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Civil Rights Movement

Backgrounder
Civil Rights March on Washington
The Civil Rights Movement of the 1950’s and 1960’s came about out of the need and desire for equality and freedom for African Americans and other people of color. Nearly one hundred years after slavery was abolished, there was widespread segregation, discrimination, disenfranchisement and racially motivated violence that permeated all personal and structural aspects of life for black people. “Jim Crow” laws at the local and state levels barred African Americans from…
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¿Quiénes Son Antifa?

Backgrounder
Antifa: definición e historia El movimiento de protesta antifascista, conocido como antifa, adquirió nuevo protagonismo en Estados Unidos después de la manifestación "Unite the Right" del supremacismo blanco en Charlottesville, VA, en agosto de 2017. En Charlottesville y en muchos eventos posteriores organizados por los supremacistas blancos o los extremistas de derecha, los activistas antifa han enfrentado agresivamente lo que ellos consideran son movimientos y…
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The President’s Executive Order on Anti-Semitism: Frequently Asked Questions

Backgrounder
On December 11, 2019, President Trump signed an Executive Order on anti-Semitism. The order is designed to give the federal government more tools to protect Jews from anti-Semitism by addressing a gap in the interpretation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, a key federal statute prohibiting discrimination in programs receiving federal financial assistance. The order addresses that gap by explicitly adopting the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of…
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Who are Antifa?

Backgrounder
Antifa face off against white supremacists in Charlottesville, VA
Key Points Antifa is a decentralized, leaderless movement composed of loose collections of groups, networks and individuals. Persistent disinformation campaigns about antifa distort public perception of the movement. Antifa’s professed purpose is to vigorously oppose fascism. While some extreme actors who claim to be affiliated with antifa do engage in violence or vandalism at rallies and events, this is not the norm. Because there is no unifying body for…
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From "Little Rock Nine" to Today

Backgrounder
Robert F. Wagner Meets with Little Rock Students
Minnijean Brown, Elizabeth Eckford, Carlotta Walls, Mayor Wagner, Thelma Mothershed, Gloria Ray, Terrance Roberts, Ernest Green, Melba Pattilo, Jefferson Thomas. On September 23, 1957 in Little Rock, Arkansas, these nine African-American students quietly slipped into Central High School through the side door with the assistance of the city’s police, while an angry white mob numbering 1,000 swarmed the front of the school to await their arrival. Upon learning of their entry, the…
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Civil Rights Act of 1964

Backgrounder
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson on July 2, 1964. The Act prohibited discrimination in public places, provided for the integration of schools and other public facilities and made employment discrimination illegal based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin. The document was the most sweeping civil rights legislation since Reconstruction. As we commemorate the anniversary of the Civil Rights Act, we have an opportunity to teach and…
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Primer on the First Amendment & Religious Freedom

Backgrounder
Introduction The right to freedom of religion is so central to American democracy that it was enshrined in the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.  The Founding Fathers wrote the First Amendment in response to two centuries of state-sponsored religious conflict and oppression in America, and with a keen understanding of the religious persecution in European nations resulting from official state religions and religious wars.  Recognizing the unique and intimate nature…
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