How do we bring the experiences of Japanese-American WWII internees, refugees of the Secret War in Laos, and the survivors of the Rwandan genocide into our classrooms? How can their experiences be shared within a wider historical lens, connecting their hardships with those of Holocaust survivors in Europe? That driving question is what educators will explore during a 5-day professional development seminar which will take place in Sacramento, California, in 2020. Our Northern California Seminar– Crossing Lines: Tools for Teaching Tough Topics, will convene for its 9th year to bring together educators to discuss cultural competence and how to integrate sensitive issues and create safe spaces in the classroom. The overarching goal of the Northern California Crossing Lines Satellite Seminar is to promote school site leadership in teaching global acceptance and writing for change. A secondary goal is to help students make connections between historical events of the past (“then and there”) to more recent events (“here and now”). The seminar connects experiences from the Holocaust with those affected by the Rwandan genocide, the Japanese-American incarceration, and the Secret War in Laos. Focusing on the power of stories to promote the acceptance and appreciation of all cultures, the seminar brings together Holocaust survivors, Japanese-American internees, Mien and Hmong refugees, and Carl Wikens, the only American to remain in Rwanda during the 1994 genocide, to share their family histories, personal experiences and lessons learned.

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