Welcome to Ping and Echo, a daily newsletter that links to one amazing podcast episode that is guaranteed to be a great listen for kids and their families. Each newsletter includes links to articles, videos and activities related to the podcast so you can turn every episode into an adventure.
Today’s podcast episode is from Storycorps the community listening project that is collecting little pieces of American history through the stories of people all over the county. This episode features a hero of the civil rights era, who continues to inspire the nation and get into “good trouble” as a member of Congress today. Rep. John Lewis worked closely with Martin Luther King Jr., served as chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and helped organize the 1963 March on Washington. In 2018 I had the good fortune to travel for a few days with Rep. Lewis, including a walk over the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, to mark the anniversary of the voting rights march which ended in a bloody confrontation with state police in 1965. There is a lot we can learn from Rep. Lewis and his story to help us face the challenges we share as a nation today.
Podcast: Storycorps
Episode: The Boy From Troy: How Dr. King Inspired A Young John Lewis
URL: https://storycorps.org/stories/the-boy-from-troy-how-dr-king-inspired-a-young-john-lewis/
Length: 3 minutes and 15 seconds
🧐 You Should Know
I’ll always give you a heads up if there is anything in the podcast that might surprise or worry kids. Nothing to worry about here.
💡 Try This
After you listen to the episode you can interview someone in your family or study civil rights history with the links and activities below:
Use the Storycorps app to record your family history - Storycorps
Write to your member of Congress about an issue that is important to you (find their contact info here)
🔎 Explore More
Read up on the history and struggle behind this episode with these links:
Preaching to the Chickens: How Civil Rights Legend John Lewis’s Childhood Incubated His Heroic Life - Brain Pickings
John Lewis' 'March' Toward Justice Depicted In Graphic Novel - NPR Code Switch
See video and listen to the songs of the civil rights era with this documentary - PBS
The name Ping and Echo comes from sonar technology which relies on sending out “pings” and receiving back “echos” to discover the world around you. You can send us pictures of the art and activities created by your kids. Email them to pingandecho@gmail.com and we’ll post all your echos on our Twitter page.
Thanks for lending us your ears and your inbox.
Josh, Toby, and Ruby