Far too often, the Civil Rights Movement is taught around a heroic and narrowly defined narrative: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave a speech, Rosa Parks sat down on a bus, and now racism is over. Research shows that not only are these narratives inaccurate, but they actually make students less likely to become involved in current-day struggles for social change. Students disassociate from these messianic narratives and struggle to relate to these singular, heroic, almost mythical characters.

This project was created in response to these narratives, to provide a more complex and accurate story of the Civil Rights Movement, and to provide mirrors for middle grade students to see themselves represented in the long struggle for civil rights within the United States.