Showing titles in Social Activists

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born in 1869 in British-occupied India. Though he studied law in London and spent his early adulthood in South Africa, he remained devoted to his homeland and spent the later part of his life working to make India an independent nation. Calling for non-violent civil disobedience, Gandhi led India to independence and inspired movements for civil rights around the world. Gandhi is recognized internationally as a symbol of hope, peace, and freedom.

Born into slavery in 1862, Ida Bell Wells was freed as a result of the Emancipation Proclamation in 1865. Yet she could see just how unjust the world she was living in was. This drove her to become a journalist and activist. Throughout her life, she fought against prejudice and for equality for African Americans. Ida B. Wells would go on to co-own a newspaper, write several books, help cofound the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), and fight for women's right to vote.

The wife of Martin Luther King, Jr., Coretta Scott King was a civil rights leader in her own right, playing a prominent role in the African American struggle for racial equality in the 1960s. Here's a gripping portrait of a smart, remarkable woman. Growing up in Alabama, Coretta Scott King graduated valedictorian from her high school before becoming one of the first African-American students at Antioch College in Ohio. It was there that she became politically active, joining the local chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

John Lewis was a civil rights leader and United States congressman who never stopped speaking up for justice, equality, and peace. Before he marched with Martin Luther King Jr. during the civil rights movement, John was a thoughtful kid who loved learning but wasn’t able to go to a good school because of segregation. He wanted to make a difference in his community, so he organized peaceful protests to end segregation and fight for equal rights for Black Americans. Explore how John went from being a young farm boy to a famous activist, politician, and leader.

Wilma Mankiller grew up immersed in the Cherokee community and culture of Oklahoma. When her family moved to San Francisco as part of the Indian Relocation Program, she had to quickly adjust to city life. Along the way, Wilma never lost her dedication to her people and their centuries-old traditions. She grew up to become a major political activist. From aiding the Occupation of Alcatraz in 1969 to making history as the first woman principal chief of the Cherokee Nation in 1985, Wilma never wavered in her support for her community.

On the outskirts of the Milky Way, floating slowly through space, there hangs a planet unlike any other. It has oceans, deserts, jungles and mountains. It has life that swims, life that soars and life that swings through the trees. It is a place of dazzling variety and infinite wonder - and it's the only world we've got. Climate change is happening, now. But it's not too late to change the story. Meet the humans, from around the world, who are fighting to save our planet. This is your call to arms.

Verbannt und geächtet. Der Ketzer der Neuzeit Martin Luther will die Kirche verändern. Die Bibel soll für jeden Gläubigen erfahrbar werden. Akribisch macht er sich an die Übersetzung der lateinischen Schriften. Luther kritisiert das kirchliche Leben: Er wettert gegen den Ablasskauf, gegen das Bild eines strafenden Gottes, führt Kirchenlieder im Gottesdienst ein. Er will die Kirche revolutionieren - doch am Ende spaltet er sie auch.

Malala Yousafzai won the Nobel Peace Prize at the age of 17 for speaking out against injustice even when it was terrifying to do so. She was an ordinary Muslim girl who wanted to attend school, and she refused to stop protesting for her rights even after being attacked by a powerful group in Pakistan who wanted women to remain in the shadows. She continues to fight for women’s rights and free education for children all over the world.

Black politicians have served in all levels of the United States government. As mayors, congresspersons, president, and more, Black politicians have created policies and initiatives to better serve community members. They have also addressed issues such as access to education, criminal justice, and affordable housing. Celebrate politicians such as Kamala Harris, Cory Booker, Ilhan Omar, and Maynard Jackson Jr. who have made astounding achievements in politics.

On March 2, 1955, a slim, bespectacled teenager refused to give up her seat to a white woman on a segregated bus in Mont-gomery, Alabama. Shouting "It's my constitutional right!" as police dragged her off to jail, Claudette Colvin decided she'd had enough of the Jim Crow segregation laws that had angered and puzzled her since she was a young child.

LeBron James worked hard to become a National Basketball Association (NBA) star. Now he uses his fame to give back to others. Learn more about how James rose to the top of the NBA!

As a field reporter in the 1960s, Gloria Steinem worked hard to dig up important stories. She went undercover to expose the grim realities of gender inequality in America. As her message continued to grow, she became the spokeswoman of the women’s liberation movement and created the feminist publication, Ms. magazine. Steinem continues to speak and write about women and women’s roles in media and politics.

You may never have heard of him, but you've probably heard of the many people civil rights activist Bayard Rustin influenced. He was a mentor to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and refused to move to the back of the bus many years before Rosa Parks did. The son of a freed slave, Bayard Rustin grew up during the peak of the Jim Crow laws, which segregated Blacks and Whites.

It was April 5, 1943, and the Gestapo would arrive any minute. Dietrich Bonhoeffer had been expecting this day for a long time. He had put his papers in order - and left a few notes specifically for Hitler's men to see. Two SS agents climbed the stairs and told the boyish-looking Bonhoeffer to come with them. He calmly said good-bye to his parents, put his Bible under his arm, and left. Upstairs there was proof, in his own handwriting, that this quiet young minister was part of a conspiracy to kill Adolf Hitler.

Dolores Huerta always knew that helping others in her community was important. So when she became a teacher and saw how hard it was for her students from farm families to find enough to eat, she knew there was more she could do. Dolores became a labor rights activist, fighting for better conditions for farm workers. She started unions so that workers would be treated more fairly. And she was also a leader of the women's rights movement.

Starting in the 1960s, John Lewis began his activism alongside civil rights legend and good friend Martin Luther King Jr. He participated in many now-historic events, including the 1963 March of Washington, the Freedom Rides, and the Selma to Montgomery marches across the Edmund Pettus Bridge. John continued his impactful career when he was elected to the House of Representatives in 1986. He went on to serve seventeen terms until his death in 2020.

When Helen Keller was very young, she got a rare disease that made her deaf and blind. Suddenly, she couldn't see or hear at all, and it was hard for her to communicate with anyone. But when she was six years old, she met someone who changed her life forever: her teacher, Annie Sullivan. With Miss Sullivan's help, Helen learned how to speak sign language and read Braille. Armed with the ability to express herself, Helen grew up to be come a social activist, leading the fight for people with disabilities and so many other causes.

From a young age, Stephen Hawking had a strong sense of wonder and was full of questions about the world around him and the stars above. He would spend his whole life trying to figure out how the universe worked, including discovering truths about black holes and energy. And when he was diagnosed with a rare disease called ALS that destroys the nerve cells in the body, he would find his own mental energy to carry on with his studies even after his limbs and vocal chords stopped working. He became one of history's most influential scientists.

Before she traveled the country speaking out against discrimination, Bessie was a little girl with a big imagination that took her to the sky, through the clouds, and past the birds. Knocking down barriers one by one, Bessie endured racism and grueling training to become the first Black female pilot and an inspiration to Mae Jemison, Josephine Baker, and many more influential people of color for years to come.

On August 14, 2016, NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick began a protest when he refused to stand for the national anthem. He wanted to make a statement about the oppression of people of color in the United States after he had spent a summer speaking out against police brutality. After playing professional football for six seasons, that would become Colin Kaepernick's last season in the NFL, but he would go on to become one of the most prominent activists of today.