How Can Music Inspire Social Change?
This blog explores the connections between music, history, and social change. Within this blog, educators are provided with a lesson that can be used with students to contemplate the role of music as a social change agent.
![The Staple Singers sit with the owners of Stax Records, Al Bell and Jim Stewart, in Memphis, TN. Photo courtesy of Stax Museum of American Soul Music.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-08/2_al_jim_staples.jpeg?h=cdfb2dc1&itok=keTFSL6P)
Make Good the Promises of Reconstruction: A Conversation and Virtual Exhibition Tour with Candra Flanagan
On-Demand
Virtual
Listen to this recorded conversation with Candra Flanagan, Director of Teaching and Learning at the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture, as we explore the museum’s exhibition, “Make Good the Promises: Reconstruction and Its Legacies.”
![Picture of Candra Flanagan.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-08/Candra%20Flanagan%20headshot.jpg?h=f339ba4f&itok=aW_KMmbw)
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)
Haitian Migrants at the US–Mexico Border
This mini-lesson uses images and firsthand accounts of Haitian migrants to humanize the events happening at the US–Mexico border and give shape and nuance to the news.
![A group of adult and children migrants from Haiti stand in line to regularize their migratory situation.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2023-06/HaitianMigrantsinTijuana_FH2178689.jpg?h=4362216e&itok=84nyyZXu)
Teaching about the Ukrainian Refugee Crisis
Use this mini-lesson to introduce students to the experiences of Ukrainian refugees fleeing war, highlight inspiring ways people have stepped up to help, and raise ethical questions about the treatment of refugees from non-European countries.
![Ukrainian Refugees crossing a fallen bridge.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-07/2022_RussiaUkraineConflict_FH2168262.jpg?h=7fb2964e&itok=suTcwNTN)
Intersecting Histories: Wartime North Africa and the Holocaust
On-Demand
Virtual
Join UCLA professors Sarah Abrevaya Stein and Aomar Boum, as they discuss the experiences of North African Jews before World War II as well as the history of the Holocaust and North Africa.
![Picture of Sarah Abrevaya Stein and Aomar Boum](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-11/SARAAOMAR_0.jpg?h=e9b2bddf&itok=6_om1IRV)
What Does It Mean to Live with Social Media?
In this mini-lesson, students sharpen their media literacy skills as they evaluate the impact of social media on their lives and question how we can manage social media’s harmful effects.
![A group of people use their smartphones outdoors.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-11/Stock_Image_Outdoors_On_The_Phone_FH2178690.png?h=807215e1&itok=zBCKIv7y)
Making Rights Universal
Students analyse four rights in the UDHR and decide whether they are universal and enjoyed by all in the world today.
![Eleanor Roosevelt sitting with two other men at a United Nations meeting in New York City](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-07/67-314.jpg?h=3eea986c&itok=BLv1D5o4)
Teaching in the Wake of Violence
This mini-lesson contains strategies and activities for supporting your students in the aftermath of violent events targeted at people because of their identities.
![Closeup of people holding candle vigil in darkness expressing and seeking hope](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-07/WakeofViolence_iStock-613779172_full-res.jpg?h=c6980913&itok=IwqBTY_v)
The Devastation of War
Students learn about the aftermath of the Civil War and examine primary source documents that provide insight into the difficult task of reuniting the nation.
![The ruins of Mills House and nearby buildings, Charleston, South Carolina, at end of American Civil War.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-07/Civil_Rights_1865_MillsHouseCharleston_FH21291.jpg?h=dfc3751c&itok=xxOQb9az)
Healing and Justice
Students examine President Andrew Johnson's plan for Reconstruction and the debate it provoked with Congress while reflecting on deeper issues of healing and justice.
![Columbia with black union soldier with amputated leg in ornate Greco-Roman style building](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-07/Civic_Engagement_1865_Pardon_Franchise_Columbia_FH21375.jpg?h=5bba1fc0&itok=DENbKk8S)