Students leaned in and listened to other eighth graders speak about the giants of civil rights activism and the events which led to the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The terms sit-ins, boycotts and marches were heard throughout the library, along with names Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks and Ruby Bridges—and the music of Aretha Franklin, Bill Withers and Sam Cooke.
The Civil Rights Movement Celebration was a showcase of change-makers presented by the Lisbeth Arce and Claire Balassi’s eighth graders. Working in groups, their students researched the people and events of the Civil Rights era, then created presentations to share their work with other classes who had signed up to learn.
Students also shined a spotlight on some of the lesser-known heroes of the era, including Daisy Bates, who organized the initiative to integrate a high school in Little Rock, Arkansas, and Claudette Colvin, a 15-year-old who refused to give up her bus seat to a white passenger in Montgomery, Alabama, nine months before Rosa Parks.
“Talk to me about change in legislation,” Ms. Arce said to three students who were presenting Fred Shuttlesworth, the civil rights activist and minister who led protested against segregation. “He did not use violence, but there were many attempts on his life. Was it worth it? Did he help change the system?”
“Yes,” the students replied. “He helped get the government’s attention, and the laws changed.”