Ronald Takaki
Profile.
Ronald Takaki (April 12, 1939 - May 26, 2009) was an academic, historian, ethnographer, author, and activist who is credited with founding ethnic studies.
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Reading Level: Adult
Adult
Learning for Justice
Website.
Films, journal, and readings for teachers on education for equity.
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Banished
Film. Center for Investigative Reporting and Two Tone Productions. 2007. 84 minutes.
Filmmaker Marco Williams examined four examples of primarily white communities violently rising up to force their African-American neighbors to flee town.
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Filmmaker Marco Williams examined four examples of primarily white communities violently rising up to force their African-American neighbors to flee town.
Memories From Mississippi Freedom Summer: “I Never Will Forget”
Book — Non-fiction. Edited by Sarah Blanc. 2014. 115 pages.
A collection of interviews conducted by the Samuel Proctor Oral History Program over seven years in Sunflower County, Mississippi. The stories provide a powerful first person introduction to the history of the Mississippi Civl Rights Movement.
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A collection of interviews conducted by the Samuel Proctor Oral History Program over seven years in Sunflower County, Mississippi. The stories provide a powerful first person introduction to the history of the Mississippi Civl Rights Movement.
Teachers vs. Climate Change: The Story of Teachers’ Work for Climate Justice in Portland, Oregon
Article. By Bill Bigelow.
The story of how teachers, parents, and students in Portland, Oregon organized to demand that climate change be taught honestly and to pass a climate justice resolution.
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The story of how teachers, parents, and students in Portland, Oregon organized to demand that climate change be taught honestly and to pass a climate justice resolution.
Two Thumbs Up: Movies and Documentaries to Use (and Avoid) When Teaching Civil Rights
Article from "Understanding and Teaching the Civil Rights Movement" edited by Hasan Kwame Jeffries.
A critical review of films on the Civil Rights Movement and institutionalized racism, with dozens of recommendations of films to watch and those to avoid.
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A critical review of films on the Civil Rights Movement and institutionalized racism, with dozens of recommendations of films to watch and those to avoid.
Citizenship Schools: They Say I’m Your Teacher
Film. Directed by Lucy Massie Phenix and Catherine Murphy. 2019. 9 minutes.
Documentary about Citizenship Schools.
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Documentary about Citizenship Schools.
On the Laps of Gods: The Red Summer of 1919 and the Struggle for Justice That Remade a Nation
Book — Non-fiction. By Robert Whitaker. 2009. 386 pages.
The story of the 1919 Elaine massacre in Hoop Spur, Arkansas.
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The story of the 1919 Elaine massacre in Hoop Spur, Arkansas.
Discussion Questions for A People’s History of the United States
Questions and selected activities to accompany A People’s History of the United States by Howard Zinn.
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War Made Invisible: How America Hides the Human Toll of Its Military Machine
Book — Non-fiction. By Norman Solomon. 2023. 240 pages.
Too often, our curriculum “makes war invisible.” Too often, the ravages of U.S. militarism go unexamined in our classes. This fact-filled book insists: Teach about this; people’s lives depend on it.
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Too often, our curriculum “makes war invisible.” Too often, the ravages of U.S. militarism go unexamined in our classes. This fact-filled book insists: Teach about this; people’s lives depend on it.
Erasing History: How Fascists Rewrite the Past to Control the Future
Book — Non-fiction. By Jason Stanley. 2026. 272 pages.
A global call to action for those who wish to preserve democracy — in the United States and abroad — before it is too late.
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A global call to action for those who wish to preserve democracy — in the United States and abroad — before it is too late.
Down to Earth: Nature’s Role in American History
Book — Non-fiction. By Ted Steinberg. 2018. 370 pages.
A sweeping history of the United States — a history that places the environment at the very center of the narrative.
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A sweeping history of the United States — a history that places the environment at the very center of the narrative.
Until the Last Gun Is Silent
Book — Non-fiction. By Matthew F. Delmont. 2026. 368 pages.
The history of the Vietnam War with a focus on the African American experience in the antiwar movement and as returning soldiers.
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The history of the Vietnam War with a focus on the African American experience in the antiwar movement and as returning soldiers.
Remember Us
Short Film. By Pablo Leon. 2024. 14 minutes.
In this animated historical fiction film, a journalist documents the experiences of three people who lived through the tragic 12-year-long Salvadoran Civil War in the 1980s.
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In this animated historical fiction film, a journalist documents the experiences of three people who lived through the tragic 12-year-long Salvadoran Civil War in the 1980s.
Backtalker: An American Memoir
Book — Non-fiction. By Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw. 2026. 400 pages.
This memoir traces the way Crenshaw’s lived experiences led her to articulate the concepts of intersectionality and critical race theory.
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This memoir traces the way Crenshaw’s lived experiences led her to articulate the concepts of intersectionality and critical race theory.
Viva la Raza: A History of Chicano Identity and Resistance
Book — Non-fiction. By by Yolanda Alaniz and Megan Cornish, with a foreword by Rodolfo Acuña. 2008. 368 pages.
A history of Chicana/o militancy, from the occupation of Northern Mexico to the 1990s.
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A history of Chicana/o militancy, from the occupation of Northern Mexico to the 1990s.
Digital Transgender Archive
Digital collection. This archive increases the accessibility of transgender history by providing an online hub for digitized historical materials, born-digital materials, and information on archival holdings throughout the world.
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The Black Schooner: Rebellion on the Amistad, A Graphic Novel
Book — Non-fiction. By David Lester and Marcus Rediker, and edited by Paul Buhle. 2026. 136 pages.
graphic history of how enslaved Africans on board the Amistad rebelled and captured the slave ship in 1839, challenging a whitewashed version of history and putting the Africans back at the center of their own freedom story.
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graphic history of how enslaved Africans on board the Amistad rebelled and captured the slave ship in 1839, challenging a whitewashed version of history and putting the Africans back at the center of their own freedom story.
Fire in the Heart of the City
Book — Non-fiction. By David Conrad-Pérez. 2026. 336 pages.
A major reinterpretation of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire of 1911 and its lasting impact.
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A major reinterpretation of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire of 1911 and its lasting impact.
A Very Short History of the Israel–Palestine Conflict
Book — Non-fiction. By Ilan Pappe. 2024. 146 pages.
The best concise story of the events that took us to Oct. 7, 2023, and the subsequent genocide in Gaza.
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The best concise story of the events that took us to Oct. 7, 2023, and the subsequent genocide in Gaza.
White Power: Policing American Slavery
Book — Non-fiction. By Gautham Rao. 2026. 320 pages.
Uncovers how slaveholders created their own white supremacist police and government to deny Black people rights, power, and humanity.
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Uncovers how slaveholders created their own white supremacist police and government to deny Black people rights, power, and humanity.
Get on the Job and Organize
Book — Non-fiction. By Jaz Brisack. 2026. 320 pages.
Highlighting the Starbucks and Tesla unionization efforts, this book tells the broader story of the new, nationwide labor movement unfolding in our era of political and social unrest.
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Highlighting the Starbucks and Tesla unionization efforts, this book tells the broader story of the new, nationwide labor movement unfolding in our era of political and social unrest.
Racist by Design: Two Centuries of U.S. Immigration Control
Book — Non-fiction. By Kelly Lytle Hernández. 2026. 320 pages.
Reveals how generations of lawmakers and law enforcers built the American immigration system to encourage white immigrants while targeting nonwhite migrants for exclusion, punishment, and removal.
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Reveals how generations of lawmakers and law enforcers built the American immigration system to encourage white immigrants while targeting nonwhite migrants for exclusion, punishment, and removal.
Kings and Pawns: Jackie Robinson and Paul Robeson in America
Book — Non-fiction. By Howard Bryant. 2026. 320 pages.
Highlighting the lives of Paul Robeson and Jackie Robinson, this book tells the story of sports and fame, Black life in the United States, and the promise of integration through the Cold War lens of two transformative events.
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Highlighting the lives of Paul Robeson and Jackie Robinson, this book tells the story of sports and fame, Black life in the United States, and the promise of integration through the Cold War lens of two transformative events.