On Wednesday the 24th May, Year 12 history and politics students from Notley High School and Braintree Sixth form were lucky enough to have a virtual lecture from Dr Nicholas Grant, Associate Professor of United States history from the University of East Anglia.

The session was titled “What do we get wrong about the US civil rights movement? And why does this matter?”. Dr Grant started by outlining common myths relating to the history of Black protest in the US. He emphasised how historians have recently questioned the chronology, geography, character and meaning of the civil rights movement. He also pushed students to think about how and why these histories matter today – and how they might be compared to contemporary movements for racial justice. Finally, Dr Grant gave the students the opportunity to demonstrate their interest and knowledge with a series of thought-provoking questions to discuss.

Year 12 students Josh, Tom and Charlie said the talk was “inspiring, engaging and a culturally enriching experience”.

We would like to thank Dr Grant for taking the time to broaden our students’ knowledge and experiences by bringing the US civil rights movement to life.