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The accurate history of American slavery should be taught to children in age-appropriate and honest ways that develop critical thinking, while recognizing that Black history is U.S. history and goes beyond slavery. These LFJ publications—including Teaching Hard History: American Slavery, a K-12 curriculum framework—reinforce the importance of teaching this history honestly and provide resources for educators and parents.

The application for the Teaching Tolerance Award for Excellence in Teaching is now open! Find out how to apply or how to nominate someone for the award—and read about what winning the award has meant to past recipients.

How can history help us resist hate in society today and work toward a more inclusive future? Opposition to equality is, unfortunately, not new to the history of the United States. Recognizing the relevance of history to today’s justice movements is crucial for understanding and countering current pushbacks against democratic values. And with the intense efforts to dismantle public education and to erase and alter our country’s history, teaching accurate history — including the hard truths of our nation’s past — is essential. 

Black history is American history—and it should be taught year round. But Black History Month offers a great opportunity to focus attention on the history and contributions of African Americans. This edition of The Moment features a few of our favorite black history resources: the text "Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing" (the "Black National Anthem"), our new materials on effectively teaching about American slavery and our article about one teacher’s commitment to “mining the jewel" of February each year.