Mississippi Code Annotated
Section 37-13-193: Civil Rights/
Human Rights Education in the
Mississippi Public School
Curriculum
Chauncey Spears
Social Studies Specialist
October 2007
Copyright © 2007 Mississippi Department of Education
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What are Civil Rights/Human Rights?
• According to The American Heritage
Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth
Edition, human rights are “…the basic rights
and freedoms to which all humans are
entitled, often held to include the right to life
and liberty, freedom of thought and
expression, and equality before the law."
• Civil Rights are human rights that are
protected by the Government or other civil
authorities. In the U.S., these rights are
explicitly outlined in the U.S. Constitution.
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What is Civil Rights/Human Rights
Education?
• It is defined as the mastery of content, skills and
values that are learned from a focused and
meaningful exploration of civil rights/human rights
issues- both past and present- locally, nationally and
globally.
• This education should lead learners to understand
and appreciate issues such as social justice, power
relations, diversity, mutual respect, and civic
engagement.
• Learners should acquire a working knowledge of
tactics engaged by civil rights activists to achieve
social change. Among these are: demonstrations,
resistance, organizing, and collective action/unity.
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MS Code 37-13-193
• “provide assistance and advice to K-12 schools with respect to
the Civil Rights Movement and human rights education and
awareness programs;
• survey and catalog the extent to which civil rights and human
rights education exists in state curricula;
• inventory civil rights memorials, exhibits and resources that
could be used in classrooms and other educational programs;
• compile a list of volunteers who are willing to share their
knowledge and experiences concerning the struggle for civil
rights;
• prepare reports for the Governor and the State Legislature on
the inclusion of civil rights studies into the educational systems
of the state.” Miss. Code. Ann. Section 37-13-193
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Civil Rights Education Commission
• “The Commission shall provide or assist education
officials and other organizations with information,
coordination, modification of courses or programs
that include the Civil Rights Movement…” Miss. Code Ann.
Section 37-13-195
• The Commission will be comprised of no more than
15 members, eleven of which appointed by a
permanent committee with representatives from the
Winter Institute at the University of Mississippi,
Tougaloo College, the Oral History Project at the
University of Southern Mississippi and Jackson State
University.
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Civil Rights Education Commission
• Chair- Governor William Winter
• Dr. Susan M. Glisson, William Winter
Institute for Racial Reconciliation
• Dr. Leslie Burl McLemore, Jackson State
University
• Dr. Abdul M. Turay, Tougaloo College
• Dr. Eddie Aaron Holloway, University of
Southern Mississippi
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Civil Rights Education Commission
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Sarah Alford, Jackson
Jackie Bland, Madison
Dianna Freelon-Foster, Grenada
Dr. Rickey Hill, Itta Bena
John Griffin Jones, Jackson
Therese Palmertree, Summit
Dr. Ollye L. Brown Shirley, Jackson
Dianne Walton, Meridian
Doretha Wiley, Tougaloo
Dr. W. Marty Wiseman, Starkville
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Possible Implementation Strategies
• Develop a K-12 supplementary document
that will include lesson plans and community
resources on civil rights.
• Develop new courses that will illuminate the
issues of civil rights, both locally and
nationally, that could be required for students.
• Redesign current required courses to
emphasize civil rights/ human rights lessons
and content.
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State Civil Rights Education
resources on the Web
• Mississippi Historical Society http://mshistory.k12.ms.us/mshistsociety.html
• Mississippi Department of Archives and Historyhttp://www.mdah.state.ms.us/arlib/contents/er/index.html
• William Winter Institute- University of Mississippi
http://www.olemiss.edu/winterinstitute/
• Oral History Civil Rights Documentation Project-University of
Southern Mississippi http://www.usm.edu/crdp/
• Tougaloo Collegehttp://www.tougaloo.edu/content/About/jaxmuseums.htm
• Fannie Lou Hamer Institute- Jackson State University
http://www.home.earthlink.net/~hamer.institute/
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Contact Information
Chauncey Spears, Social Studies Specialist
e-mail: crspears@mde.k12.ms.us
Phone Number : 601-359-2586
Mailing Address: Central High School Building
P.O. Box 771
Jackson, MS 39205-0771
Website: http://www.mde.k12.ms.us/acad/id/curriculum/Curr.htm
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