Topic

Educator Cherry McGee Banks will talk about Lift Every Voice and Sing, also known as the Black National Anthem, at RARE’s March 28 Open Discussion Session. The online event starts at 7 p.m.

Presenter

Professor Banks is a founding faculty member in the School of Educational Studies and a Professor Emeritus at the University of Washington, Bothell. In 1997, she received the Distinguished Teaching Award from the University of Washington, Bothell. In 2000 she was named a Worthington Distinguished Professor and in 2013 she was named a fellow of the American Educational Research Association. Her research focuses on intergroup education and the role that public school educators played in linking schools to communities and helping students and parents appreciate diversity and embrace democratic ideals.

Professor Banks has contributed to such journals as the Phi Delta Kappan, Social Studies and the Young Learner, Educational Policy, Theory Into Practice, and Social Education. Professor Banks is associate editor of the Handbook of Research on Multicultural Education, co-editor of Multicultural Education: Issues and Perspectives, co-author of Teaching Strategies for the Social Studies and author of Improving Multicultural Education: Lessons from the Intergroup Education Movement. She has also served on several national committees and boards including the American Educational Research Journal’s editorial board, the Board of Examiners for the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education, and the AERA Books Editorial Board. At the local level she is a member of the Seattle Art Museum’s Board of Trustees, the University of Washington Retirement Association Board, the Graduate Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority, and a past president of the Greater Seattle chapter of the Links, Inc. In 2021, she received the Outstanding Community Service Award from the Alpha Omicron Boule.

Pre-reads

The sacramental pull of ‘Lift Every Voice and Sing,’ the ‘Black National Anthem’ — An article by Eric T. Styles provides a good overview of the song and its meaning in the African American community.

“Lift Ev’ry Voice And Sing”—A Powerful Anthem with an 120-Year History — An article by The National WWII Museum. This anthem was sung by African Americans fighting fascism abroad during World War II and the during continuing the struggle for social justice in the United States.

Black National Anthem — Words and music on BlackPast.org