History is the story of how we became the people we are today. Few areas of U.S. history explore that idea better the Civil Rights Era. Today, students learn alongside classmates from different ethnic backgrounds, nationalities and religions. Most American students who grew up in the 21st century haven’t experienced the institutionalized racism and discrimination that was part of everyday life just 50 years ago. For many of them, the idea that segregation was violently enforced just two generations ago can be shocking. But understanding that critical piece of American history will help them appreciate why American society looks dramatically different today.
The Civil Rights Era is one of the most engaging and dramatic units a student will ever encounter. Students will read and watch first-person accounts of life and death struggles over basic human rights. And these primary resources won’t be out of a dusty old archive. These are riveting and harrowing stories told by people who are, in some cases, still alive today. We will explore the Montgomery Bus Boycott, the March on Washington, the 1965 Civil Rights Act, Brown v. Board of Education and many other critical moments that dramatically changed American society. Students will examine and interact with critical figures in the fight for racial and gender equality.
Students will also explore the methods used to deny many Americans the basic rights students enjoy today. They will interact with a real-life “literacy test” that prevented many citizens from voting. This type of hands-on simulation will allow them to see how the civil rights struggle ensured that future generations could enjoy greater freedoms. In addition, the class will analyze different perspectives on school desegregation. Students will view the filmed confrontation known as the “Stand in the Schoolhouse Door” where a pro-segregation governor tried to prevent African American students from entering the University of Alabama. The class will be able to examine the views expressed by Governor George Wallace and by federal officials such as President Kennedy who forced the integration of the school.
The class will not just study the Civil Rights Era, it will explore the people and issues that make it a critical period in our history. Below are several primary resources that parents and guardians can explore with their student:
1965 Alabama literacy test and background information from PBS.
The Civil Rights Era is one of the most engaging and dramatic units a student will ever encounter. Students will read and watch first-person accounts of life and death struggles over basic human rights. And these primary resources won’t be out of a dusty old archive. These are riveting and harrowing stories told by people who are, in some cases, still alive today. We will explore the Montgomery Bus Boycott, the March on Washington, the 1965 Civil Rights Act, Brown v. Board of Education and many other critical moments that dramatically changed American society. Students will examine and interact with critical figures in the fight for racial and gender equality.
Students will also explore the methods used to deny many Americans the basic rights students enjoy today. They will interact with a real-life “literacy test” that prevented many citizens from voting. This type of hands-on simulation will allow them to see how the civil rights struggle ensured that future generations could enjoy greater freedoms. In addition, the class will analyze different perspectives on school desegregation. Students will view the filmed confrontation known as the “Stand in the Schoolhouse Door” where a pro-segregation governor tried to prevent African American students from entering the University of Alabama. The class will be able to examine the views expressed by Governor George Wallace and by federal officials such as President Kennedy who forced the integration of the school.
The class will not just study the Civil Rights Era, it will explore the people and issues that make it a critical period in our history. Below are several primary resources that parents and guardians can explore with their student:
1965 Alabama literacy test and background information from PBS.
1963 NBC News report on “Stand in the Schoolhouse Door” at the University of Alabama (including speech by Governor Wallace):
President Kennedy’s speech that same day about his decision to federalize the Alabama National Guard and integrate the University of Alabama: