Jackson Free Press

Sept. 29, 2011
Read the report (PDF)

More than half of the states in the nation do not have adequate civil rights education, The Southern Poverty Law Center found in a study released yesterday.

"Teaching the Movement: The State of Civil Rights Education 2011" examines state standards and curriculum requirements for the civil rights movement in all states.

Mississippi received a "C" for its civil rights education, which means that the state includes at least 30 percent of SPLC's recommended content but is missing content in more than one key area and is "covering the movement in patches rather than systematically."

The study also gave 35 states a grade of "F" which means that those states include less than 20 percent of SPLC's recommended content. Sixteen states do not require any civil rights curriculum at all. Only three states received a grade of "A": Alabama, New York and Florida.

The SPLC recommends that states teach students that the movement was composed of many individuals as well as organizations. Students should be also able to identify the key events of the civil rights movement and place them in chronological order.