Biographical Highlights
Ida B. Wells-Barnett (1862-1931) was born into slavery in the South near the end of the Civil War. Growing up, she saw the disparity in the rights of African Americans and whites...
Biography
On December 23, 1867, in Delta, Louisiana Sarah Breedlove (later known as Madam C.J. Walker) became the first person in her family born free from slavery. Her parents, Owen and Minerva Breedlove were...
Definition
The Urban Institute is a think tank and public policy research center and a product of the social and political reforms of the 1960s. Created to research...
Biographical Highlights
Harriet Tubman was a second-generation slave who dedicated her life to fulfilling her cry to the slaveholders, "Let my people go!" She escaped from slavery, herself,...
Definition
The Hebrew phrase tikkun olam (pronounced tee-KOON oh-LUHM) means "world repair." In modern Jewish circles, tikkun olam has become synonymous with the notion of social...
Biographical Highlights
Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) was an American from New England who was an author, poet, and natural philosopher. Thoreau was a leading figure in the Transcendentalist movement which held,...
Definition/Life Highlights
Mary Eliza Church Terrell was a social activist and early feminist who advocated for women's suffrage and civil rights for African Americans. Born to free parents who...
Written by Casey Ruschman with some content from an earlier edition by Melia Tourangeau
Definition
Teach for America is a nonprofit organization with the vision "one day, all children in our nation will have the opportunity to attain an excellent...
Definition
Suffrage is the right or privilege of voting and is frequently incorporated among the rights of citizenship (the duties and privileges of a person...
Biographical Highlights
Elizabeth Cady Stanton forever changed the social and political landscape of the United States of America by succeeding in her work to guarantee rights for women and slaves. Among the...