“Felton X”: Bill Russell
Black Power Josh Davidson Black Power Josh Davidson

“Felton X”: Bill Russell

Reading by Josh Ozersky
William (Bill) Felton Russell, a basketball star for the Boston Celtics in the 1960s, was nicknamed “Felton X” because he wouldn’t denounce the Nation of Islam. Most athletes and entertainers are afraid to damage their careers by speaking out against injustice, but still a brave few continue today.

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From Freedom to Liberation: Politics and Pedagogy in Movement Schools
Black Power Josh Davidson Black Power Josh Davidson

From Freedom to Liberation: Politics and Pedagogy in Movement Schools

Reading by Daniel Perlstein
What distinguishes the Movement schools from most of public education is not, in the final analysis, the techniques they employed. Rather, at issue is whether curriculum and pedagogy would perpetuate racism and other forms of social inequality or would foster change. There is, then, no Movement approach to education without rebuilding the Movement.

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Preserving and Teaching Black History
Traditional Narrative Josh Davidson Traditional Narrative Josh Davidson

Preserving and Teaching Black History

Interview of Timothy Jenkins by Rock Newman
During this powerful interview, Timothy Jenkins talks about the history of Howard University, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), pan-Africanism, liberatory education, the Association for the Study of African American Life and Culture (ASALH), Black history as American history, Stokely Carmichael, lessons from the barbershop, revolutionary nonviolence, and much more.

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Teaching About Nonviolence and Self-Defense
Traditional Narrative Josh Davidson Traditional Narrative Josh Davidson

Teaching About Nonviolence and Self-Defense

Teaching Idea by Julian Hipkins III
In the article and video clip used in this lesson, Charles E. Cobb Jr. talks about the role that self-defense and nonviolence played in the Civil Rights Movement. Cobb explains that for many, nonviolence was a tactic rather than a way of life. People in communities across the south were prepared to use lethal force when necessary to protect themselves.

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African American Cooperatives Curriculum
Labor and Land Josh Davidson Labor and Land Josh Davidson

African American Cooperatives Curriculum

Teaching Idea by Jessica Gordon Nembhard
Throughout history, among all groups and people in every country, cooperatives have facilitated economic development, stabilization, and independence, often for those who have been economically marginalized. Learn about the long history of African American cooperative economic thought and practice.

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Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights Act
Voting Rights Josh Davidson Voting Rights Josh Davidson

Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights Act

Reading by Emilye Crosby
This text explains how the Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights Act addressed distinct forms of racial discrimination. It is provided as background information for “A Documents-Based Lesson on the Voting Rights Act: A Case Study of SNCC’s work in Lowndes County and the Emergence of Black Power” by Emilye Crosby.

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Civil Rights Movement Tactics
Voting Rights Josh Davidson Voting Rights Josh Davidson

Civil Rights Movement Tactics

Reading by Emilye Crosby
This text explores how the Civil Rights Movement utilized a range of tactics to address different problems. It is provided as background information for “A Documents-Based Lesson on the Voting Rights Act: A Case Study of SNCC’s work in Lowndes County and the Emergence of Black Power” by Emilye Crosby.

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Mississippi at Atlantic City
Voting Rights Josh Davidson Voting Rights Josh Davidson

Mississippi at Atlantic City

Reading by Charles M. Sherrod
In 1964, a year after Birmingham’s fire hoses were unleashed on Black children and a year before the March from Selma to Montgomery, SNCC decided to upgrade their protracted work in Mississippi.

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