Over the weekend, white supremacists burned Black Lives Matter flags that belonged to two Black churches in Washington, D.C. during a pro-Trump rally. Earlier this month, Casey Goodson Jr., a Black man, was shot and killed by police while walking into his Columbus, Ohio, home. It’s essential that teachers counter the insidiousness of anti-Blackness and white supremacy with students and affirm that Black lives do matter. These resources can help.
Young Black organizers who confront oppressive systems have always been met with violence—educators can look at the uprisings of Freedom Summer in 1964 and those in Minneapolis in 2020 for evidence. Despite the pushback they face, Black activists’ work leads to changes in laws and culture. Use these resources to teach about Freedom Summer and highlight how Black people have asserted their agency in efforts to effect policy change in the United States.