She's on the Case!

Dear Educators,

We have no power over the circumstances and situations that present themselves in our lives, but our power lies in how we handle those challenges. As teachers, we want to ultimately instill in our students the skills to do that well and help them learn from any mistakes they make. 

In social studies we often do this by studying how people from history have played the hands they were dealt. For that reason, we are focusing our Geography News Network articles on powerful women who have taken their circumstances and worked with them to gain power and mastery over their lives. Ida B Wells certainly fits that bill….

Ida B. Wells took immensely unjust discrimination and trauma and turned it into education and change. She created a voice for herself and used it to advocate for others. 

This article will enlighten your students as to her life and the strength she brought to it. May she be a beacon for them to fight against injustice through voice and education too.

You don’t have to be in politics to make a difference. To make deep and real changes, every single one of us needs to accept the responsibility we bear, to fight for what we believe no matter our job or our status in society.

We often disregard the power that media plays. We can falsely believe that politics and journalism are the real influences on our society, but the fact is that media can work as powerful propaganda. It is for this reason that Shonda Rhimes is so important. Her writing has woven the stories that millions of Americans have enjoyed and view as a representation of our society. She changed what society looked like, and by doing that she has had a profound impact on the way future generations will see and create the world.

This speech of hers addresses the role she has had in a long line of fighters.

How can you emulate a strong fighter for justice to your students, your children, and anyone who might be watching? Gloves on and never taken off.