thinkLaw Newsletter: Black Lives Matter. Black Minds Matter, too.

Black lives matter. I founded thinkLaw 5 years ago in the wake of unrest over police officers killing unarmed Black people and the protestor’s cry of “Stop. Killing. Us.” consistently playing in the background. At this moment, our world seems to be at a turning point where broad sectors of society recognize the need for a radical rethinking of racial justice. As a Black man leading an organization committed to critical thinking, my bar for justice means far more than allowing me to merely survive. The work we are leading across 35+ states to give students of all races and income levels access to the type of learning typically considered a luxury good calls for a higher standard. Black lives matter. But Black minds matter, too. So do the minds of students in and every subgroup systemically denied access to rigorous and challenging learning experiences. In this time when so many of us are asking ourselves “what can I do,” start by recognizing the important role you play in ensuring our most marginalized students have not only an opportunity to survive, but to thrive.

 

It is impossible to separate the urgency of improving education outcomes for Black students from the realities these same students face in their day-to-day experiences.  But with racial tensions flaring nationally because of the recent killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery, it has become more and more apparent that the fight to narrow racial gaps in academic achievement are inseparable from the broader cause of ahchieving racial justice in our schools... Read more about the urgent need for racial justice in our schools

With racial tensions flaring nationally because of the recent killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery, it has become more and more apparent that the fight to narrow racial gaps in academic achievement are inseparable from the broader cause of achieving racial justice in our schools…Read more about re-opening our schools with a plan for racial justice 

 

 

Learn how to center race as an important factor in your critical thinking, and how you can become a coconspirator in the fight for racial justice. Episode 8 of The thinkLaw Podcast dives into race and critical thinking and how its essential to utilize both when solving real-world problems. 

Listen Here

 

Learning to teach and critically think about social justice is more necessary than ever.  Teach the very same questions the your students need to be asking as critical thinkers and citizens in their own lives. thinkLaw Volume 2: The Social Justice Edition includes real-life legal cases involving issues our students are already living and breathing on a daily basis. Policing and criminal justice issues, racial and religious profiling, voting rights, gun violence, and other core constitutional issues impacting their day-to-day lives. Check out a sample lesson from our Social Justice Edition and request a quote to get this in your curriculum here. 

 

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