Learning

"I was also excited to hear about the culturally specific work the Brooklyn Family Justice Center is doing. One of their attorneys works closely with Muslim and immigrant communities, tackling complicated issues like female genital mutilation and cutting (FGM/C). FGM/C, is one of the most devastating forms of violence against women. It is a problem right here in the United States. The CDC estimates 513,000 women and girls have suffered or are at risk of FGM/C in the US... We must continue to investigate and prosecute the most dangerous abusers, including those who strangle, stalk, or use illegal firearms against their victims." more »

Jo Freeman writes: Brenda’s first arrest came when she and two friends tried to buy a bus ticket at the white counter in the Greyhound bus station. For that she served 28 days in jail, missing the first month of her sophomore year in high school. When she returned, her classmates treated her as a hero; her principal expelled her from school. At a subsequent school assembly the other students talked about walking out in protest; over a hundred of them did so later that day. more »

Congresswoman Nita M. Lowey is currently serving her fifteenth term in Congress, representing parts of Westchester and Rockland Counties. Lowey is a strong advocate for women, children, and families. She has been a champion of education throughout her career, fighting for school modernization, teacher development, and literacy programs. Under Lowey’s leadership, federal funding for after-school programs has increased from $1 million in 1996 to $1 billion today. more »

Jo Freeman Reviews: In a long chapter on Family, we learn why the name on his birth certificate is Michael Luther, and why he was called 'Little Mike' in his early years. In fact, Martin Luther King wasn't named for Martin Luther, but you'll have to read the book to find out why. Nonviolence came to him easily. Even as a boy he didn't want to fight, or hit those who hit him. In 1950, while studying at Crozer Theological Seminary, he went to a lecture on Gandhi by a well-known black preacher. He was so intrigued that he read everything that he could find on the Mahatma and his philosophy. The future leader didn't leave home until he graduated from Morehouse College. However, he was ordained at 18 and made associate pastor of his father's church when he was 21. His theological training was not necessary for a career as a Baptist minister; he was going into the family business. more »