250 to 250: 93. Americans with Disabilities Act, Narrated by Marlene Sallo

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Americans with Disabilities Act, Narrated by Marlene Sallo

Disability and civil rights activist Marlene Sallo is the Executive Director of the National Disability Rights Network and former appointee of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights under the Obama administration. Sallo explains how activists pushed for the American Disabilities Act, which bars discrimination against people living with physical or mental disabilities. ‪

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is an important U.S. civil rights law.

• The ADA protects people with physical and mental disabilities from discrimination.
• Employers must provide reasonable help so people with disabilities can do their jobs.
• Public places must also be more accessible to people with disabilities.
• Many people with disabilities worked together to support the ADA.

In March 1990, the ADA was still waiting for approval in Congress.

• Disability rights activists held a protest at the U.S. Capitol.
• Some protesters left their wheelchairs, crutches, and other mobility devices behind.
• They climbed or pulled themselves up the Capitol steps.
• This protest became known as the Capitol Crawl.
• The protest showed some of the barriers faced by people with disabilities.
• Congress passed the ADA later that year.
• President George H. W. Bush signed the ADA into law on July 26, 1990.
• The ADA helped give people with disabilities greater access, equal opportunity, and protection under the law.

POP Interview and Civics Quiz: 

• N-400 Part 2:11. Do you have any physical or mental impairment that prevents you from demonstrating your knowledge of the English language or civics requirements for naturalization? 
• N-400 Part 9:33. Are you unable to take the Oath of Allegiance because of a physical or developmental disability or mental impairment?
• USCIS 100:16.  Who makes federal laws?
• USCIS 128:20.  Name one power of the U.S. Congress. *

Family Fun:

• Daniellability: The ADA Explained
• Disability Equality Education: Coloring Books, Pages and Clip Art with Disability Representation
• Disability History Museum: Education (many lesson plans)
• ILRC: Naturalization for Persons with Disabilities | 2026 comment
  
• Longmore Institute: Patient No More virtual exhibit
• NMAH: EveryBody: An Artifact History of Disability in America
• NY Times: ‘Nothing About Us Without Us’: 16 Moments in the Fight for Disability Rights
• NetFlix: Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution | How the ADA Changed the Built World (clip)
• PBS American Experience: Change Not Charity | clip | full playlist (stream or borrow the dvd)
• PBS Learning Media: The Passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act 
• PBS Origins: Do Disabled People Really Have The Same Rights?
• Smithsonian Kaleidoscope: Disability History is a People's History of Collective Strength
• TheCIL: The Center for Independent Living (so many resource!)
• Untold History: Judy Heumann: The Mother of ADA

250 to 250: 92. Betty Carnes, Narrated by Jessica Knurick

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Betty Carnes, Narrated by Jessica Knurick

Dr. Jessica Knurick is a science communicator and nutrition scientist, specializing in chronic disease prevention. She educates on nutrition science, food and nutrition policy, and how these forces shape public health. She is passionate about making science accessible, practical, and grounded in real-world impact. Knurick details the inspiring life of Betty Carnes, an Arizona ornithologist who fought for smoking bans in public places after losing her friend to lung cancer.

Betty Carnes was a bird scientist from Arizona.

• One of her close friends died from lung cancer at age 29.
• Carnes wanted to protect people from cigarette smoke.
• In the 1960s, she worked to stop smoking in indoor public places.
• Many people told her that change was impossible, but she continued her work.
• In 1971, she convinced American Airlines to have a non-smoking section on its airplanes.
• In 1973, Arizona passed the first state law in the nation to ban smoking in some public places.
• The law stopped smoking in places such as theaters, buses, and elevators.
• Carnes also created the popular “Thank You for Not Smoking” sign.
• Other states later passed laws to limit smoking in public places.
• Today, most states have laws that protect people from smoking in public places.
• Betty Carnes helped make public places healthier and safer.

POP Interview and Civics Quiz: 

• USCIS PM-602-0188. Do you volunteer or help your community?
• USCIS 100:55. What are two ways that Americans can participate in their democracy?
• USCIS 128:69. What are two examples of civic participation in the United States?

Family Fun

• ALA: Quit Smoking
• American Nonsmokers' Rights Foundation: At Risk People
• National Archives Foundation: Smoke and Mirrors
• National Library of Medicine: Tobacco Tour
• OK Help Line: Tobacco-Free Brain Games
• Postal Museum: The American Lung Association exhibit
• Project Prevent: No Smoking Resources
• Smithsonian: No Smoking pin
• SmokeFree.gov
• TED-ed: How do cigarettes affect the body? - Krishna Sudhir
• Third Hand Smoke: Kidz, Tweenz, and Teenz: No Adults Allowed
• Undo: Addicting Kids
• uscitizenpod: Betty Carnes coloring page
• We Speak NYC: No Smoking
• Wikipedia: List of smoking bans in the United States

250 to 250: 91. Charles Ives, Narrated by David Lang

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Charles Ives, Narrated by David Lang

David Lang is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American composer, a Professor at the Yale School of Music, and a co-founder of the legendary New York-based music collective Bang on a Can. Here, Lang profiles composer Charles Ives, whose radical fusion of European classical style and American folk traditions created a fearless template for American music.

Charles Ives was an American composer.

• His father was a band leader during the Civil War.
• As a child, Ives heard marches, patriotic songs, and church music.
• These sounds later became part of his own music.
• Ives studied European classical music.
• He mixed classical music with American folk songs and other American sounds.
• He wrote a concert inspired by the ideas of Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau.
• Ives wanted his music to sound different from traditional European music.
• His music reflected the energy and many different sounds of American life.
• His new ideas influenced other composers and musicians.
• Ives helped create a new and independent style of American music.
• Today, he is remembered as an important American composer.

POP Interview and Civics Quiz: 

• N-400 Part 7:1. Have you had any other jobs in the past five years?
• USCIS 100:98. / 128:123.  What is the name of the national anthem?

Family Fun:

• Clssics for Kids: Charles Ives
• Coolridge Nash: Charles Ives 114 Songs playlist
• Danbury Museum: Charles Ives Birthplace
• LA Philharmonic: Charles Ives Symphonies playist
• NPR: Charles Ives’ vision of America still strikes an unsettling chord | An American Maverick Turns The Symphony On Its Head | Classical Lost And Found: Charles Ives' 'Concord' Sonata As A Symphony
• New Yorker: Charles Ives, Connoisseur of Chaos
• Sergio Canovas: Orchestral Works of Charles Ives playlist
• Strange and Obscure Stories: The Man Who Invented Modern American Music (Charles Ives)
• Thomas Ligre: Charles Ives Songs playlist
• United States Marine Band: Variations on "America"
• uscitizenpod: Variations on America by Charles Ives coloring page

250 to 250: 90. Barbara Shermund, Narrated by Liza Donnelly

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Barbara Shermund, Narrated by Liza Donnelly

LizaDonnelly‬ is a writer and award-winning New Yorker cartoonist covering culture and politics for forty years. She pioneered live drawing, a form of digital visual journalism and directed the 2025 documentary, Women Laughing. Donnelly profiles cartoonist, Barbara Shermund whose irreverent New Yorker drawings captured the spirit of first-wave feminism and the liberated women of the 1920s and '30s.

Barbara Shermund was an American cartoonist.

• She was one of the early artists for The New Yorker magazine.
• Her cartoons were funny and sometimes challenged traditional ideas.
• She often drew modern women in the 1920s and 1930s.
• At this time, women were gaining more freedom and independence.
• The women in her cartoons had their own ideas, goals, and dreams.
• They often made their own choices about their lives.
• Her cartoons challenged traditional ideas about how women should behave.
• Her work reflected changes in women's rights and American society.
• Her cartoons became less popular after World War II.
• Today, people are again interested in her art and ideas.
• Barbara Shermund is remembered for using humor and art to show strong, independent women.

POP Interview and Civics Quiz: 

• N-400 Part 2:5 What is your sex?
• USCIS 100:77.  What did Susan B. Anthony do?
• USCIS 128:102. When did all women get the right to vote? 

Family Fun:

• Caitlin McGurk: Tell Me a Story Where the Bad Girl Wins: The Life and Art of Barbara Shermund (book)
• Cartoon Stock: Barbara Shermund
• CBS Sunday Mornings: The trailblazing cartoon art of Barbara Shermund
• Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum: Tell Me a Story Where the Bad Girl Wins: The Life and Art of Barbara Shermund (exihbit) | Digital Collection
• Brandywine: Tell me a Story Where the Bad Girl Wins: The Life and Art of Barbara Shermund (exihibit)
• Liza Donnelly: The Cartoons Of Barbara Shermund
• Monday Mandala: Garden Party | 1920s Party coloring pages
• NY Times: Overlooked No More: Barbara Shermund, Flapper-Era Cartoonist
• New Yorker: Barbara Shermund's cartoons | The Lovely Nineteen-Twenties Flapper Cartoons of Barbara Shermund

250 to 250: 89. Integration in Little Rock, Narrated by Reverend Liz Walker

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Integration in Little Rock, Narrated by Reverend Liz Walker

Reverend Liz Walker is an award-winning broadcast journalist, humanitarian, and ordained minister best known as the first Black evening news anchor in Boston. Reverend Walker credits her experience in the second wave of desegregation at Little Rock Central High School to her trailblazing efforts for intercultural dialogue and social justice.

In 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against segregation in public schools.

• The case was called Brown v. Board of Education.

In 1957, nine Black students enrolled at Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas.

• They became known as the Little Rock Nine.
• A white crowd tried to stop the students from entering the school.
• The governor of Arkansas ordered the National Guard to block the students.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower took control of the National Guard.

• He also sent U.S. Army soldiers to Little Rock.
• The soldiers protected the students as they entered the school.
• Eisenhower said the country must follow decisions made by the courts.
• He said: "Mob rule cannot be allowed to override the decisions of the courts."

The Little Rock Nine showed great courage as they helped integrate public schools.

• Their story became an important part of the fight for civil rights and equal education.

POP Interview and Civics Quiz: 

• N-400 Part 9:7. Have you EVER ordered, incited, called for, committed, assisted, helped with, or otherwise participated in intentional harm or suffering to any person becaue of their race, religion, national origin, membership in a particular group, or political opinion?
• 100:84 / 128:112.   What did the civil rights movement do?

Family Fun:

• Center for Civic Education: The Struggle for Civil Rights playlist
• Eisenhower Library: Civil Rights: The Little Rock School Integration Crisis
• Facing History & Ourselves: The Little Rock Nine: Connecting 1957 to Today
• NMAAHC: The Little Rock Nine
• NPS: Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site | Lesson Plans | Junior Ranger activity book
• PBS American Experience: Eyes on the Prize, episode 2: Fighting Back (stream or borrow the dvds from your local library) | clip 
• Postal Museum: 37c To Form a More Perfect Union: 1957 Little Rock Nine single
• PBS Learning Media: Educational Equality in the Civil Rights Movement
• US Mint: Little Rock Nine Bronze Medal
• VOA Learning English: Brown v. Board of Education Helps Launch Civil Rights Movement
• Zinn Project: Little Rock Nine (several lesson plans)

250 to 250: 88. Jewish Community of Early Savannah, Narrated by Rabbi Robert Haas

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Jewish Community of Early Savannah, Narrated by Rabbi Robert Haas

Rabbi Robert Haas is the 14th spiritual leader of Congregation Mickve Israel in Savannah, Georgia and a sought-after lecturer, comedian, preacher, and interfaith leader. Rabbi Haas tells the story of the Jewish refugees who arrived in Savannah in 1733 and founded Congregation Mikve Israel, the oldest Jewish congregation in the American South.

The colony of Georgia was founded in 1733.

• Five months later, a ship called the William and Sarah arrived in Savannah, Georgia.
• The ship carried 41 Jewish refugees.
• They came to America to build new lives and practice their religion freely.
• They brought a Torah scroll and other religious items with them.
• The group established Congregation Mikveh Israel in Savannah.
• It became the third-oldest Jewish congregation in the United States.
• It is also one of the oldest Jewish congregations in the South.

In 1820, the congregation dedicated a new synagogue.

• Thomas Jefferson wrote a letter to congratulate the congregation.
• Jefferson praised the United States for protecting religious freedom.
• He believed religious freedom could help people of different religions live together in peace.
• Jefferson wrote: 
• [America] has been the first to prove to the world two truths . . . 
• that man can govern himself, 
• and that religious freedom is the most effectual (relief) against religious dissension (violence).
• The story of Congregation Mikveh Israel shows the importance of religious freedom in American history.

POP Interview and Civics Quiz: 

• N-400 Part 9:7. Have you ever stopped someone from practicing their religion?
• USCIS 100:10. What is freedom of religion?
• USCIS 128:65. What are three rights of everyone living in the United States? 
• USCIS 100:58. / 128:73. What is one reason colonists came to America?

Family Fun:

• Breman Museum: The First Jews in Georgia
• CurrentGA: Congregation Mickve Israel Shares Letter From George Washington For America 250.
• GPB Education: The First Jewish Settlers of Georgia | Georgia Stories
• Hadassah: Savannah, a Haven for Jews Since the Colonial Era
• ISJL: Encyclopedia of Southern Jewish Communities - Savannah, Georgia
• Jewish Coloring Pages: coloring pages
• LOC: From Haven to Home: 350 Years of Jewish Life in America
• Mickve Israel Savannah: Jefferson and the Jews 1 and 2 | A History of Jewish Immigration to the United States playlist

250 to 250: 87. Sandra Day O'Connor, Narrated by Joyce White Vance

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Sandra Day O'Connor, Narrated by Joyce White Vance

Joyce White Vance is a prominent legal analyst, Professor of Law, New York Times bestselling author, and former federal prosecutor who served as the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama during the Obama Administration. Vance explores the legacy of Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, the first female Supreme Court Justice.

Sandra Day O'Connor grew up in Arizona.

• She studied law and had a long legal career.
• In 1981, President Ronald Reagan nominated her to the U.S. Supreme Court.
• The Senate voted to approve her.

She became the first woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.

• O'Connor served on the Supreme Court for about 25 years.
• She carefully studied the facts of each case.
• She was often the deciding vote in important cases.

O'Connor retired from the Supreme Court in 2006.

• She hoped more women would serve on the Supreme Court after her.
• She said, “It’s nice to be the first, but don’t be the last.”
• Sandra Day O'Connor helped open the door for more women in government and law.

POP Interview and Civics Quiz: 

• Part 9:15a. Have you EVER been arrested, cited, detained, or confined by any law enforcement officer, military official (in the U.S. or elsewhere), or immigration official for any reason, or been charged with a crime or offense, or notified that you were being investigated for a crime?
• USCIS 100:39. How many justices are on the Supreme Court?
• USCIS 128:55. How long do Supreme Court justices serve?

Family Fun:

• ABA Journal: Sandra Day O'Connor Coloring Page
• Gilder Lehrman: Sandra Day O’Connor: A Life of Action
• iCivics: The Life and Legacy of Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Insight | Argument Wars game | Court Quest game 
• PBS American Experience: Sandra Day O'Connor: The First
• PBS Learning Media: First Female Justice | Remembering Sandra Day O'Connor
• Sandra Day O'Connor Institute: Civics for Life
• Supreme Court: Sandra Day O’Connor: First Woman on the Supreme Court
• Untold History: Sandra Day O’Connor: “Don’t Take the Bait”

250 to 250: 86. Green Mountain Boys, Narrated by Representative Becca Balint

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Green Mountain Boys, Narrated by Representative Becca Balint

U.S. Rep. Becca Balint has represented Vermont in Congress since 2023, making history as the first woman and openly LGBTQ+ person to do so. A former teacher and state legislator, Rep. Balint is the daughter of a working-class mother and immigrant father and has dedicated her career to fighting for working people, defending democracy, and ensuring every community has a voice. Balint talks about the Green Mountain Boys, the Vermont militia known for its heroics during the Revolutionary War. 

Ethan Allen was a farmer and landowner.

• In the 1760s, he helped form the Green Mountain Boys.
• The Green Mountain Boys were a militia group in the area that is now Vermont.
• They first worked to protect settlers and their land.
• During the American Revolution, they fought against the British.
• On May 10, 1775, they captured Fort Ticonderoga.
• This was an important early American victory.
• The Americans captured cannons and other weapons at the fort.
• The Continental Army later used these cannons near Boston.
• In March 1776, the British left Boston.
• Ethan Allen helped give the colonists hope that they could defeat the British.
• The Green Mountain Boys became famous for their role in the fight for American independence.
  

POP Interview and Civics Quiz: 

• N-400 Part 9:8.b. Have you EVER served in, been a member of, assisted (helped), or participated in any armed group (a group that carries weapons), for example: 
• paramilitary unit (a group of people who act like a military group but are not part of the official military)
• self-defense unit
• vigilante unit
•  rebel group
• or guerrilla group?
• USCIS 100:61. Why did the colonists fight the British?
• USCIS 128:77. Name one reason why the Americans declared independence from Britain.

Family Fun:

• C-SPAN Classroom: The Green Mountain Boys and the American Revolution
• Ethan Allen Homestead Museum: History 
• Fort Ticonderoga: Learn and Explore at Home (activities, puzzles, coloring pages)
• Postal Museum: Vermont Sesquicentennial Issue | Fort Ticonderoga
• Vermont History: New Frontier: The Green Mountain Boys