AFT, NEA Offer Black History Month Teaching Tools
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AFT and the National Education Association (NEA) have compiled resources to help educators celebrate February as Black History Month.
The AFT site here highlights key facts and figures about African Americans, important historical events, influential figures and the continuing contributions of African Americans. For instance, did you know that Elijah McCoy, an African American, invented an oil-dripping cup for trains. Other inventors tried to copy McCoy’s oil-dripping cup, but none worked as well as his, so customers started asking for “the real McCoy.” The expression is still used today when people want the best or the genuine article.
AFT, NEA Offer Black History Month Teaching Tools
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AFT and the National Education Association (NEA) have compiled a variety of resources to help educators celebrate Black History Month, which begins Feb. 1.
The AFT site here highlights key facts and figures about African Americans, important historical events, influential figures and the continuing contributions of African Americans. For instance, did you know that African Americans were largely responsible for developing our railway system? More than 40 different patents were awarded to African Americans for inventions of machinery and parts vital to the function of trains, tracks and passenger safety.
This AFT site features a special focus on the landmark 1954 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education, which made segregation in public schools illegal. The site includes profiles of the suit’s leaders, key events, recommended readings for grades K-12 and links to primary documents and lesson plans. There also is a video highlighting AFT’s efforts to obtain civil rights for all and desegregate America’s classrooms.
Celebrating Black Labor History Month
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February is Black History Month, and with just a few resources, teachers, parents and union locals can turn it into Black Labor History Month.
The American Labor Studies Center (ALSC) and unions such as AFSCME and AFT have compiled numerous excellent resources to help highlight black history this month by focusing on the history of African Americans in the labor movement.
A key teaching point is the shared values of the civil rights and union movements. One of the best resources for exploring the common ideas and goals of the two movements is the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who died in 1968 while helping striking sanitation workers in Memphis form a union with AFSCME. (See video.)
