Friend,

My name is Jalaya Liles Dunn, and I am delighted to introduce myself
as the new director of Learning for Justice. 

You may know us by our original name, Teaching Tolerance. I was first
introduced to Teaching Tolerance and the Southern Poverty Law Center
20 years ago while serving as an Ella Baker Trainer for the
Children's Defense Fund Freedom Schools® program.
An organizer and human rights activist, Baker understood the work
necessary to effect systems change. Her leadership in empowering
ordinary people like you and me to confront injustice continues to
call me to this work today. 

When our program was founded in 1991, its goal was clear: eradicating
hate by fighting intolerance in schools. Focusing on the difference
one teacher could make, Teaching Tolerance created resources to build
classrooms where all children could thrive.

We're proud of the work we've done. But over 30 years,
that work has evolved. And it's time for a name that reflects
the work we do now and the work we'll carry forward. 

With educators, we're teaching the hard history of American
slavery. We're promoting policies that ensure LGBTQ students are
safe on campus. We're navigating critical conversations with
young people about race, gender, class and more. We're
advocating for sanctuary schools. We're offering guidance on
procedures and policies to interrupt a school-to-prison pipeline that
disproportionately removes Black, Latinx and Indigenous students from
their classrooms, their families and their communities.

We know the health of our schools depends on the state of our
communities, so we're looking forward to including caregivers
and community partners in our work. We know it's going to take as many
people as possible to build the foundations for a multiracial and
multicultural society where everyone is welcomed and
valued.  

We know the health of our society largely depends on the health of the
South, so we're planning ways to be more intentional about our
work and extend our partnerships in communities in Louisiana,
Mississippi, Alabama, Florida and Georgia.

We're very grateful to all the members of our SPLC community who
have supported us, encouraged us and pushed us to find a name that
better reflects the work we do and the change we're working
toward.

The truth is, justice is at the heart of what we want for all of our
young people and for society at large. And learning from-and
with-one another is the first step to making justice real.

Visit us at learningforjustice.org to learn more about our
work, and find the latest news from Learning for Justice in
our weekly newsletter. We hope you're as excited as we are
about our new name and about the incredible work we know lies ahead as
we continue learning for justice together. 
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Thank you,

Jalaya Liles Dunn

 


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