Racism & Racial Identity Archives

Newspaper account of African Americans killed and wounded during labor strife in Polk County, from the New York Times; August 10, 1896.

Aug. 5, 1896: Polk County Massacre

White workers murdered Black workers in Arkansas who were coming to work on the railways.

Aug. 28, 1955: Murder of Emmett Till

Teenager Emmett Till was lynched.

Rock Springs Massacre | Zinn Education Project

Sept. 2, 1885: Rock Springs Massacre

White coal miners in Rock Springs, Wyoming, brutally attacked Chinese workers.

Students Bring Reconstruction to Life 1 (Material) | Zinn Education Project

How My Students Brought Reconstruction to Life

Article. By Amy Trenkle.
One of the teachers who piloted the Make Reconstruction History Visible project with her students shares the process she used.

Teaching Activity by Amy Trenkle

Frances Harper, William Sylvis, Isaac Myers, and John Roy Lynch pictured. They were leaders of the Reconstruction Era in US history

When the Impossible Suddenly Became Possible: A Reconstruction Mixer

Teaching Activity. By Adam Sanchez and Nqobile Mthethwa. 25 pages.
A mixer role play explores the connections between different social movements during Reconstruction.

Teaching Activity by Adam Sanchez

Teaching SNCC: The Organization at the Heart of the Civil Rights Revolution

Teaching Activity. By Adam Sanchez. Rethinking Schools. 24 pages.
A series of role plays that explore the history and evolution of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, including freedom rides and voter registration.

Teaching Activity by Adam Sanchez

What We Don’t Learn About the Black Panther Party — but Should

Teaching Activity. By Adam Sanchez and Jesse Hagopian. Rethinking Schools. 33 pages.
A mixer lesson introduces students to the pivotal history of the Black Panthers.

Clyde Kennard Letter to the Editor, The American, 1959

Article. By Clyde Kennard. 1959.
Letter to the editor the Hattiesburg American about race and integration.

John Earl Reese | Zinn Education Project

Oct. 22, 1955: John Earl Reese Murdered

In an effort to stop the implementation of Brown v. Board through terrorism, 16-yr-old John Earl Reese was killed in Mayflower, Texas.

A colorful painting of people being deported back to Mexico, by Kaelyn Savard.

Deportations on Trial: Mexican Americans During the Great Depression

Teaching Activity. By Ursula Wolfe-Rocca.
In this lesson, students analyze who is to blame for the illegal, mass deportations of Mexican Americans and immigrants during the Great Depression.

Teaching Activity by Ursula Wolfe-Rocca

Colfax Massacre in Colfax, Louisiana | Zinn Education Project: Teaching People's History

April 13, 1873: Colfax Massacre

The Ku Klux Klan carried out the Colfax Massacre in response to a Republican victory in the 1872 elections.

Hate Will Not Define Us | Zinn Education Project

Oct. 24 and 27, 2018: Hate Crimes in Kentucky and Pennsylvania

Two hate crime shootings in one week, one of African American shoppers in Kentucky and the other of Jewish worshippers in Pittsburgh.

Newspaper headline reading "2 More Join List Of Miss. Victims"

Oct. 30, 1959: Luther Jackson Murdered

Luther Jackson was murdered by Philadelphia, Mississippi policeman Lawrence Rainey.

American Islamophobia (Book) | Zinn Education Project

American Islamophobia: Understanding the Roots and Rise of Fear

Book — Non-fiction. By Khaled Beydoun. 2018. 264 pages.
Describes the many ways in which law, policy, and official state rhetoric fueled the resurgence of Islamophobia in the United States

July 30, 1920: Lynching of Sergeant Edgar Caldwell

Sergeant Edgar Caldwell, a Black man, was hanged before a crowd of spectators in the yard of the Calhoun County jail for riding in a white streetcar.

Headline of article from the Pine Bluff Daily Graphic, September 4, 1919.

Sept. 1, 1919: Lynching of WWI Veteran Clinton Briggs

Decorated WWI veteran Clinton Briggs was killed in Arkansas.

Newspaper article on the Vicksburg Massacre.

Dec. 7, 1874: Vicksburg Massacre

White people attacked and killed many Black citizens who had organized for a Black sheriff to remain in office during the Vicksburg Massacre.

Sept. 4, 1875: Clinton, Mississippi Massacre

Nearly 50 African-Americans were killed by white mobs during the Clinton Riot.

May 8, 1959: Mexican American Communities Evicted

Palo Verde, La Loma, and Bishop were close-knit Mexican American communities that were destroyed in the 1950s to make way for Dodger Stadium.

Dec. 12, 1870: Joseph H. Rainey First African-American in U.S. House of Reps

Joseph H. Rainey, from South Carolina, was the first African-American to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Thirteenth Amendment | Zinn Education Project

Dec. 18, 1865: Ratification of 13th Amendment

Secretary of State William H. Seward declared the 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution to have been adopted.

Indians at Mankato; they were found guilty for their actions during the Dakota Conflict. Public execution of 38 Dakota Illustration by W. H. Childs, 12/26/1862. Courtesy to Pioneer Press: Minnesota Historical Society

Dec. 26, 1862: Mass Execution of Dakota Indians

The mass execution of 38 Dakota Indians was ordered by President Abraham Lincoln.

Before She Was Harriet

Picture book. By Lesa Cline-Ransome and James E. Ransome. 2017. 32 pages.
An illustrated biography of Harriet Tubman written in verse.

Jazz Owls: A Novel of the Zoot Suit Riots

Book — Historical fiction. By Margarita Engle. 2018. 192 pages.
A novel that uses free verse to tell the story of the 1943 Zoot Suit (or Sailor) Riots through a wide range of characters.

Dec. 15, 1791: Bill of Rights Ratified

The first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution, known as the United States Bill of Rights, were ratified.

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