People’s Movement
Teaching Activity PDFs
Warriors Don’t Cry: Connecting History, Literature, and Our Lives
Teaching Activity PDF. By Linda Christensen. 21 pages.
Role play and writing activities for language arts and social studies on the Little Rock Nine, Brown v. Board, and schooling in general. Designed for use with the memoir, Warriors Don’t Cry.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Education, Language Arts, Racism & Racial Identity
“A School Year Like No Other”: Eyes on the Prize: “Fighting Back: 1957-1962″
Teaching Activity PDF. By Bill Bigelow. 7 pages.
A companion lesson to the Eyes on the Prize segment on school integration.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Education, Individuals in US History, Laws & Citizen Rights, Organizing, Racism & Racial Identity
“We Had Set Ourselves Free”: Lessons on the Civil Rights Movement
Teaching Activity PDF. By Doug Sherman. 4 pages.
The author describes how he uses biographies and film to introduce students to the role of people involved in the Civil Rights Movement beyond the familiar heroes. He emphasizes the role and experiences of young people in the Movement.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Organizing, Racism & Racial Identity
Lessons in Solidarity: Grady Hospital Workers United
Teaching Activity PDF. By Larry Miller. 6 pages.
Story and discussion questions about a teacher’s own experience of labor solidarity.
Salt of the Earth: Grounds Students in Hope
Teaching Activity PDF. By S.J. Childs. 6 pages.
The author describes how she introduces students to the classic 1953 film Salt of the Earth about a miners’ strike in New Mexico.
Pump Up the Blowouts: Reflections on the 40th Anniversary of the Chicano/a School Blowouts
Teaching Activity PDF. By Gilda L. Ochoa. 5 pages.
Reflections on teaching students about the 1968 walkouts by Chicano students in California.
Civil Rights Movements, Education, Latino, Organizing, Racism & Racial Identity
A Revolution of Values
Teaching Activity PDF. By the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. 3 pages.
Text of speech by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on the Vietnam War, followed by three teaching ideas.
Civil Rights Movements, Imperialism, US Foreign Policy, Wars & Related Anti-War Movements
School Days: Hail, Hail, Rock ‘n’ Roll!
Teaching Activity PDF. By Rick Mitchell. 10 pages.
Description of a course on the history of music in the U.S.
Art & Music, Civil Rights Movements, Racism & Racial Identity
‘What We Want, What We Believe’: Teaching with the Black Panthers’ Ten Point Program
Teaching Activity PDF. By Wayne Au. 7 pages.
The author describes how he used a study of the Black Panther’s Ten Point Program to help students assess issues in their own communities and to develop Ten Point Programs of their own.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Organizing, Racism & Racial Identity
The Most Dangerous Man in America Teaching Guide
Teaching Activities. Zinn Education Project. 2010. 100 pages.
Eight lessons for use with the documentary film about Daniel Ellsberg, the Pentagon Papers, the Vietnam War, and whistleblowing.
Media, US Foreign Policy, Wars & Related Anti-War Movements, World History/Global Studies
Rethinking the Teaching of the Vietnam War
Teaching Activity PDF. By Bill Bigelow. 8 pages.
A role play on the history of the Vietnam War that is left out of traditional textbooks.
Imperialism, US Foreign Policy, Wars & Related Anti-War Movements
The Black Upsurge Against Racial Segregation
Teaching Activity PDF. By Tasha Boettcher. 17 pages.
Questions and teaching ideas for Chapter 17 of Voices of a People’s History of the United States on the long Civil Rights Movement in America.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Laws & Citizen Rights, Racism & Racial Identity, Social Class
Hidden in Plain Sight: Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Radical Vision
Teaching Activity. By Craig Gordon. 2003. Urban Dreams and the Martin Luther King, Jr. Papers Project.
Lesson to introduce students to the speeches and work of Dr. King beyond “I have a dream.”
Losing Control in the 1970s
Teaching Activity PDF. By Jennifer Rosebrook. 16 pages.
Questions and teaching ideas for Chapter 20 of Voices of a People’s History of the United States on the legacy of scandal since the end of the Vietnam War and the Watergate break-in.
Democracy & Citizenship, US Foreign Policy, Wars & Related Anti-War Movements
Vietnam and Beyond: The Historic Resistance
Teaching Activity PDF. By Mike Benbow and Robin Pickering. 17 pages.
Questions and teaching ideas for Chapter 18 of Voices of a People’s History of the United States on opposition to the Vietnam War.
Imperialism, Social Class, US Foreign Policy, Wars & Related Anti-War Movements
Women, Gays, and Other Voices of Resistance
Teaching Activity PDF. By Jack Bareilles. 17 pages.
Questions and teaching ideas for Chapter 19 of Voices of a People’s History of the United States on the emergence and legacy of the 1960s counterculture, as well as the movements it helped create.
Civil Rights Movements, Democracy & Citizenship, Laws & Citizen Rights, LGBT, Women's History
Teaching Guides
Lessons from Freedom Summer: Ordinary People Building Extraordinary Movements
Book – Teaching Guide. Edited by Kathy Emery, Linda Reid Gold and Sylvia Braselmann. Foreword by Howard Zinn. 2008. 456 pages.
Readings and lessons on the 1964 Mississippi Summer Project.
The Promise: Brown v. Board of Education, The Civil Rights Movement, and Our Schools
Teaching Guide. Edited by Rethinking Schools. 2004.
Analysis and teaching ideas on school desegregation.
Putting the Movement Back into Civil Rights Teaching
Teaching Guide. Edited by Deborah Menkart, Alana D. Murray, and Jenice L. View. 2004. 576 pages.
Provides lessons and articles for K-12 educators on how to go beyond a heroes approach to the Civil Rights Movement, with a focus on education, economics, labor, youth, women, and culture.
Articles
The Politics of Children’s Literature: What’s Wrong with the Rosa Parks Myth
Aritcle. By Herbert Kohl. 6 pages.
A critical analysis that challenges the myths in children’s books about Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Education, Women's History
Audio
Get It From The Drums: A History of Protest and Protest Songs of the 1960s and 70s
Audio CD and Book. By Wynne Alexander. 2006.
Books: Fiction
Freedom on the Menu: The Greensboro Sit-Ins
Book – Fiction. By Carole Boston Weatherford. 2007. 32 pages.
Historical fiction in an upper elementary picture book about the Greensboro sit-ins.
Freedom School, Yes!
Book – Fiction. By Amy Littlesugar. Illustrated by Floyd Cooper. 2001. 40 pages.
Historical fiction for upper elementary about the 1964 Freedom Schools.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Education, Organizing, Racism & Racial Identity
My Mother the Cheerleader
Book – Fiction. By Robert Sharenow. 2007. 304 pages.
Louise’s mother spends her mornings at the local elementary school with a group of women known as the Cheerleaders, who harass the school’s first black student, six-year-old Ruby Bridges.
No Crystal Stair: A Documentary Novel of the Life and Work of Lewis Michaux, Harlem Bookseller
Book – Fiction. By Vaunda Micheaux Nelson. Artwork by R. Gregory Christie. 2012. 188 pages. About the life of Lewis Micheaux, owner of the famous National Memorial African Bookstore.
Patrol: An American Soldier in Vietnam
Book – Fiction. By Walter Dean Myers. 2005. 40 pages. Upper elementary.
Sophisticated picture book on one soldier’s patrol in Vietnam.
Remember: The Journey to School Integration
Book – Fiction. By Toni Morrison. 2004. 80 pages. Upper elementary and above.
Fictional story and real photographs tell the story of desegregation.
The Rock and the River
Book – Fiction. By Kekla Magoon. 2010. 304 pages.
Coming-of-age story that shows the close connections between the civil rights and black power movements through an intimate and relatable lens.
Scraps of Time: Abby Takes a Stand, 1960
Book – Fiction. By Patricia McKissack. 2006. 112 pages. For ages 9+.
Historical fiction about the lunch counter sit-ins.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Organizing, Racism & Racial Identity, Social Class
A Thousand Never Evers
Book – Fiction. By Shana Burg. 2008. 320 pages.
Set in 1963 Mississippi, this historical fiction introduces middle/high school readers to the life at that time through the experiences of 12-year-old Addie Ann Pickett.
Books: Non-Fiction
The Assassination of Fred Hampton: How the FBI and Chicago Police Murdered a Black Panther
Book – Non-fiction. By Jeffrey Haas. 2009. 424 pages.
The life and murder of Fred Hampton as told by Jeffrey Hass, co-founder of the People’s Law Office and attorney for the plaintiffs in the federal suit Hampton v. Hanrahan.
Civil Rights Movements, Individuals in US History, Laws & Citizen Rights
At the Dark End of the Street: Black Women, Rape, and Resistance — a New History of the Civil Rights Movement from Rosa Parks to the Rise of Black Power
Book – Non-fiction. By Danielle L. McGuire. 2010. 352 pages.
History of the violence against African-American women during the 20th century and the role played by Rosa Parks in the organized legal response to that abuse.
Civil Rights Movements, Racism & Racial Identity, Women's History
Bayard Rustin: Behind the Scenes of the Civil Rights Movement
Book – Non-fiction. By James Haskins. 1997. 128 pages.
Biography for middle school readers of Bayard Rustin.
Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice
Book – Non-fiction. By Phillip Hoose. 133 pages. Ages 10+
The story of Claudette Colvin, a teenager who refused to give up her seat in the year leading up to the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
Debating the Civil Rights Movement, 1945-1968
Book – Non-fiction. By Stephen Lawson and Charles Payne. 2006. 227 pages.
Introduces and examines the complex story of the modern Civil Rights Movement as it should be taught, providing key background information and analysis for teachers.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Democracy & Citizenship, Laws & Citizen Rights, Racism & Racial Identity
The Eyes on the Prize Civil Rights Reader: Documents, Speeches, and Firsthand Accounts from the Black Freedom Struggle, 1954-1990
Book – Non-fiction. Edited by Clayborne Carson, David J. Garrow, Gerald Gill, Vincent Harding and Darlene Clark Hine. 1991.
Readings to accompany the Eyes on the Prize film.
Freedom’s Children: Young Civil Rights Activists Tell Their Own Stories
Book – Non-fiction. By Ellen Levine. 1993. 192 pages.
Thirty African-Americans who were children during the 1950s and 1960s tell their true stories of what it was like for them to fight segregation in the South.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Organizing, Racism & Racial Identity
Freedom’s Teacher: The Life of Septima Clark
Book – Non-fiction. By Katherine Mellen Charron. 2009. 480 pages.
Biography of Septima Clark who played a major role in the Civil Rights Movement through education.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Education, Women's History
Hands On the Freedom Plow: Personal Accounts by Women in SNCC
Book – Non-fiction. Edited by Faith S. Holsaert, Martha Prescod Norman Noonan, Judy Richardson, Betty Garman Robinson, Jean Smith Young, and Dorothy M. Zellner. 2010. 632 pages.
An unprecedented women’s history of the Civil Rights Movement, from sit-ins to Black Power.
Hope and History: Why We Must Share the Story of the Movement
Book – Non-fiction. By Vincent Harding. 2010 (2nd Edition). 240 pages.
A call to educators, clergy, and community activists to remember and keep alive the story of the black-led freedom movement.
I Must Resist: Bayard Rustin’s Life in Letters
Book – Non-fiction. Edited by Michael G. Long. By Bayard Rustin. Foreword by Julian Bond. 2012. 276 pages.
The story of the behind-the-scenes strategist, organizer, and advocate of non-violence, Bayard Rustin.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, LGBT, Organizing, Racism & Racial Identity
I’ve Got the Light of Freedom: The Organizing Tradition and the Mississippi Freedom Struggle
Book – Non-fiction. By Charles M. Payne. 1995. 506 pages.
The people’s history of the Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Democracy & Citizenship, Organizing
The John Carlos Story: The Sports Moment That Changed the World
Book – Non-fiction. By John Carlos and Dave Zirin. Foreword by Cornel West. 2011. 220 pages.
Written for grades 7+, this biography of John Carlos recounts his childhood, his legendary act of courage at the ’68 Olympics, and the backlash.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Democracy & Citizenship, Racism & Racial Identity, Sports
John Lewis in the Lead: A Story of the Civil Rights Movement
Book – Non-fiction. By Jim Haskins and Kathleen Benson. Illustrated by Benny Andrews. 2006. 32 pages.
The life of Civil Rights Movement activist and now Congressman, John Lewis.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Individuals in US History
Letters from Mississippi: Reports from Civil Rights Volunteers and Freedom School Poetry of the 1964 Freedom Summer
Book – Non-fiction. Edited by Elizabeth Sutherland Martinez. Introduction by Julian Bond. 2007. 400 pages.
Letters and poetry from Civil Rights Movement volunteers in the summer of 1964.
Local People: The Struggle for Civil Rights in Mississippi
Book – Non-fiction. By John Dittmer. 1995. 560 pages.
A detailed, grassroots description of the Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi.
Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention
Book – Non-fiction. By Manning Marable. 2011. 608 pages.
A biographical account of Malcolm X.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Racism & Racial Identity
Many Minds, One Heart: SNCC’s Dream for a New America
Book – Non-fiction. By Wesley C. Hogan. 2009. 463 pages.
An innovative study of what the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) accomplished and, more importantly, how it fostered significant social change in such a short time.
Nobody Gonna Turn Me ‘Round: Stories and Songs of the Civil Rights Movement
Book – Non-fiction. By Doreen Rappaport. Illustrated by Shane W. Evans. 2008. 64 pages.
Stories and songs for upper elementary from the Civil Rights Movement from 1955 to 1965.
African American, Art & Music, Civil Rights Movements, Labor, Organizing
On the Road to Freedom: A Guided Tour of the Civil Rights Trail
Book – Non-fiction. By Charles E. Cobb, Jr. 2008. 388 pages. High School and Adult.
An educational travel guide to historic sites of the Civil Rights Movement.
A People’s History of Science: Miners, Midwives, and “Low Mechanicks”
Book – Nonfiction. By Clifford D. Conner. 2005. 554 pages.
New look at history of science, highlights hunter-gatherers, farmers, sailors, miners, blacksmiths, and more.
A People’s History of the United States: 1492 – Present
Book – Non-fiction. By Howard Zinn. 2005. 702 pages.
Howard Zinn’s groundbreaking work on U.S. history. This book details the lives and facts that are rarely included in textbooks — an indispensable teacher and student resource.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Democracy & Citizenship, Economics, Education, Immigration, Imperialism, Labor, Laws & Citizen Rights, Native American, Organizing, Racism & Racial Identity, Slavery, Social Class, US Foreign Policy, Wars & Related Anti-War Movements, Women's History
Ready for Revolution: The Life and Struggles of Stokely Carmichael (Kwame Ture)
Book – Non-fiction. By Stokely Carmichael and Ekwueme Michael Thelwell. 2005. 848 pages.
Autobiography of Stokely Carmichael (Kwame Ture).
Refusing Racism: White Allies and the Struggle for Civil Rights
Book – Non-fiction. By Cynthia Stokes Brown. 2002. 192 pages.
Four short biographies of white people who’ve fought against racism in U.S. history.
Civil Rights Movements, Individuals in US History, Racism & Racial Identity
Remembering Jim Crow: African Americans Tell About Life in the Segregated South
Book – Non-fiction (with CD). Edited by William H. Chafe, Raymond Gavins and Robert Korstad. 2008. 346 pages.
African American, Individuals in US History, Laws & Citizen Rights, Racism & Racial Identity, Social Class
Robeson in Spain
Book – Non-fiction. By The Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives. 2009. 25 pages.
Booklet in graphic novel format on Paul Robeson’s involvement in the Spanish Civil War.
African American, Art & Music, Racism & Racial Identity, Wars & Related Anti-War Movements, World History/Global Studies
Rosa
Book – Non-fiction. By Nikki Giovanni. 2005. 40 pages.
A beautifully illustrated book for children about the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
Selma, Lord, Selma: Girlhood Memories of the Civil Rights Days
Book – Non-fiction. By Sheyann Webb and Rachel West Nelson as told to Frank Sikora. 1980. 168 pages.
The moving story of two young girls who were caught up in the 1965 movement in Selma, Alabama.
She Would Not Be Moved How We Tell the Story of Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott
Book – Non-fiction. By Herbert Kohl. Intro by Marian Wright Edelman. 126 pages. 2007.
The myths and facts about Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
Side by Side/Lado a lado
Book – Non-fiction. By Monica Brown, translation by Carolina Valencia, illus. by Joe Cepeda. 2010. 32 pages.
The life stories and activism of the two founders of the United Farmworkers (UFW), written and illustrated for young children.
Silver Rights
Book – Non-fiction. By Constance Curry. Introduction by Marian Wright Edelman. 1996. 288 pages.
The true story of the Carter family’s decision to send their children to an all-white school.
Simple Justice: The History of Brown v. Board of Education and Black America’s Struggle for Equality
Book – Non-fiction. By Richard Kluger. 2004. 880 pages.
One of the first texts, now a classic, on Brown v. Board.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Education, Laws & Citizen Rights, Racism & Racial Identity
SNCC: The New Abolitionists
Book – Non-fiction. By Howard Zinn. 2002. 286 pages.
A detailed history of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee.
Soldiers in Revolt: GI Resistance During the Vietnam War
Book – Nonfiction. By David Cortright. 2005. 355 pages.
Students on Strike: Jim Crow, Civil Rights, Brown, and Me
Book – Non-fiction. By John A. Stokes with Lois Wolfe. 2007. 128 pages.
First person description of the student led movement to desegregate schools in Prince Edward County.
This Day in Civil Rights History
Book – Non-fiction. By Horace Randall Williams and Ben Beard. 2009. 368 pages.
A full page description of a key event in the history of the Civil Rights Movement for each day of the year.
Through My Eyes
Book – Non-fiction. By Ruby Bridges. 1999. 64 pages.
Biography of Ruby Bridges for middle school.
Civil Rights Movements, Education, Individuals in US History
Undaunted By The Fight: Spelman College And The Civil Rights Movement, 1957-1967
Book – Non-fiction. By Harry G. Lefever. 2005. 304 pages.
The story of Spelman College students and faculty engagement in the Civil Rights Movement from 1957 to 1967.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Education, Women's History
The Vietnam Wars: 1945-1990
Book – Non-fiction. By Marilyn B. Young. 1991. 448 pages.
The history of the Vietnam War.
US Foreign Policy, Wars & Related Anti-War Movements, World History/Global Studies
Vietnam: An Antiwar Comic Book
Book – Non-fiction. by Julian Bond and illustrated by T. G. Lewis. 1967. 19 pages.
A detailed history and analysis of the Vietnam War in an easy to read format.
African American, Racism & Racial Identity, US Foreign Policy, Wars & Related Anti-War Movements
Waiting ‘Til the Midnight Hour: A Narrative History of Black Power in America
Book – Non-fiction. By Peniel E. Joseph. 2007. 432 pages.
A narrative history of the Black Power Movement.
Warriors Don’t Cry: A Searing Memoir of the Battle to Integrate Little Rock’s Senior High
Book – Non-fiction. By Melba Pattillo Beals. 2007. 336 pages.
Story of a teenage girl chosen to integrate Little Rock High School.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Education, Individuals in US History, Organizing
We Are One: The Story of Bayard Rustin
Book – Non-fiction. By Larry Dane Brimner. 2007. 48 pages.
A sophisticated picture book on a key civil rights leader.
We Shall Overcome: A Song That Changed the World
Book – Non-fiction. By Stuart Stotts. Illustrated by Terrance Cummings. 2010. 64 pages and a CD.
History of the song from the Civil Rights Movement and other struggles, We Shall Overcome.
African American, Art & Music, Civil Rights Movements, Individuals in US History, Organizing
We Took the Streets: Fighting for Latino Rights with the Young Lords
Book – Non-fiction. By Miguel Melendez. 2003. 260 pages.
Legacy of the Young Lords in the Puerto Rican struggle for equality and independence.
Civil Rights Movements, Individuals in US History, Latino, Organizing
The Wrong Side of Murder Creek: A White Southerner in the Freedom Movement
Book – Non-fiction. By Bob Zellner with Constance Curry. Foreword by Julian Bond. 2008. 351 pages.
Zellner tells how one white Alabamian joined ranks with the black students who were sitting-in, marching, fighting, and sometimes dying to challenge the southern “way of life.”
Films
At the River I Stand
Film. Directed by David Appleby, Allison Graham and Steven Ross. 1993. 58 min.
Documentary on the African American sanitation workers’ 1968 fight for human dignity and a living wage in Memphis.
Brother Outsider: The Life of Bayard Rustin
DVD. Produced by Nancy Kates and Bennett Singer. 2002. 83 minutes.
Documentary about the life of peace, labor, and civil rights activist Bayard Rustin.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Labor, LGBT, Organizing
Chisholm ’72 – Unbought and Unbossed
DVD. By Shola Lynch. 2004. 76 min.
Documentary about Brooklyn Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm and her campaign to become the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee in 1972.
Conscience and the Constitution
Film. By Frank Abe. 2000. 57 minutes.
In World War II, 63 Japanese Americans refused to be drafted from an American concentration camp.
Asian American, Laws & Citizen Rights, Organizing, Wars & Related Anti-War Movements
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.: “Beyond Vietnam”
Film clip. Dr. Martin Luther King’s “Beyond Vietnam” (1967) speech is read by Michael Ealy. From Voices of a People’s History of the United States.
Eyes on the Prize: America’s Civil Rights Years, 1954-1985
Film. Produced by Henry Hampton. Blackside. 1987.
Comprehensive documentary history of the Civil Rights Movement.
February One
Film. Produced by Dr. Steven Channing. 2004. 61 min.
February One tells the story surrounding the 1960 Greensboro lunch counter sit-ins.
Freedom Riders
Film. Written, produced, and directed by Stanley Nelson. 2011. 120 minutes.
A first hand look at the 1961 rides from the Freedom Riders themselves and others who were there.
Civil Rights Movements, Organizing, Racism & Racial Identity
Freedom Song
Film. By Phil Alden Robinson. 2006. 117 min.
Based on the actual history of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), student activism, and voter registration in McComb, Mississippi during the Civil Rights Movement.
Howard Zinn: You Can’t Be Neutral on a Moving Train – DVD
Film. By Deb Ellis and Denis Mueller. 2010. 78 minutes.
Documentary on life and work of Howard Zinn.
Individuals in US History, Labor, Organizing, Social Class, Wars & Related Anti-War Movements
John Lewis: “Original Text to be Delivered at the Lincoln Memorial”
John Lewis’ “Original Text of Speech to be Delivered at the Lincoln Memorial” (1963) read by Brian Jones. From Voices of People’s History of the United States.
The Lemon Grove Incident
Film. By Paul Espinosa. 1986.
An early story of desegregation in a 1931 school that barred Mexican-Americans.
Malcolm X: “Message to the Grass Roots”
Film clip.
Malcolm X, “Message to the Grass Roots” (1963), read by Mos Def. From Voices of a People’s History of the United States.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Democracy & Citizenship
Mighty Times: The Children’s March
Film. By Hudson and Houston. 2005. 40 minutes.
This Academy Award-winning documentary film tells the heroic story of the young people in Birmingham, Alabama, who brought segregation to its knees.
The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers
Film. By Judith Ehrlich and Rick Goldsmith. 2009. 94 minutes.
The riveting story of how a Pentagon official risks life in prison by leaking 7,000 pages of a top secret report to the New York Times to help stop the Vietnam War.
The Power of 504
Film. (Youtube video.) 18 minutes.
Documentary on the historic civil rights demonstration of people with disabilities in 1977.
Ruby Bridges
Film. Directed by Euzhan Palcy. 1998. 96 minutes.
The true story of Ruby Bridges, the six year old girl who helped to integrate the all-white schools in New Orleans.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Education, Laws & Citizen Rights, Racism & Racial Identity
Sam Cooke: A Change is Gonna Come
Film clip. Sam Cooke’s “A Change is Gonna Come” (1964), is performed by Allison Moorer. From Voices of a People’s History of the United States.
African American, Art & Music, Democracy & Citizenship, Laws & Citizen Rights
Scarred Justice: The Orangeburg Massacre 1968
DVD. Produced by Judy Richardson and Bestor Cram. 2009. 57 minutes.
A documentary film that brings to light the story of the attack by state police on a demonstration in Orangeburg, South Carolina — leaving three students killed and 28 injured.
Sir! No Sir!
Film. By David Zeiger. 2005. 84 min.
This award-winning film demonstrates the role soldiers and veterans played in the anti-Vietnam War movement.
Standing on My Sisters’ Shoulders
Film. By Joan Sadoff, Robert Sadoff, and Laura Lipson. 2002. 60 minutes.
Documentary film on women in the Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi.
Civil Rights Movements, Individuals in US History, Organizing, Women's History
Teaching About the Montgomery Bus Boycott
Film. By Teaching for Change. 2006. 15 min.
First grade teacher Maggie Donovan (SNCC veteran) introduces her students to the fight to desegregate the buses, placing Rosa Parks in the context of the larger community efforts.
Viola Liuzzo
Profile.
Civil Rights Activist. Murdered in 1965 by the KKK after the Selma to Montgomery march.
Viva La Causa
Film. Bill Brummel Productions. 2008. 39 minutes.
A documentary film and teaching guide on the grape strike and boycott led by Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta in the 1960s.
Walkout
Film. Produced by Moctesuma Esparza. 2006. 111 minutes.
Walkout tells the true story of the Chicano students of East L.A., who in 1968 staged several dramatic walkouts in their high schools to protest academic prejudice and dire school conditions.
Civil Rights Movements, Education, Latino, Organizing, Racism & Racial Identity
We Shall Remain
Film and website. 2009. 450 minutes.
Three hundred years of Native American history.
Civil Rights Movements, Laws & Citizen Rights, Native American, Racism & Racial Identity
When We Were Kings
Film. Directed by Leon Gast. 1996. 89 minutes.
Documentary about the famous heavyweight championship match between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman.
Picture Books
Freedom on the Menu: The Greensboro Sit-Ins
Book – Fiction. By Carole Boston Weatherford. 2007. 32 pages.
Historical fiction in an upper elementary picture book about the Greensboro sit-ins.
Freedom School, Yes!
Book – Fiction. By Amy Littlesugar. Illustrated by Floyd Cooper. 2001. 40 pages.
Historical fiction for upper elementary about the 1964 Freedom Schools.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Education, Organizing, Racism & Racial Identity
John Lewis in the Lead: A Story of the Civil Rights Movement
Book – Non-fiction. By Jim Haskins and Kathleen Benson. Illustrated by Benny Andrews. 2006. 32 pages.
The life of Civil Rights Movement activist and now Congressman, John Lewis.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Individuals in US History
Nobody Gonna Turn Me ‘Round: Stories and Songs of the Civil Rights Movement
Book – Non-fiction. By Doreen Rappaport. Illustrated by Shane W. Evans. 2008. 64 pages.
Stories and songs for upper elementary from the Civil Rights Movement from 1955 to 1965.
African American, Art & Music, Civil Rights Movements, Labor, Organizing
Patrol: An American Soldier in Vietnam
Book – Fiction. By Walter Dean Myers. 2005. 40 pages. Upper elementary.
Sophisticated picture book on one soldier’s patrol in Vietnam.
Rosa
Book – Non-fiction. By Nikki Giovanni. 2005. 40 pages.
A beautifully illustrated book for children about the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
Side by Side/Lado a lado
Book – Non-fiction. By Monica Brown, translation by Carolina Valencia, illus. by Joe Cepeda. 2010. 32 pages.
The life stories and activism of the two founders of the United Farmworkers (UFW), written and illustrated for young children.
Sit-In: How Four Friends Stood Up by Sitting Down
Book – Non-fiction. By Andrea Davis Pinkney. Illustrated by Brian Pinkney. 2010. 40 pages.
A picture book about the 1960 Woolworth sit-ins.
We Are One: The Story of Bayard Rustin
Book – Non-fiction. By Larry Dane Brimner. 2007. 48 pages.
A sophisticated picture book on a key civil rights leader.
Posters
1961 Freedom Riders
Poster. Created by Joseph Portiglione and Eric Etheridge.
Mississippi mugshots of the 328 courageous Freedom Riders of 1961.
Civil Rights Movements, Laws & Citizen Rights, Racism & Racial Identity
Bayard Rustin Poster
Poster. By Ricardo Levins-Morales.
Bayard Rustin, long time peace activist, labor organizer, and civil rights activist.
Profiles
Murray, Pauli: Fighting Jane Crow
Article. By Paula Giddings, The Nation, May 23, 1987.
Review of Pauli Murray’s autobiography, Song in a Weary Throat: An American Pilgrimage (Harper & Row).
Songs and Poems
Elegy for Peter Norman
Poem by Josh Healey. From Hammertime. 2008.
Poem in text and audio about Peter Norman, the white athlete in the iconic photo of the ’68 Olympics.
Spanish/Bilingual
Side by Side/Lado a lado
Book – Non-fiction. By Monica Brown, translation by Carolina Valencia, illus. by Joe Cepeda. 2010. 32 pages.
The life stories and activism of the two founders of the United Farmworkers (UFW), written and illustrated for young children.
Websites
Civil Rights Movement Veterans Website
Website.
Resources on the Southern Freedom Movement compiled by those who lived it. Includes a bibliography, timelines, photos, primary source documents, and lists of speakers.
The Collection: Oral Histories/Archives from The Disability Rights and Independent Living Movement
Website.
More than 100 oral histories with leaders and shapers of the disability rights and independent living movement.
Disability Rights Movement
Website.
Descriptions and images of eras and movements within the U.S. Disability Rights Movement.
Eyes on the Prize: America’s Civil Rights Movement 1954-1985
Website.
Comprehensive companion website to PBS documentary series.
Mario Savio: Memorial Lecture Fund
Website. Mario Savio: Memorial Lecture Fund and Young Activist Award.
This website provides information about the free speech activisit as well as information about nominating students for the Young Activist Award.
Voices of the Montgomery Bus Boycott
Website.
Video interviews & articles telling the first hand stories of 27 individuals who participated in the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the Civil Rights Movement.
African American, Civil Rights Movements, Democracy & Citizenship, Laws & Citizen Rights
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