race toward whiteness, the desire to pour racial individuality into the mold of American standardization, and to be as little Negro and as much American as possible.” Discussion Questions Young Students (K3-2nd Grade) Langston Hughes wrote poetry that ignored normal poetry rules to instead reflect the way the people he wrote about talked. It was more important to him that his poetry served as a voice for those people weren't listening to than that it was "proper." In what ways can you use your voice to help people who don't usually get heard? Middle Students (Grades 3-8) One of Langston Hughes' most famous poems was called "I, Too, Am America." Why do you think he felt compelled to add the "too" in the middle? What impact did this emphasis have on his message? High School Students (Grades 9-12) Why do you think Langston Hughes said the greatest problem of Negro artists was the issue of assimilation? In what ways could wanting to be as little of one's self to fit into the bigger society be harmful? Are there any instances when it's helpful? For Educators/Adults How are you showing up for your students in and their ability to bring their full identities to your classroom and life in general? Are you being truly antiracist in your approach to teaching, or are you perpetuating a system that encourages students to shirk their racial identities to fit into a broader system of oppression?
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About the SeriesA Black Child Can was founded to create a better world for students by empowering the adults around them with the knowledge they need to advocate on their behalf. The 2022 blog series builds on this foundation, encouraging educators to participate in the discussion and reflect on the ways they're showing up for their students. ArchivesCategories |