Join us November 4th at 6:00pm for a special event in collaboration with Napa Bookmine with Umi Vaughn. This is a free event, but we appreciate your RSVP so we can plan for your attendance. We also welcome donations from those who are able.

This is legislation passing season in California. Governor Newsom took action on 1200 bills. A few he signed relate to teaching truth. One bill - 1703, requires districts to create a task force for developing accurate curriculum by collaborating directly with local tribes. But, as my friend Nancy asked, “Where is the funding for this?” Another bill - AB 1821, insists that curricular material include information about the removal and murder of the Indigenous people of California, particularly when Spanish colonization and the Gold Rush are taught.

This year’s theme for celebrating Black History is “African Americans and the Arts.” At the National Gallery, you can see works from Black artists across centuries, mediums, and geographies, ranging from 19th century still life painter Robert Seldon Duncanson to modern and contemporary pieces by Jacob Lawrence, Romare Bearden, Alma Thomas, Sam Gilliam, Kara Walker, Hank Willis Thomas, and more.

We should be incorporating the teachings of Martin Luther King, Jr. into our classrooms and daily lives throughout the year. Here are some resources gathered from trusted sites as we approach the King’s birthday.

My district doesn’t take this day off, it just rolls into Tuesday and kids wonder why Columbus mattered once but doesn’t anymore. If you say it’s Indigenous People’s Day, they wonder what that means. If it’s a holiday, where is the parade? We are in a strange in between place in California where the government is finally recognizing the devastation caused by colonization on the people and the land. And new ethnic studies requirements at the college and high school level will eventually help alleviate some of the ignorance.

We gathered at China Point in Napa on the First Street Bridge overlooking the original Chinatown location on Labor Day. This is the spot where we installed a historic plaque honoring Chinese laborers who helped build modern Napa Valley.

Hidden History or Napa Valley author Alex Brown gives a talk about growing up in Napa and what led her to explore the Hidden Histories of Napa Valley.

We will be gathering to honor the life and death of Mary Ellen Pleasant on March 11th at 11:00 am at Tulocay Cemetery, Napa and dedicating a plaque in her honor.

Taking place on February 18 and 19, the second 1619 Education Conference will offer participants the opportunity to learn from The 1619 Project Education Network members about the units they created and implemented as part of the program, the strategies and resources they found most helpful, and their key takeaways from their experience connecting the project to their students. The conference will also allow attendees to view the creative ways our Afterschool Program Partners explored The 1619 Project with students in outside-of-school programs and participate in learning workshops with project resources.

“We are no different, we all are indigenous descendants”, says Santiváñez referring to the nine women who are currently part of the group. They don’t wear the polleras on a day-to-day basis, but only for skating. Knee-length and paired with sneakers, as was the case in the past, the polleras adapted again and became a symbol. The Imillas, who practise to compete in local tournaments, use this presence and their skateboards as a natural vehicle to empower women and push their message of inclusion and acceptance of diversity. - by Luisa Dörr

We the undersigned REFUSE to LIE to young people about U.S. history and current events.

It is so disheartening to witness my fellow Americans invest time and energy in hateful rhetoric that undermines equity and justice work. That even math framework revision could be attacked shows how important it is that we remain vigilant in the face of injustice. What to do? Support equity in education in thought, word, and deed. In this case, for California, voice your support by using #protectProfBoaler across social media.

“Bauer told me he had visited Sutter’s Fort, the Sacramento Gold Rush landmark, when he was in high school. He noted that Indians were barely mentioned during the tour. He and many other historians believe that the way California history is taught needs to be changed to include more of the dark realities of what happened to Native peoples.” - Thomas Fuller

Governor Newsom signed the Ethnic Studies requirement for CA high school graduates into law. Finally. It has been a long and contentious path and he signed it just two days before the bill would have expired. Procrastinating the inevitable maybe. I should sound more excited. I certainly support AB 101. It changed significantly from the first version, allowing districts much more leeway and addressing concerns of Jewish groups. But it’s not these details I am focused on.

I am concerned it will be seen as a checkbox that’s now checked when it’s more like a significant to-do item was just added. What does this requirement look like in practice for students and teachers? How can we change how we teach all subjects now so ethnic studies has roots in what our students already know?

If you find me cleaning my house with headphones on, I am probably listening to an episode of Learning for Justice, my favorite audio past-time. This season is about lessons from Jim Crow. And Episode 2 is a MUST LISTEN for all teachers, bosses, parents, community leaders. How do we have a discussion about anything when fear is in the room??

Learning for Justice provides lesson plans and discussion points for addressing this seminal work. Amanda Gorman’s voice and leadership will carry us through the next generation. We have much to learn from her.

Check out this grant from the Pulitzer Center for teachers who want to incorporate the 1619 Project into their classroom.

These articles from Teaching Tolerance connect MLK to the attack and give us context for the path of education for social justice that we are on. For teachers, there are lesson plans for each of these articles. For all of us, there are words to live, learn, and teach by.