Each of us has the power to make the world a better place with simple acts of kindness. The author shows how we all benefit from kindness and how it draws us closer to God and to one another. Contrary to the popular belief that "kindness is weakness", kindness is a true strength precisely because it ia a manifestation of God's love in us. The nurturing and healing power of kindness is an ideal antidote for today's often restless and violent world.

In 1877, the American Humane Society was formed as the national organization for animal and child protection. Thirty years later, there were 354 anticruelty organizations chartered in the United States, nearly 200 of which were similarly invested in the welfare of both humans and animals. In The Rights of the Defenseless, Susan J. Pearson seeks to understand the institutional, cultural, legal, and political significance of the perceived bond between these two kinds of helpless creatures, and the attempts made to protect them. Unlike many of today’s humane organizations, those Pearson follows were delegated police powers to make arrests and bring cases of cruelty to animals and children before local magistrates. Those whom they prosecuted were subject to fines, jail time, and the removal of either animal or child from their possession. Pearson explores the limits of and motivation behind this power and argues that while these reformers claimed nothing more than sympathy with the helpless and a desire to protect their rights, they turned “cruelty” into a social problem, stretched government resources, and expanded the state through private associations. The first book to explore these dual organizations and their storied history, The Rights of the Defenseless will appeal broadly to reform-minded historians and social theorists alike.

Being kind in education is about much more than being nice. This unique book shows how transformational kindness needs to be an explicit, essential part of classroom and school culture in order to improve student success. Author Hope E. Wilson offers practical steps for creating a culture of transformational kindness through your approach to classroom management, relationships, assessment, and the content areas. She also demonstrates how to build kindness toward colleagues, parents, and families, and what to do in situations where supervisors are not so supportive. Finally, she describes how you can show more kindness toward yourself, including by giving grace. Throughout this book, you’ll find vignettes about the educators who have influenced their own communities through transformational kindness. You’ll come away feeling inspired and encouraged to imagine a world in which schools are places where kindness and humanity are felt by all.