November 01, 2015 For many years, a consensus existed in the organized American Jewish community that we should support the democratically-elected government of Israel, whether Labor or Likud, on a non-partisan basis, particularly on matters of Israeli security. The logic was twofold: Moral – Israelis put their lives on the line every day in a dangerous neighborhood and we, sitting in the comfort of America, should respect Israel’s democratic process regarding the safety and…
302 Results
October 28, 2015 We live in an increasingly pluralistic, multicultural and connected world. In order to prepare students to live, learn and eventually work successfully in society, we need to prepare them. Diversity in the United States is rapidly increasing, especially among young people entering our school system. 2014 was the first school year when more children of color were enrolled in U.S. public schools than white children. However, the diversity of our teaching force is…
by: Jinnie Array September 18, 2015
On Monday, Ahmed Mohamed, a fourteen year old high school freshman with a talent for tinkering and technology, brought a homemade digital clock he constructed to school to show his teachers. His engineering teacher was impressed but later in the day when it beeped during English class, Ahmed’s troubles began. He showed the device to his English teacher who notified school officials who then notified the police. “She thought it was…
Para fomentar escuelas y aulas respetuosas, inclusivas y equitativas, es importante reconocer la lengua que hablan los alumnos y sus familias. Esas lenguas reflejan y afirman su origen étnico, su cultura y su herencia. Según datos recientes del Censo, 63,7 millones de personas (o el 19,1% del total de la población) que viven en Estados Unidos se identifican como hispanos/latinoamericanos. Además, la mayoría de los hispanos (75%) afirman ser capaces de…
GRADE LEVEL: High School
COMMON CORE STANDARDS: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening Racial Discrimination and Safeguarding the Right to Vote In August 2015, we commemorated the 50th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act which was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson in 1965. The Voting Rights Act is landmark federal legislation that was enacted during the Civil Rights Movement and was intended to prevent racial discrimination in voting. Prior to that, even though Black…
For Educators Because discussions of race and racism are part of our public discourse, educators feel a sense of responsibility to bring these topics into their classrooms—because young people want to be part of the conversation and should be. If handled effectively, these discussions provide opportunities for timely learning. Below are suggestions and strategies for having classroom conversations with young people about race and racism. Prior to these discussions and…
June 22, 2015
As we grieve, protest and further investigate the horrific murder of nine African American parishioners at the historic Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, SC, many people are asking: What should we tell the children?
Parents, family members and others are sometimes uneasy about discussing issues of violence and injustice with children because they want to protect them from terrible and scary topics. However, it is important that children have a language for…
by: Jinnie Array June 19, 2015
Rachel Dolezal, President of the Spokane, Washington chapter of the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People), made headlines and became the top trending item on Twitter last week when it was discovered that she had been posing as Black for many years. In her interview on the Today Show, she continued to assert: “I identify as Black.” These events have sparked strong emotions—anger, confusion, sympathy,…
June 15, 2015 In Summer 2015, an incident caught on video captured a police officer outside a community pool who appears to be waving his gun at young partygoers who approached him as he tried to subdue and eventually hold down a teenage girl. She was wearing a bikini because she was at a pool party.
The party was held at the community pool in the Craig Ranch North subdivision, which is predominately white although McKinney, Texas is racially diverse. A group of African American…
Early Childhood Question Corner For Educators | For Parents, Families, and Caregivers Media, such as television, movies, videos, games, apps and websites, can have a powerful influence on your child. Children are drawn to the sights, sounds and colors that appear on the television screen, computer monitor and apps on our phones. Media can provide exciting and unique learning opportunities. Learning from and about media works best when you and your child watch and learn together and talk about…
Early Childhood Question Corner For Educators | For Parents, Families, and Caregivers Young children can be blunt and direct as they notice and talk about the differences they notice among people. That can sometimes make their parent or caregiver feel uncomfortable, especially in public settings. Remember that young children’s initial observations about difference do not intend to be hurtful. Instead, it shows their developing curiosity and awareness of the diversity in the world in…
Early Childhood Question Corner For Educators | For Parents, Families, and Caregivers There is no need to wait until children ask questions about differences to begin conversations. However, these discussions will have the greatest impact when they follow from children’s interests, and when they are appropriate in length, frequency and content relative to children’s intellectual and emotional capacity. Louise Derman-Sparks (1989) writes that awareness of, and talking about,…
Early Childhood Question Corner For Educators | For Parents, Families, and Caregivers Many adults think that talking with children about our differences teaches prejudice. In Anti-Bias Curriculum, Louise Derman-Sparks (1989) debunks that myth and writes that talking about differences does not increase prejudice in children. Whether or not adults discuss differences with children, all children begin to notice differences among people as part of their natural development. It is the messages…
Early Childhood Question Corner For Educators | For Parents, Families, and Caregivers Although children are not born with prejudice, by early childhood they have already acquired stereotypes or negative attitudes toward those that they perceive as “others.” An article in The Buffalo News reports that about 85 percent of the brain develops between ages 3 and 5, and that impressions and ideas formed between ages 2 and 4 are lasting (Lessons in Respect, 2003). Researchers tracking the…
Engage students in exploring the topic bullying in the U.S., using children's literature as a foundation for discussion.
Early Childhood Question Corner
Common themes appear in holidays and celebrations across many cultures. By connecting themes, as suggested in the Question Corner installment "How can I plan inclusive holiday celebrations?" you can show children that holidays and celebrations are an expression of cultural and religious pride, and help them understand the commonality of certain human feelings, celebrations and their meaning. For example, by trying the following activity, Looking…
by: Naomi Mazin April 01, 2015
This week, the world lost a true hero. Dr. Leon Bass, who turned his personal and life-altering experiences with racism and anti-Semitism into opportunities to educate, inspire action in others and bear, in word, deed and character, the mandate of “Never Again,” died on Saturday, March 28th at the age of 90. ADL joins the world in mourning his loss.
As a young man, Leon Bass grew up in a country divided by racial prejudice. He often shared…
by: Lorraine Array March 23, 2015
Recent incidents around the world remind us of the power of hate and vitriol to permeate our religious, cultural and national borders. ISIS continues to expand its alliances and fear-mongering tactics. The world is in many ways paralyzed to see a way forward, and the need for solutions capable of building bridges of understanding and respect has never been greater.
In this spirit, in early 2013, the Anti-Defamation League's (ADL) Connecticut Office…
by: Jinnie Array March 16, 2015
Last week, disturbing video emerged of fraternity brothers from the Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE) chapter at the University of Oklahoma laughing while singing a racist chant: “There will never be a ni**** SAE. You can hang him from a tree, but he can never sign with me. There will never be a ni**** SAE.”
The news comes on the heels of the recent findings from a Department of Justice investigation in Ferguson, MO which, among other things,…
Early Childhood Question Corner For Educators | For Parents, Families, and Caregivers In Teacher they called me a ____!, Dr. Debra A. Byrnes defines prejudice as preconceived ideas about people “perceived as being different, due to race, religion, culture, gender, disabilities, appearance, language, sexual orientation, or social status” (1995, 3). She explains that a large body of research (Brown,1972; Byrnes & Kiger, 1992; Milner, 1975; Williams & Orland, 1976)…