Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain was published in late 2014. This places its publication date after the 2012 death of Trayvon Martin, an unarmed 17-year-old Black teenager who was killed by George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer. In the aftermath of Martin’s death, a petition with over two million signatures demanded that Zimmerman be prosecuted (Leitsinger, Miranda. “How one man helped spark online protest in Trayvon Martin case.” Nbcnews.com, 2012). People protested throughout the country when Zimmerman was acquitted of murder charges (Williams, Matt; agencies. “Trayvon Martin protests being held in more than 100 US cities.” The Guardian, 2013).

Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain was also published after the 2014 death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. Brown was an unarmed, 18-year-old Black man. Darren Wilson, a police officer, shot and killed him. Protests erupted in the wake of the shooting. Wilson was not indicted (“Michael Brown is killed by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri.” History.com, 2014).

Educators around the United States sought to understand the role of education in the aftermath of these events. Hammond is a Black educator who specializes in equity practices.