August 12 marks the second anniversary of the deadly Unite the Right Rally in Charlottesville. As we mourn last week’s attacks along with communities in California, Texas and Ohio—and across the United States—we hold all survivors in our hearts. In this edition of The Moment, we share three stories from Charlottesville—stories of a mother, a student and a district that responded to hate with not only love but with a commitment to justice.
Every year, we hear of students and educators whose Halloween costumes reinforce stereotypes, bolster systems of oppression or even make light of hate. In these cases, a simple conversation might have prevented a lot of harm. We hope you'll take the time to talk with your students about their Halloween costume choices this year—and think carefully about your own. Here's a place to start.
We join you in mourning those lost to violence this weekend. Like many of you, we’re feeling angry, exhausted and heartbroken. We take some solace in offering these resources for supporting your students and communities and for doing what you can to fight hate before it turns violent. After losses like these, we know we must move forward. But we refuse to move on.