DOCSLIB.ORG

E City University of New York

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
E City University of New York Medgar Evers College e City University of New York Fiieth Annual Medgar Evers College 1650 Bedford Avenue Brooklyn, NY 11225 www.mec.cuny.edu Follow Medgar Evers College on Social Media ursday, June 3, 2021 11:00 a.m. Virtual #MECGrad MedgarMade TABLE OF CONTENTS ABOUT MEDGAR EVERS COLLEGE AND ITS SCHOOLS................................................................................3 ACCELERATED STUDY IN ASSOCIATE PROGRAMS ....................................................................................4 PERCY E. SUTTON SEEK PROGRAM...............................................................................................................4 HEALTHCARE CAREER CONNECTION PIPELINE PROJECT........................................................................4 MEDGAR EVERS COLLEGE BROOKLYN PIPELINE........................................................................................4 SMART SCHOLARS EARLY COLLEGE HIGH SCHOOL PROGRAM................................................................4 PRESIDENT OF THE COLLEGE........................................................................................................................5 HONORARY DEGREE RECIPIENTS.................................................................................................................6 VALEDICTORIAN............................................................................................................................................8 ASSOCIATE DEGREE SCHOLAR.....................................................................................................................8 STUDENT GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION PRESIDENT..................................................................................9 SENIOR CLASS PRESIDENT.............................................................................................................................9 PAST HONORARY DEGREE RECIPIENTS .....................................................................................................10 DEGREE CANDIDATES OF 2021......................................................................................................................12 SCHOOL OF BUSINESS......................................................................................................................13 SCHOOL OF EDUCATION..................................................................................................................16 SCHOOL OF LIBERAL ARTS..............................................................................................................17 SCHOOL OF SCIENCE, HEALTH, AND TECHNOLOGY...................................................................22 CUNY BACCALAUREATE FOR UNIQUE AND INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES...............................27 GRADUATES OF 2020...................................................................................................................................28 MEC EXECUTIVE AND ADMINISTRATIVE CABINETS................................................................................38 DEPARTMENT CHAIRPERSONS ..................................................................................................................39 COMMENCEMENT COMMITTEE MEMBERS...............................................................................................41 SPECIAL THANKS.........................................................................................................................................42 2 ABOUT MEDGAR EVERS COLLEGE Medgar Evers College is one of 25 institutions in the City University of New York (CUNY) system. Founded in 1970, Medgar Evers College is named in honor of civil rights leader Medgar Wiley Evers and offers associate and baccalaureate degree programs. The College’s mission is to serve the educational, cultural, and social needs of the central Brooklyn community. For more than 50 years, the College has prepared students to be competitive in a global society. Students leave Medgar Evers College with a new understanding of themselves and a commitment to social justice that reflects the legacy of civil rights leader Medgar Wiley Evers. SCHOOL OF BUSINESS The School of Business at Medgar Evers College has been fully accredited by the Accreditation Council for Business Schools & Programs (ACBSP) since 2003. Of the five business schools in the City University of New York, Medgar Evers College is one of the two that is accredited. The School of Business is an intimate educational environment that affords close mentoring relationships between faculty, staff, and students, in which approximately 70% of its students are matriculating in career-focused baccalaureate programs. SCHOOL OF EDUCATION The nationally accredited School of Education is the home of the College’s pre-college programs and two teacher preparation academic departments: Developmental and Special Education, and Multicultural Early Childhood and Elementary Education, including the Ella Baker/Charles Romaine Child Development Center and the Center for Cognitive Development. The pre-college programs include the Brooklyn Pipeline Initiative, the Smart Scholars Early College High School Program, and the CUNY College Now program. The teacher preparation curriculum and degree programs in this academic school aim to transform urban education by creating change agents for classrooms, schools, and communities, who educate to liberate. SCHOOL OF LIBERAL ARTS The School of Liberal Arts aims to prepare students to achieve their highest academic and career goals through engagement in a learning community endowed with a rich and diverse liberal arts curriculum that fosters scholarly excellence, cultural awareness, and social responsibility. The School offers associate and baccalaureate degree programs that are responsive to local and global change and produces graduates who are effective world citizens. An inclusive liberal arts education is a necessary foundation for ongoing intellectual development, professional studies, and effective service to the community. SCHOOL OF SCIENCE, HEALTH, AND TECHNOLOGY The School of Science, Health, and Technology is comprised of five academic departments: Biology, Chemistry and Environmental Science, Mathematics, Nursing, and Physics and Computer Science. The School boasts multi-million dollar core research facilities in the areas of cellular-molecular biology and chemical analysis. The facilities are housed in a 195,000 square foot state-of-the-art building. More than 40 percent of Medgar Evers College students are enrolled in the School of Science, Health, and Technology. CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK BACCALAUREATE FOR UNIQUE AND INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES The CUNY Baccalaureate for Unique and Interdisciplinary Studies (CUNY BA) is the University-wide, individualized degree. It is a versatile degree route for highly-motivated, self-directed students whose academic goals transcend traditional majors. Students create their own degree plans working directly with faculty mentors and academic advisors. While each student has a home college in the CUNY system, they are free to pursue their studies and take courses at any of the other colleges in the University. 3 ACCELERATED STUDY IN ASSOCIATE PROGRAMS CUNY’s Accelerated Study in Associate Programs (ASAP) is a comprehensive program for associate degree students. ASAP is designed to help associate degree-seeking students earn their degrees as quickly as possible, with a goal of graduating students within three years. Despite the strengths and assets that students bring to their college experience, a variety of systemic barriers and personal responsibilities preclude many students from timely degree completion. ASAP helps eliminate these barriers by providing students with the academic, social, and financial support they need to graduate with an associate degree in no more than three years. PERCY E. SUTTON SEEK PROGRAM The Percy E. Sutton Search for Education, Elevation, and Knowledge (SEEK) Program is a higher education opportunity program that provides academic and financial support to students. The Program promotes the academic, personal, and professional development of students by providing an array of specialized academic support, enrichment programs, and activities dedicated to encouraging excellence, student learning, persistence, and graduation. HEALTHCARE CAREER CONNECTION PIPELINE PROJECT The Healthcare Career Connection Pipeline (HCCP) Project, which is funded by a grant from the National Workforce Development Program in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, supported 121 high school students and 182 college students from minority and underrepresented groups with college preparation to pursue healthcare careers. High school students are able to earn an associate degree in a health-STEM career pathway along with their high school diploma, while college scholars complete their bachelor’s degree in Biology, Computer Science, Nursing, Psychology, or Biology. MEDGAR EVERS COLLEGE BROOKLYN PIPELINE The Medgar Evers College Brooklyn Pipeline is an intentionally designed system by which students from Central Brooklyn are guided through a strong kindergarten to 12th grade experience to successfully transition into college. Customized programs include principal and teacher professional development, parent academy workshops, STEM education, summer programs, and dual credit opportunities for students to take college courses. Two thousand, one hundred and sixty-three (2,163) students from 31 Brooklyn high schools earned college credits, with 1,141 of them currently
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Black National Anthem
    32 1 Table of Contents Page 3 Welcome Letter Pages 4-15 Paintings with Biographies Pages 16-24 Black Owned Businesses in Alphabetical Order Page 25 Importance of Supporting Black Owned Pages 26-27 Other Online Resources Pages 28-29 Lift Every Voice & Sing Page 30 Citations for Biographies & Contact Info Page 31 After the Peanut Advertisement A.F. Hill Park (Princeton St & Green Garden Pl) is getting a walking trail. It is about 1/3 of a mile and will be completed in the Spring of 2021! See image ← 2 31 CITATIONS (Painting Biographies) 2/6/2021 1. https://www.naacp.org/naacp-history-medgar-evers/ Dear Community Member, 2. https://aaregistry.org/story/an-exceptional-opera-singer-leontyne- price/ Thank you for coming to the drive-thru Black History Month Cel- 3. https://www.biography.com/news/duke-ellington-facts-duke-ellington- ebration! As hard as 2020 was, we did not want to cancel this day annual event but rather adapt and adjust in 2021. 4. https://www.americanswhotellthetruth.org/portraits/dick-gregory 5. https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/brooks- Adhering to COVID-19 safety precautions, we are unable to in- gwendolyn-1917/ 6. https://history.house.gov/People/Listing/P/POWELL,-Adam-Clayton,- vite you into our gymnasium at this time. We hope you to utilize Jr--(P000477)/ this booklet as a means to explore the people featured in the 7. https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/1964/king/biographical/ paintings at Fairmont Community Center (FCC) and for addition- 8. https://www.naacp.org/naacp-history-w-e-b-dubois/ al resources to help celebrate all month long.
    [Show full text]
  • Power of the Hero Image: the Uniform, the Black Soldier and the Ku Klux Klan
    POWER OF THE HERO IMAGE: THE UNIFORM, THE BLACK SOLDIER AND THE KU KLUX KLAN by Kevin M. Bair A thesis submitted to Johns Hopkins University in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Master of Liberal Arts Baltimore, Maryland February 2020 © 2020 Kevin M. Bair All rights reserved Abstract Societies have long associated the image of the military uniform with social power and heroic abilities. This iconic image has both psychological power for the wearer and for those who observed the uniformed person. In the 19th and 20th centuries, whites and blacks looked upon this image as a tool to implement change. Some sought personal improvement while others looked for social transformation. In both instances, blacks who chose to don the military uniform of the United States were seeking upward mobility from their present situation, while some whites wanting to maintain the country’s segregation status quo wore the white robes of the Ku Klux Klan; thus believing in a different socially created image of power. In this article, we argue that the cultural and psychological power of the military uniform cannot be underestimated, and that this image, when worn by black military personnel, such as Private Henry Johnson, Sergeant Isaac Woodard, and Sergeant Medgar Evers, was intimidating to a number of whites. Additionally, we believe that black military personnel, like Johnson, Woodard and Evers, helped to bring widespread awareness of the vast social injustice occurring in this country to the greater public. Furthermore, we state that the image of, belief in, and donning of, the military uniform by blacks during the 19th and 20th centuries caused the end of America’s oppressive segregation laws, not only in desegregating the military (1948), but also helping topple Plessy vs.
    [Show full text]
  • National Register of Historic Places Registration Form
    NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Registration Form This form is for use in nominating or requesting determinations for individual properties and districts. See instructions in National Register Bulletin, How to Complete the Satianal Register of Historic Places Registration Form. If any item does not apply to the property being documented, enter "NfA" for "not applicable." For functions, architectural classification, materials, .md areas of sIgnificance, ent.:r only categories and subcategories from the instructions. 1. Name of Property Historic name: Other names/site number: Medgar Evers Historic District. _____ Name of related multiple property listing: (Enter liN/Ali if property is not part of a mUltiple property listing 2. Location Street & number: Margaret Walker Alexander Street roughly west of Missouri Street and east of Miami Street. _______________________ City or town: Jackson~=__---- State: Mississippi___ County: Hinds ______ Not For Publication: D Vicinity: D 3. StatelFederal Agency Certification As the designated authority under the National Historic Preservation Act, as amended, I hereby certify that this ~ nomination _ request for determination of eligibility meets the documentation standards for registering properties in the National Register of Historic Places and meets the procedural and professional requirements set forth in 36 CFR Part 60. In my opinion, the property _X_ meets __ does not meet the National Register Criteria. I recommend that this property be considered significant at the following level(s) of significance: national .,£..statewide __local Applicable National Register Criteria: ~A .,£..B .,£..C _D Signature of certifying officialffitle: State or Federal agency/bureau or Tribal Government 1 National Park Service / National Register of Historic Places Registration Form NPS Form 10-900 OMS No.
    [Show full text]
  • Here All Proceeds Will Go Directly Towards the Production of the Play
    “For the LORD does not see as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7 It’s becoming alarmingly apparent that racial injustice must be met with swift consequence, if we are to put an end to the racial inequities and blatant disregard for black lives in our country. However, it stands to reason that if we don’t repair the injustices of the past, consistently, and methodically, we certainly can’t expect any real change in the present, as we all know that history has a tendency to repeat itself. The past by its very nature will echo the injustices it suffered, but we must declare the advancements of our civil rights predecessors, diligently and thunderously. While we can't change how things transpired, or the lives lost in this insidious battle, we must honor the civil rights trail blazers that lit the way. Harry T. and Harriette V. Moore are the undisputed pioneer leaders and first martyrs of the Civil Rights Movement in our country. HARRY T. MOORE Pioneer Leader & Martyr of the Civil Rights Movement In his quest for justice and equality, Harry T. Moore knew that real change would require him to live without fear and stand steadfast in his faith with little concern for the establishments that would make it their mission to prevent his progress and worse. That is exactly what he did as he sought to amplify the voices of blacks during a time that wanted nothing more than to silence them in whatever fashion they deemed necessary.
    [Show full text]
  • Civil Rights Done Right a Tool for Teaching the Movement TEACHING TOLERANCE
    Civil Rights Done Right A Tool for Teaching the Movement TEACHING TOLERANCE Table of Contents Introduction 2 STEP ONE Self Assessment 3 Lesson Inventory 4 Pre-Teaching Reflection 5 STEP TWO The "What" of Teaching the Movement 6 Essential Content Coverage 7 Essential Content Coverage Sample 8 Essential Content Areas 9 Essential Content Checklist 10 Essential Content Suggestions 12 STEP THREE The "How" of Teaching the Movement 14 Implementing the Five Essential Practices 15 Implementing the Five Essential Practices Sample 16 Essential Practices Checklist 17 STEP FOUR Planning for Teaching the Movement 18 Instructional Matrix, Section 1 19 Instructional Matrix, Section 1 Sample 23 Instructional Matrix, Section 2 27 Instructional Matrix, Section 2 Sample 30 STEP FIVE Teaching the Movement 33 Post-Teaching Reflection 34 Quick Reference Guide 35 © 2016 Teaching Tolerance CIVIL RIGHTS DONE RIGHT // 1 TEACHING TOLERANCE Civil Rights Done Right A Tool for Teaching the Movement Not long ago, Teaching Tolerance issued Teaching the Movement, a report evaluating how well social studies standards in all 50 states support teaching about the modern civil rights movement. Our report showed that few states emphasize the movement or provide classroom support for teaching this history effectively. We followed up these findings by releasingThe March Continues: Five Essential Practices for Teaching the Civil Rights Movement, a set of guiding principles for educators who want to improve upon the simplified King-and-Parks-centered narrative many state standards offer. Those essential practices are: 1. Educate for empowerment. 2. Know how to talk about race. 3. Capture the unseen. 4. Resist telling a simple story.
    [Show full text]
  • Letter to Polly Greenberg Re Medgar Evers, September 1966
    No ta (Ap ril 1969): Mr s . Gr eenbe r g , a quite lihPr al lady from New Yn rk, w ~s spend~n ~ _s om P time in Jackson a n d , among other thin~s , wq s _rl1 g~1n~ up m~ terial nn Ne rl~nr Ev er s . She t elephoned me_1n RalPlgh, we talked exten s ively about Med gar , a n d th1s l e tte r tn her "'rtS arlctitional info rmation of a n essentirtlly anecdotal na ture. jrs John ~ L Se.ltor, Jr. September 27, 1966 62S Ne"rcombe .1. oad ~1alei!j1, North Carolina r.Ki~!J Poll y Greenberg 4221 Forest Park Drive Jackson, Mississipid Dear Miss Greenbergs It was indeed good to talk with you on the phone. Your moral support is much appreciated, believe me. I knew Medgar Evers very well from 1961 to hi~ death. I was the Advisor to the Jackson Youth Council of the NAACP, a member of the bonrd of directors of the Mississippi NAACP, and co-chairman of the strategy committee of ·the Jackson Movement. I '\«>rked with Jl1edgnr closely. And I always had tremendous respect for him. Here are t~~ or three of the many sketches that come to mind: r-iedgar 1'/as a very stable, very cool person. The only time that I ever saw him brea_....k down came in the fall of 1961, at r.m evening dinner session of the annual convention of the Mississippi NAACP -- in the ?-1asonic Temple on Lynch Street. The police were parked out side nnd , inside, the delega~es frcU~ the scattered, ~nd senel"ally moribund NAACP units around the state, had finished e ivinG their reports.
    [Show full text]
  • HOUSE RESOLUTION 151 by Shaw a RESOLUTION to Honor And
    HOUSE RESOLUTION 151 By Shaw A RESOLUTION to honor and recognize the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People’s Jackson-Madison County Branch on the occasion of its Forty-Sixth Annual Freedom Fund Banquet, which celebrates this year’s one hundredth anniversary of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. WHEREAS, it is fitting that this General Assembly pause in its deliberations to honor and recognize those estimable organizations that, through the courageous efforts of their members, have helped to establish and protect civil and political rights for the people of this State; and WHEREAS, one such noteworthy organization is the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP); on May 24, 2009, the Jackson-Madison County NAACP Branch will hold its Forty-Sixth Annual Freedom Fund Banquet at the Carl Perkins Civic Center, and WHEREAS, at the banquet, branch members and guests will join with Co-Chairs Melvin Wright, Sr., and T. Robert Hill, Branch President Harrell C. Carter, Jr., and guest speaker Dr. David Dockery, President of Union University, in celebrating the one hundredth anniversary of the national organization’s founding, which occurred February 12, 1909; and WHEREAS, because African Americans and other citizens were appalled at the horror of lynching, the violence of the 1908 race riots in Springfield, Illinois, home of Abraham Lincoln and capital of the state, as well as a host of other racial indignities and injustices, a call was issued for a meeting to discuss racial justice, and sixty people ultimately signed this call, which was released on the centennial of Lincoln’s birth; and HR0151 00855651 -1- WHEREAS, this seminal group included Mary White Ovington, Oswald Garrison Villard, William English Walling, Dr.
    [Show full text]
  • The Civil Rights Movement
    Star Lecture with Professor Lou Kushnick GLOSSARY The glossary is divided into the following categories: Laws and Acts, Events and Locations, Terminology and Events and Locations. LAWS ANDS ACTS 13TH AMENDMENT Adopted in 1864. Abolished slavery and involuntary servitude in all States. Adopted in 1868. Allows Blacks to be determined to be United States Citizens. Overturned previous ruling in Dred 14TH AMENDMENT Scott v. Sandford of 1857. Adopted in 1970. Bans all levels of government in the United States from denying a citizen the right to vote based 15TH AMENDMENT on that citizen's "race, colour, or previous condition of servitude" BROWN V. BOARD OF EDUCATION A landmark Supreme Court decision in 1954 that declared segregated education as unconstitutional. This victory was a launchpad for other challenges to de jure segregation in other field of public life – including transportation. Like many challenges to segregation, Brown was a case presented by a collection of individuals in a class action lawsuit – one of whom was Oliver Brown, who was unhappy that his child had travel a number of block to attend a Black school when a White school was much nearer. By the time the case reached the Supreme Court it actually encompassed a number of cases brought by parents against School Boards. The funds for the legal challenges were provided by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). This wide-reaching Act prohibited racial and gender discrimination in public services and areas. It was originally created by President Kennedy, but was signed into existence after his assassination by President Johnson.
    [Show full text]
  • Keynote Address
    Keynote Address By Dr. the Hon. Keith Christopher Rowley Prime Minister of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago Medgar Evers College, City University of New York (CUNY), New York, USA Inaugural International Education Awards Presentation Ceremony Thursday, May 5th, 2016 1 Good evening everyone. What a pleasure it is to be here. What a privilege to address such an awesome assembly. Please join me in recognising your distinguished president, Dr. Rudolph Crew, your indefatigable Provost, Dr. Augustine Okereke, and the inspirational Director of the Medgar Evers College Office of International Education, Ambassador Eugene Pursoo, Members of Faculty, students. Other distinguished ladies and gentlemen, Allow me to express my sincerest appreciation to your President, Dr. Rudolph Crew for inviting me to deliver the keynote address at this historic Medgar Evers College Inaugural International Education Awards Presentation Ceremony. I am deeply humbled by the singular honour. My heartiest congratulations are extended to you, the special award recipients: Your community spiritedness and spontaneous generosity in contributing to the goals and ideals of this pioneering Medgar Evers College International Education outreach initiative have come at a pivotal milestone in the life of the College and must be warmly and magnanimously applauded. You have done your Community College proud. I can see the face of Medgar Wiley Evers smiling gently in unenviable joy and approbation. 2 Congratulations are also in order to you, the distinguished executive and administrative personnel and faculty members who have been labouring in the vineyard. Consecutive years of unrelenting, committed and conscientious service against monumental odds is, by any yardstick, a remarkable accomplishment.
    [Show full text]
  • Wil Haygood Commencement Address
    WIL HAYGOOD COMMENCEMENT ADDRESS Sunday, May 10, 2015 WIL HAYGOOD COMMENCEMENT ADDRESS 1 2015 OHIO WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY COMMENCEMENT ADDRESS Wil Haygood Sunday, May 10, 2015 Thank you, President Jones, for your mighty fine introduction. I’d like to thank Rock and First Lady Melissa Lollar Jones for the lovely dinner they hosted for me here last night. I’d also like to thank the Board of Trustees, faculty, and student leaders who invited me here to this wonderful university to be with you all today. I’d like to wish all the mothers a Happy Mother’s Day. And also to thank all the military veterans, past and present, who are here who have served this wonderful country of ours. I’m happy to be joined here today with my great friend, and one of your most distinguished alums, Denver Post Exec Editor Greg Moore. Also, happy that one of your cherished teachers, Dr. Michael Flamm, sits among us today. Someone just the other day asked me about the movie, “The Butler,” and the afterglow of it with all its cinematic success. I actually like to keep it real and remain humble about that pretty amazing experience. But I’ve gotten some unique phone calls. Marsha, who I knew in grade school, tracked me down in Washington and apologized for swiping an Easter egg out of my basket when my back was turned in the third grade during our Easter egg hunt. I had to confess to her I had completely forgotten about that headline-making incident. Then she let me know she was single and inquired about my marital status.
    [Show full text]
  • The State of Civil Rights Education in the United States
    TEACHING THE MOVEMENT The State of Civil Rights Education in the United States Foreword by Julian Bond SEPTEMBER 2011 Teaching the Movement The State of Civil Rights Education in the United States 2011 MEDIA AND GENERAL INQUIRIES Ashley Levett Southern Poverty Law Center 400 Washington Ave., Montgomery, Ala. [email protected] (334) 956-8200 www.splcenter.org The SPLC is supported entirely by private donations. No government funds are involved. © Southern Poverty Law Center. All rights reserved. On the cover: Marchers © Takestock/Matt Herron; Policeman and Rosa Parks © AP Photo/Gene Herrick; Students at Little Rock’s Central High School © CORBIS/Bettmann; Dr. King’s speech © CORBIS/Bob Adelman SOUTHERN POVERTY LAW CENTER About the Report This report was prepared by the Southern Poverty Law Center under the guidance of Teaching Tolerance Director Maureen Costello. The principal researcher and writer was Kate Shuster, Ph.D. The report was reviewed by Terrie Epstein, Ed.D., Hasan Jeffries, Ph.D., and Jeremy Stern, Ph.D. It was edited by Maureen Costello with assistance from Booth Gunter and Sean Price. It was designed by Scott Phillips. About the Southern Poverty Law Center The Southern Poverty Law Center is a nonprofit organization that com- bats hate, intolerance and discrimination through education and litigation. About Teaching Tolerance Founded in 1991, Teaching Tolerance is dedicated to reducing prejudice, improving intergroup relations and supporting equitable school experi- ences for our nation’s children. The program provides free educational materials to educators for use by millions of students. Teaching Tolerance magazine is sent to 450,000 educa- tors, reaching every school in the country, twice annually.
    [Show full text]
  • Nce Upon a Time in America
    Don’t sugarcoat history in teaching the civil rights movement. Students deserve the full NCE UPON A TIME truth about both the racial bias that caused it and our hesitant steps toward freedom. IN AMERICA BY ALICE PETTWAY ILLUSTRATON BY DAVID VOGIN 44 TEACHING TOLERANCE TEAH C ING THE MovEMENT E VERYONE loves FAIRY tales—the easily identifiable villain, the flawless hero and, of course, the happily ever after. So it’s not surprising that teachers of the civil rights movement often skip the more confusing or distasteful aspects of that era, such as the dissension among black leaders and the racism that was widespread then, even among moderate white Southerners. Fairy tales have a place in our cul- ture, but when history’s thorns are pruned until our past becomes just another story, we are doing a disservice to both our students and ourselves. NCE UPON A TIME This school year we will mark the 50th anniversaries of many pivotal events in the civil rights movement. It would be easy to teach the familiar heroes and villains, but 1963 was messier than that. That year was a turning point in the movement—a period when civil rights leaders overcame differing viewpoints to conclude that small successes were no longer enough. If equal rights were to be IN AMERICA attained, hard decisions had to be made—and acted upon. The cast of 1963 includes the figures students already expect to see on the stage: Martin Luther King Jr., President John F. Kennedy and T. Eugene (Bull) Connor, the public safety commissioner in Birmingham, Ala.
    [Show full text]