NursingClio.com, 9/12/2017, “Queering History: Back to School Edition,” by Tiffany K. Wayne.
“In his second inaugural address in 2013, President Barack Obama stated that
We, the people, declare today that the most evident of truths — that all of us are created equal — is the star that guides us still; just as it guided our forebears through Seneca Falls, and Selma, and Stonewall ….
As a high school history and government teacher, I love to show my students either the text or video of this speech. Besides containing a nice example of alliteration as an effective rhetorical device, the passage makes direct reference to documents, places, and events we have studied in our classroom! More importantly, in a few short sentences Obama did what all history teachers everywhere try to do every day: he highlighted the relevance of studying history for continued civil rights and social justice struggles today.
The “Seneca Falls, and Selma, and Stonewall” passage also spoke to me as a history teacher in that the specific inclusion of “Stonewall” resonates with a new commitment to teaching LGBT history in California schools.” Read more