What Does It Mean to “Be American?”
Here are a selection of answers to New York Times reporter Damien Cave’s question, “What does it mean to be American?”
The Wooden Shoes
A high school student tells the story behind a pair of wooden shoes and their connection to her family's history in Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
The Wooden Shoes (en español)
In Spanish, a high school student tells the story behind a pair of wooden shoes and their connection to her family's history in Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
James Baldwin’s Lesson for Teachers in a Time of Turmoil
This 2017 essay by author and former high school teacher Clint Smith draws connections between the role of education in past turbulent historical times and the present political climate.
“An Antidote to the Far Right's Poison”: The Battle for Cable Street’s Mural
Learn about the artist who created the Cable Street mural in London's East End commemorating the event when thousands stood up in solidarity against Fascist Sir Oswald Mosley.
“I’d Do it All Over Again”: Last Hurrah for the Veterans of Cable Street
Participants of the Battle of Cable Street in London draw connections between the antisemitism in 1936 and racism targeted at the neighborhood’s Bangladeshi community today.
Race and Belonging in Colonial America: The Story of Anthony Johnson
Learn about Anthony Johnson, a Black forced laborer who became free in seventeenth-century Virginia.
Black Officeholders in the South
These tables provide data about African American officeholders in the South during Reconstruction.
Black Officeholders in the South (en español)
In Spanish, these tables provide data about African American officeholders in the South during Reconstruction.
Changing Names
Three formerly enslaved people discuss their names and the changes they underwent after Emancipation.
Changing Names (en español)
Three formerly enslaved people discuss their names and the changes they underwent after Emancipation. This reading is in Spanish.