Confronting Racism
Objective
Meet the demanding need of an anti-racism curriculum, quickly and respectfully, over the summer of 2020.Purpose
Anti-racism was exploding into the public consciousness following the murder of George Floyd. As a respected education company we wanted to respond to the moment by providing anti-racism resources to students, teachers and parents.Outcome
Reception was unfortunately as divisive as the issue, but with a quick turnaround we were able to produce a print and digital program that evaluated America's fraught history with race..Summer 2020
The Summer of 2020, now referred to as the summer of United States racial unrest, saw nationwide protests against police brutality and systemic racism, ignited by the murder of George Floyd. It was one of the most significant political protest movements of the last decade and highlighted for many how far the US still needed to go in confronting racial inequality. Confronting Racism is a curriculum developed to be part of that learning journey toward anti-racism.
Quick, Impactful, Respectful
HMH knew it had to respond to this significant moment and saw it as an opportunity to address an embarrassing omission in its educational library, but the moment was happening quickly, news changing frequently, and for a traditional publishing company that kind of speed is difficult to address. We knew we had a narrow window, so a small tiger team of individuals was tasked to quickly develop a series of print and digital modules that not only covered the current protests but the sordid history of racial politics in America. We partnered with Tyrone Howard, educator and founder of the Black Male Institute, in order to ensure we were being respectful of the moment.
Understanding and Reflection
An equal part of the curriculum, aside from the anti-racism education itself, was a complementary journal given to students to allow them to reflect, write about, and discuss the difficult topics they were learning. This journal also had a note to parents in order to help them understand what the program was and why it was important. Every aspect was an opportunity for reflection and understanding, rather than judgement. The tone of the product was contemporary, bold, and unabashed, taking cues from the BLM movement itself.
The Legacy of (Confronting) Racism
Unfortunately for HMH and Americans in general, it would seem that the United States is still not ready to reconcile with its past. Confronting Racism, while still available, is not widely offered in today's political climate. Perhaps sometime in the near future we will be able to resurface this program and give it the update it already needs.
