Black Lives Matter Week of Action

This year, Garfield educators, along with educators from many cities are observing a Nationwide Black Lives Matter Week of Action in Schools. The Seattle Education Association has endorsed the event. In their announcement, the SEA cites TeachingforChange.org, in pointing out “the goal of Black Lives Matter Week of Action in Schools is to spark an ongoing movement of critical reflection and honest conversation in school communities for people of all ages to engage with critical issues of racial justice.” There are three imperatives that will be covered throughout the week:

• End Zero Tolerance
• Hire Black Teachers
• Mandate Black History/Ethnic Studies

Each day’s lesson covers a theme of equity and justice in the Black community. There are elementary, middle and high school level lessons. The lesson outline was developed by The Caucus of Working Educators from the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers. The lesson content was developed by the Seattle Public Schools Ethnic Studies Working Group.

• Monday: The Day of Demands, including Restorative Justice, Empathy, Loving Engagement
• Tuesday: Diversity, Globalism
• Wednesday: Trans-Affirming, Queer Affirming, & Collective Value
• Thursday: Intergenerational, Black Families, & Black Villages
• Friday: Black Women, Unapologetically Black

READ ABOUT THE MONDAY, FEB. 5 BLACK LIVES MATTER AT SCHOOL RALLY OUTSIDE GHS