Black History & Culture

There is an increasing collection of FREE overview and specific access points to Black History resources.

​HISTORY
Black Freedom Struggle in the United States: Challenges and Triumphs in the Pursuit of Equality. Proquest. Primary Sources available FREE.  

Confronting History, Transforming Monuments. Facing History and Ourselves, 2020. Educator Resources

​February 2021: Honoring Black Agency and Black Joy. Facing History and Ourselves. “Here at Facing History, we know that Black history is central to all of American history, and should be part of a robust teaching curriculum year-round. Alongside the lessons of Black history, it’s also critical to honor the resilience, creativity, and vitality of Black people in the face of inequity and violence, past and present. That’s why, this year, we’re celebrating Black History Month by honoring the themes of Black Agency & Black Joy.” 

Fisher, Christina Brown. “The Black Female Battalion That Stood Up to a White Male Army.” New York Times, 17 June 2020. “The unit was set up to determine the value Black women brought to the military. They ultimately ran the fastest mail service in the European Theater during World War II.”

​Michigan State University. “Newest phase of massive slavery database welcomes public contribution.” 1 Dec 2020. “Michigan State University's searchable database containing millions of records cataloging the lives of enslaved Africans and their descendants — Enslaved.org — is launching a second phase that will accept contributions from the public and from academic researchers. The one-of-a-kind hub, Enslaved.org: Peoples of the Historic Slave Trade, developed and maintained by MSU researchers, links data collections from multiple universities, archives, museums and family history centers.”  

CULTURE (Arts & Literature)
​Louis, Pierre Antoine, interviewer. “Young Black Poets: Ten Teenage Writers Show the Future Of Poetry.” New York Times, 9 Oct 2020. Videos. William Lohier (Brooklyn); Alora Young (Nashville); Lelia Mottley (Oakland); Jacoby Jones (St. Louis); Madison Petaway (Houston); Ava Emhoff (Brooklyn); Nyarae Francis (LA); Akilah Toney (New Orleans); Samuel Getachew (Oakland); Inari Williams (Chicago).

PBS. Lesson Plan: Discuss 22-year-old Amanda Gorman’s Inaugural Poem “The Hill We Climb”. Jan 2021. In this lesson, students examine the poetry of Amanda Gorman, who was chosen to read her poem “The Hill We Climb” at President Joe Biden’s inauguration on Jan. 20, 2021. Gorman’s poem complemented Biden’s inaugural address and was written to reflect on “the history that we stand on, and the future that we stand for.”