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We offer activities for children and families, our newest magazine and book reviews to help build bridges of understanding for ourselves and the children in our lives during this holiday season. Help children develop a strong sense of self and identity while recognizing and honoring diversity in the world. Because we are different, we find space for new thoughts and ideas and opportunities to appreciate diverse ways of being and living. And our commonalities, recognized in various ways, allow us to connect as families, friends and communities. 

This holiday season, share stories with children that deepen our values and celebrate our shared humanity. “Fireflies,” our newest children’s story about family, love and identity, gives children affirming messages and offers a model to adults on responding to a child questioning their sexual orientation or gender identity. When 10-year-old Kaden wonders whether he’s gay, he turns to his older brother Zain, who offers the love and acceptance all caring adults should give to a child.

The Civil Rights Movement is a story of people who believed they could bring about change to ensure civil and human rights for themselves and future generations. That change did not come easily, nor did it come without disappointments and sacrifices. As we stand on the shoulders of generations who fought for the reality of our nation’s democratic ideals, we cannot afford to lose hope. We must build resiliency in ourselves and our communities, resist hate, and recommit to our values: justice, human rights for all and democratic governance.

Learning the honest history of our nation helps us understand our diversity and strengthens us all as we work toward building on more solid national foundation of truth and justice. As we celebrate Native American Heritage Month, the Learning for Justice page offers resource to learn and teach about the diversity of Indigenous cultures and communities. To explore our historical complexity, the recent magazine article, “American Patriotic Songs: Context and Perspective,” helps us to confront the various perspectives that a single patriotic song can embody.

Nurturing children requires a community’s efforts to come together, as reflected in the proverb “It takes a village to raise a child.” Our nation’s children deserve love, not just in words but in our actions. These new Learning for Justice magazine articles offer models for parents, caregivers, educators and community members to nurture children’s growth, learning and well-being. And they remind and encourage us that: “[We] are better together and more effective when we work together rather than in isolation.