European Association of History Educators

Facing History and Ourselves  has recently published Teaching Banished, a written resources book focusing on the violent mobs in the late 1800s and early 1900s century which drove away thousands of African Americans from their communities, businesses and land never to return again. The publication is accompanied by the documentary Banished by Marco Williams. While the later zooms in on three towns in the United States which were affected, in order to then connect it to the race relations in contemporary times.
The first examines attempts of current residents, descendents, journalists and politicians to raise awareness on this element in history. It is an excellent guide to complement the documentary due to its critical approach by asking questions about memory, justice and reconciliation. As for instance: How does a community reconcile past wrongs and move toward justice? How can addressing the past restore the dignity of victims, perpetrators, and bystanders? The resource book Teaching Banished can be downloaded from http://www.facinghistory.org/banished.

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