bell hooks Taught Us to Transgress
Like many people of my generation who cut their teeth on the critical insights of bell hooks, news of her passing in December unleashed a wave of reflection for me about the ways she’s impacted me as a person and public scholar. Beyond the many moments of resonance I experienced while reading her writings over the years, her impact on me is most powerfully encapsulated in an experience I had in 2008 when I met her.
![bell hooks standing on stage and speaking while holding a microphone.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-08/bellhooks.jpeg?itok=jpRETw0k)
9 Leaders from Black History You Should Know
Learning about the larger systems and historical events that have played central roles in shaping Black history is vitally important, but it is also valuable to explore the individual lives, ideas, choices, and legacies of key figures in that unfolding story.
![Clara Luper Giving Speech Microphones Photo](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-04/Clara_Luper_speech_microphone_photo.png?h=047a4db4&itok=aXSNGzW9)
15 Classroom Resources on Black History and Life
What follows is an invitation to engage with important themes raised by Black History Month this February and throughout all of the months of the year.
![Shirley Chisholm B&W Portrait Photo](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-04/Shirley_Chisholm_b%26w_portrait_photo.png?h=a6c55029&itok=4x3iaEkx)
13 Teaching Ideas on Human Rights
During Universal Human Rights Month, in December, we invite you to use any of these Teaching Ideas grounded in social-emotional learning (SEL) that provide ample social and historical context while being concise and easy to integrate into your classroom conversations.
![Paper cut outs of face profiles in different skin tones.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-04/graphical_diversity_paper_faces_1894061167.jpeg?h=3a5dff94&itok=qAstbdWw)
Dismantling Democracy
Students examine the steps the Nazis took to replace democracy with dictatorship and draw conclusions about the values and institutions that make democracy possible.
![Germans look on as the Reichstag building burns on February 27, 1933.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Holocaust_1933_ReichstagFire_%20FH229429.jpg?h=40d6a7d7&itok=PBcAxqXk)
World War: Choices and Consequences
Investigate how World War I heightened divisions between “we” and “they” among people and nations and left behind fertile ground for Nazi Germany in the following decades.
![Painting title Gassed by John Singer Sargent. Shows World War I soldiers with bandaged eyes being led by other soldiers. Many dead and injured soldiers laying at the base of the painting.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-05/Ch3_Image05_Medium_res.jpg?h=fe25bc16&itok=_3yOA5E-)
Do You Take the Oath?
Students consider the choices and reasoning of individual Germans who stayed quiet or spoke up during the first few years of Nazi rule.
![German military recruits swear allegiance to Adolf Hitler.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Holocaust_SwearingAllegianceToHitler_FH229433.jpg?h=827069f2&itok=8JL6O5JQ)
European Jewish Life before World War II
Students analyze images and film that convey the richness of Jewish life across Europe at the time of the Nazis’ ascension to power.
![Shabbtai (Shepske) Sonenson takes one of the shtetl's Hebrew teachers for a ride on his new motorcycle.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Holocaust_1941_ShabbtaiSonensonOnMotorcycle_FH2115443.jpg?h=d392e916&itok=DmuRlDw6)
Exploring Identity
Students identify the social and cultural factors that help shape our identities by analyzing firsthand reflections and creating personal identity charts.
![Hands raised in the air by group of people](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Holocaust_2016_GroupBelonging_FH229369.jpg?h=c9f93661&itok=O6H7UmzG)
The Weimar Republic: The Fragility of Democracy
Explore the efforts to build a democracy in Germany in the 1920s, and examine the misunderstandings, myths, and fears that often undercut those efforts.
![In addition to his depictions of World War I, Otto Dix was also known for his ruthless criticism of German society during the Weimar years.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-05/Ch04_Image05_Medium_res.jpg?h=92903f94&itok=hFi7XgsO)
The Holocaust: Bearing Witness
Students are introduced to the enormity of the crimes committed during the Holocaust and look closely at stories of a few individuals who were targeted by Nazi brutality.
![A crowd of women and children, some with Stars of David patches on their clothing.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Ch09_Image02.jpg?h=991b0af6&itok=WRPl5J8e)