May 19, 1918: Mary Turner Lynching
Mary Turner, a young African American woman who was eight months pregnant, was lynched in Lowndes County, Georgia.
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Theme: African American
African American
May 13, 1985: Philadelphia Police Bomb MOVE
The Philadelphia Police Department dropped a C-4 bomb on the home of the MOVE organization, killing eleven people (including five children) and wiping out half a city block.
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Freedom Ship: The Uncharted History of Escaping Slavery by Sea
Book — Non-fiction. By Marcus Rediker. 2025. 416 pages.
A sweeping account of the Underground Railroad’s long-overlooked maritime origins.
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A sweeping account of the Underground Railroad’s long-overlooked maritime origins.
Ruth and the Green Book
Picture book. By Calvin Alexander Ramsey with Gwen Strauss. Illustrated by Floyd Cooper. 2010. 32 pages.
Story for young readers about an African American family travelling during the Jim Crow era and the networks of support and services listed in The Green Book.
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Story for young readers about an African American family travelling during the Jim Crow era and the networks of support and services listed in The Green Book.
Flint Sit-Down Strike, 1936-1937
Poster. By Dylan Miner.
Informational poster about Roscoe Van Zandt and the Flint Sit-Down Strike.
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Informational poster about Roscoe Van Zandt and the Flint Sit-Down Strike.
Race to Incarcerate: A Graphic Retelling
Book — Non-fiction. By Marc Mauer and Sabrina Jones. 2013. 128 pages.
Based on the popular book Race to Incarcerate, this graphic adaptation is a key resource to introduce a study of U.S. prison system to middle school readers and above.
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Based on the popular book Race to Incarcerate, this graphic adaptation is a key resource to introduce a study of U.S. prison system to middle school readers and above.
Boycott
Film. By Clark Johnson. 2001. 120 minutes.
Dramatic account of the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
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Dramatic account of the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
June 2, 1863: Harriet Tubman Frees Nearly 800 People
Harriet Tubman planned and guided a significant armed raid (becoming the first woman to do so in the Civil War) against Confederate forces, supply depots, and plantations along the Combahee River in coastal South Carolina.
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May 18, 1896: Plessy v. Ferguson Ruling
Plessy v. Ferguson upheld the constitutionality of racial segregation laws for public facilities.
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Schomburg: The Man Who Built a Library
Picture book. By Carole Boston Weatherford and Eric Velasquez. 2017. 48 pages.
This picture book is a tribute to Arturo Schomburg, the Afro Puerto Rican historian collector and activist who chronicled the Black history of the Diaspora.
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This picture book is a tribute to Arturo Schomburg, the Afro Puerto Rican historian collector and activist who chronicled the Black history of the Diaspora.
June 3, 1946: Morgan v. Commonwealth of Virginia
SCOTUS ruled against Jim Crow segregation on interstate commerce in Morgan v. Commonwealth of Virginia, leading to Journey of Reconciliation Freedom Rides.
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May 15, 1970: Jackson State Killings
College student Phillip Lafayette Gibbs (21) and high school student James Earl Green (17) were killed by the police during an anti-war protest at Jackson State College.
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June 13, 1866: 14th Amendment Passed
The 14th Amendment to the constitution was passed, granting citizenship to “all persons born or naturalized in the United States.”
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June 17, 2015: Charleston Church Massacre
Nine African American churchgoers were gunned down inside a church in an act of white supremacist terrorism.
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When the Impossible Suddenly Became Possible: A Reconstruction Mixer
Teaching Activity. By Adam Sanchez and Nqobile Mthethwa. 25 pages.
A mixer role play explores the connections between different social movements during Reconstruction.
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A mixer role play explores the connections between different social movements during Reconstruction.
Sept. 29, 1943: Lewisburg Federal Penitentiary Hunger Strike
Conscientious objectors began a hunger strike at Lewisburg Federal Penitentiary.
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Poetry of Defiance: How the Enslaved Resisted
Teaching Activity. By Adam Sanchez.
Through a mixer activity, students encounter how enslaved people resisted the brutal exploitation of slavery. The lesson culminates in a collective class poem highlighting the defiance of the enslaved.
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Through a mixer activity, students encounter how enslaved people resisted the brutal exploitation of slavery. The lesson culminates in a collective class poem highlighting the defiance of the enslaved.
How Red Lines Built White Wealth: A Lesson on Housing Segregation in the 20th Century
Teaching Activity. By Ursula Wolfe-Rocca. Rethinking Schools.
The mixer role play is based on Richard Rothstein’s The Color of Law, which shows in exacting detail how government policies segregated every major city in the United States with dire consequences for African Americans.
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The mixer role play is based on Richard Rothstein’s The Color of Law, which shows in exacting detail how government policies segregated every major city in the United States with dire consequences for African Americans.
May 25, 1865: Black Virginians Cast Freedom Ballots
African Americans tested their right to vote and when denied, cast their own “freedom ballots,” on election day in Norfolk, Virginia.
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July 6, 2016: Philando Castile is Killed by Police
Philando Castile, an African American, was shot to death by a police officer at a traffic stop in Falcon Heights, Minnesota. Castile had worked as a nutritional supervisor at an elementary school.
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Aug. 21, 1939: African Americans Arrested for Going to Public Library
Five Black men were arrested for staging a peaceful sit-in at the Alexandria “public” library that denied access to African Americans, making this the anniversary of one of the earliest instances of this form of non-violent protest that became popular in the mid-20th century.
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Glory
Film. Directed by Edward Zwick. 1989. 122 minutes.
The all-Black 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment is brought to the screen in this star-studded Civil War film.
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The all-Black 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment is brought to the screen in this star-studded Civil War film.
June 1, 1968: Founding of Drum and Spear Bookstore
Drum and Spear was founded by SNCC organizers in Washington, D.C. The bookstore quickly became a central hub of knowledge to “disseminate information by and about Black people in the African Diaspora.”
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Teach the Black Freedom Struggle Online Class Recordings
Learn directly from people's historians by listening to these audio recordings of Teach the Black Freedom Struggle online classes.
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May 14, 2022: Buffalo Massacre
After posting a racist manifesto online before targeting a majority-Black neighborhood, a white supremacist killed ten people at a grocery store in Buffalo, New York.
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