We the People: Investigating Narratives of the Founding

Join New-York Historical Society and Facing History and Ourselves for an interactive workshop expanding the teaching of the U.S. founding. Participants will explore an array of primary sources students can use to address the compelling question, “How do we reckon with a history full of complexities and contradictions?” 

The workshop centers the voices of those in early U.S. history who were excluded from formal political participation, but nonetheless appealed to the nation’s founding democratic ideals to assert their own rights and freedoms. Their contributions help students recognize the power of their own civic choices and see that the project of founding the nation is ongoing and open to all.

During this in-person workshop, we will:

1. Examine how groups excluded from power at the time of the founding used the language of the founding ideals to assert their own rights.
2. Explore primary sources and other resources that will help students consider what contradictions existed between the ideals and the reality of the founding of the United States.
3. Provide educators with resources and teaching strategies for an informed action approach to teaching about this history.
    

This workshop will be held in-person at the New-York Historical Society.
Address: 170 Central Park West, New York, NY 10024