4-episode animated educational project is designed to teach children about civics, constitutional rights, and free expression through stories set at a fictional junior high school.
The ACLU has launched KYR-U, a new stop-motion animated educational series designed to teach children about civics, constitutional rights, and free expression. Conceptualized by the ACLU’s Brandon Lake and inspired by educational programs such as Schoolhouse Rock and Bill Nye, the series premiered April 23 on YouTube Kids and is also available through the ACLU website alongside supplementary materials including study guides, music videos, Q&As, and a fictional Liberty Gazette newspaper article.
Set at Eastman-Baldwin Junior High School, KYR-U follows students Aaron and Lisa, who write for their school newspaper, the Liberty Gazette. Guided by their teacher Mr. Charles, the students explore topics including student speech rights, censorship, the legislative process, and civic participation alongside a cast of talking books, school staff, and a talking PA system.
Season 1 consists of four episodes. “Peace, Hats, and Understanding” introduces Aaron and Lisa through lessons tied to the landmark student speech case Tinker v. Des Moines. “James and the Giant Ban” examines book bans and censorship through discussions around "James and the Giant Peach." “The Three Branch Weave” focuses on the three branches of government and how laws are created, while “We the People” explores community organizing and defending civil liberties through public advocacy and the courts.
Enjoy the first episode, “Peace, Hats, and Understanding”:
KYR-U is produced with stop-motion, which the ACLU describes as "the foundation of all animation;” production involved building sets, writing original music, scripting episodes, and consulting with animation and First Amendment experts.
The series was created by Lake, a former stop-motion animator, schoolteacher, and parent who serves as creator and showrunner. The show was developed and produced in-house; additional creative team members include Abdool Corlette as head of brand, Omar Al-Fotihi as director of multimedia, Eric Ziminsky as director of design, Mia Ta as lead editor, Elyse Kelly as co-producer, Joe Pontillo and Musa Brooker as writers, Threadwood for production design, fabrication, and animation, Jason Pomerantz as composer, and Natalie Engel as educational advisor.
According to the ACLU, the series was developed in response to growing concerns about censorship, reductions in education funding, and legislative efforts to strip history from classroom curriculum and books. The organization said more than 23,000 books have been banned in public schools over the past five years and that public understanding of constitutional rights and civic participation has become increasingly important. These actions by officials at all levels of government, they also note, attempt to erase the voices of marginalized communities, but also pressure people into never speaking out at all.
Source: The ACLU
Dan Sarto is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network.
