Illinois Federation of Teachers
A Union of Professionals
Black Lives Matter at School is a national coalition organizing for racial justice in education. We encourage all educators, students, parents, unions, and community organizations to join the annual week of action during the first week of February.
FEBRUARY 6-10
WEEK OF ACTION
MONDAY
Write Night with Free Minds Book Club
Register for a writing workshop exploring the poetry of incarcerated youth, as part of our commitment to attend to systems and networks of care to make the domination, erasure, and dehumanization of Black life obsolete.
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TUESDAY
Celebrating Globalism and Collective Value Panel
Sign up to listen to speakers from different countries talk about the importance of valuing Black life and how it relates to us collectively, building authentic partnerships with all who support creating equitable school communities across the nation and around the globe.
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WEDNESDAY
HBCU Fair Youth Support
Learn about the unapologetically Black history of Historically Black Colleges and Universities and currently what they offer from students.
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THURSDAY
Imagination Lab Listening Project
Register for the collective imagination exercise in which we open-heartedly dream up safe schools, communities, and futures.
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FRIDAY
Black Joy Party Connection Space
Connect in a space to be your authentic self, celebrate, and be in community! To collectively love and care for one another as extended intergenerational families.
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For additional information visit, Black Lives Matter At School.
LEARNING RESOURCES
We have curated a variety of classroom resources for every age group. These resources are all free of charge and meant to be shared and used. The goal of these lessons and activities is to challenge racism and oppression and providing students with the vocabulary and tools needed to take action.
STUDENT CHALLENGE
How can a school community support you in being unapologetically Black?
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Submit a creative response including but not limited to drawing, painting, collage, poetry, song/rap, or any other type of expression by Sunday, February 12th.
GET
INVOLVED
Are you participating in Black Lives Matter at School Week of Action? We want to hear from you. Post what you’re doing on social media with the hashtag #BlackLivesMatterAtSchool and tag @BLMAtSchool and @iftaft.
RELATED NEWS
LINKS
VISIT IFT-AFT.ORG/OEI TO LEARN MORE ABOUT HOW IFT IS TACKLING RACISM IN OUR UNION.