Apprentice
What does it take to make big societal changes come about? For example, if you wanted to institute a new rule saying that teachers in public schools would not be allowed to assign homework, what would you have to do? Would this change happen easily? Would it take a long time? What steps might you take in order to get a new rule like this in place? Can an individual make a difference?Throughout history, there have been times when people felt so deeply about a political or social issue, they resisted the status quo—the current state of affairs—in some manner. This week, we will be examining different ways people have behaved in an effort to bring about big societal changes.
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| Be the change you wish to see in the world. --Mohandas Gandhi |
Read/Study
1. Watch my background video presentation :)
2. Read Gandhi the Man by Eknath Easwaran
3. Develop a definition as you read for the terms: satyagraha, ahimsa, and civil disobedience
4. Optional: watch Gandhi (1982) PG Available to rent on Amazon
(This film won 8 Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor)
Know/Understand
Choose 1 of the following inspirements:
• Gandhi's life in many ways mirrored Jesus Christ's. Can you find some accounts from Christ's ministry that align with Gandhi's beliefs? What could be a synonym of satyagraha that is used in the Bible?• Compare and contrast the goals and methods of Gandhi and Stalin. Write a page or two on this topic.
• A paradox is a statement or proposition that, despite sound (or apparently sound) reasoning from acceptable premises, leads to a conclusion that seems senseless, logically unacceptable, or self-contradictory.
Do you see any paradox in Gandhi's beliefs regarding fighting your enemies through making them your friends? Write a page or two on this topic.
Become/Serve
• After reading about Gandhi and his teachings about satyagraha, think of some ways you could try his approach in your own life. Try to be conscious of your own feelings towards others as you go about your week. When a disagreement arises, instead of getting upset, try to remove your personal feelings and see the conflict for what it is. Can you solve the problem with love and kindness? Write about your experience.
•
Gandhi had some major weaknesses to overcome in order to follow his
path. Why do we have weaknesses? Do you feel like there is anything
standing in your way right now? Do you think you can overcome it? How?
Set a goal to work on something this week that has been a weakness in the past. Journal about your experience.Journeyman
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| “One has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws.” –Martin Luther King, Jr. |
Background:
Martin Luther King, Jr. was the main leader in the African American civil rights movement. I know we are jumping ahead of our history timeline a bit, but MLK was greatly influenced by Gandhi and his methods, so I think it is very fitting to study them alongside each other. The last time we discussed racial issues was when we studied the civil war. A lot happened to the blacks in our country between the Civil War and MLK, so if everyone can do a good job presenting their timeline events below, we should be able to create a clear picture in class of what led up to the civil rights act.
Read/Study
1. Read Letter from Birmingham Jail by Martin Luther King, Jr. --Written in April 1963
Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Letter from Birmingham Jail delivered an important statement on civil rights and civil disobedience. The 1963 racial crisis in Birmingham, Alabama was a critical turning point in the struggle for African American civil rights. Although King's letter was not published until after the crisis was resolved, it is widely regarded as the most important written document of the modern civil rights movement and a classic text on civil disobedience.
As you read, underline the main idea in each paragraph or summarize the main idea of the paragraph in the margin. Please bring this to class for discussion.
2. We are going to make a class timeline of African American history from the end of the Civil War until 1964. Please choose one segment of years and present the events of those years to the class. Click here for the timeline of events, find your year segment and research the events listed there. Please email me at teamhalley@gmail.com to let me know which one you would like.
1865-1866 - RAHEL
1867-1868
1870 - RACHEL
1877-1879 - TARA
1881-1882 - ADRIANNA
1896 - SUMMER
1905-1909 - MACK
1920's - GRACE
1947-1948 - MEGAN
1954-1955 - SAM
1957-1960 - EMILY
1962-1963 - JAISHA
1964 - CALEB
• The Butler (PG-13)- As Cecil Gaines serves eight presidents during his tenure as a butler at the White House, the civil rights movement, Vietnam, and other major events affect this man's life, family, and American society.
• Remember the Titans (PG) - The true story of a newly appointed African-American coach and his high school team on their first season as a racially integrated unit.
• Selma -In theaters (PG-13)- A chronicle of Martin Luther King's campaign to secure equal voting rights via an epic march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama in 1965.
• 42 (PG-13) - The story of Jackie Robinson from his signing with the Brooklyn Dodgers organization in 1945 to his historic 1947 rookie season when he broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball.
• The Help (PG-13) - An aspiring author during the civil rights movement of the 1960s decides to write a book detailing the African-American maids' point of view on the white families for which they work, and the hardships they go through on a daily basis.
Written
in April 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr.'s “Letter from Birmingham Jail”
delivered an important statement on civil rights and civil disobedience.
The 1963 racial crisis in Birmingham, Alabama, was a critical turning
point in the struggle for African American civil rights. Although King's
letter was not published until after the Birmingham crisis was
resolved, it is widely regarded as the most important written document
of the modern civil rights movement and a classic text on civil
disobedience. - See more at:
http://www.mlkonline.net/jail.html#sthash.FYKYNt6S.dpuf
Written
in April 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr.'s “Letter from Birmingham Jail”
delivered an important statement on civil rights and civil disobedience.
The 1963 racial crisis in Birmingham, Alabama, was a critical turning
point in the struggle for African American civil rights. Although King's
letter was not published until after the Birmingham crisis was
resolved, it is widely regarded as the most important written document
of the modern civil rights movement and a classic text on civil
disobedience. - See more at:
http://www.mlkonline.net/jail.html#sthash.FYKYNt6S.dpuf
Written
in April 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr.'s “Letter from Birmingham Jail”
delivered an important statement on civil rights and civil disobedience.
The 1963 racial crisis in Birmingham, Alabama, was a critical turning
point in the struggle for African American civil rights. Although King's
letter was not published until after the Birmingham crisis was
resolved, it is widely regarded as the most important written document
of the modern civil rights movement and a classic text on civil
disobedience. - See more at:
http://www.mlkonline.net/jail.html#sthash.FYKYNt6S.dpuf
Written
in April 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr.'s “Letter from Birmingham Jail”
delivered an important statement on civil rights and civil disobedience.
The 1963 racial crisis in Birmingham, Alabama, was a critical turning
point in the struggle for African American civil rights. Although King's
letter was not published until after the Birmingham crisis was
resolved, it is widely regarded as the most important written document
of the modern civil rights movement and a classic text on civil
disobedience. - See more at:
http://www.mlkonline.net/jail.html#sthash.FYKYNt6S.dpuf
Written
in April 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr.'s “Letter from Birmingham Jail”
delivered an important statement on civil rights and civil disobedience.
The 1963 racial crisis in Birmingham, Alabama, was a critical turning
point in the struggle for African American civil rights. Although King's
letter was not published until after the Birmingham crisis was
resolved, it is widely regarded as the most important written document
of the modern civil rights movement and a classic text on civil
disobedience. - See more at:
http://www.mlkonline.net/jail.html#sthash.FYKYNt6S.dpuf
Written
in April 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr.'s “Letter from Birmingham Jail”
delivered an important statement on civil rights and civil disobedience.
The 1963 racial crisis in Birmingham, Alabama, was a critical turning
point in the struggle for African American civil rights. Although King's
letter was not published until after the Birmingham crisis was
resolved, it is widely regarded as the most important written document
of the modern civil rights movement and a classic text on civil
disobedience. - See more at:
http://www.mlkonline.net/jail.html#sthash.FYKYNt6S.dpuf
Know/Understand
• Write one or two pages on how Martin Luther King, Jr. and Gandhi showed perseverance. Also, have you had to use perseverance in your life? • There were other minority groups struggling for equality throughout the world during the years of 1850-1945, such as women, Jews, Irish, Native Americans, and black South Africans. Study one of these groups and create a presentation for the class that summarizes their experience.
• Write a poem or create a piece of artwork that expresses either perseverance or the feelings of being treated badly by an oppressive majority.
Master
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| “If the machine of government is of such as nature that it requires you to be of injustice to another, then, I say, break the law.” –Henry David Thoreau |
Henry David Thoreau (July 12, 1817 – May 6, 1862) was an American author, poet, philosopher, abolitionist, naturalist, tax resister, development critic, surveyor, and historian. A leading transcendentalist, Thoreau is best known for his book Walden, a reflection upon simple living in natural surroundings, and his essay Resistance to Civil Government (also known as Civil Disobedience), an argument for disobedience to an unjust state.
He was a lifelong abolitionist, delivering lectures that attacked the Fugitive Slave Law while praising the writings of Wendell Phillips and defending abolitionist John Brown. Thoreau's philosophy of civil disobedience later influenced the political thoughts and actions of such notable figures as Leo Tolstoy, Mohandas Gandhi, and Martin Luther King, Jr.
Read/Study
1. Read Civil Disobedience by Henry David Thoreau
Know/Understand
Choose a topic to write 1-2 pages on:
• Thoreau believes that people should not participate in injustice but that they do not have to actively promote a more just world. What is the difference between these two concepts, and why does Thoreau make this moral distinction?
• Is Thoreau's conception of civil disobedience compatible with democratic government? Why or why not?
• Thoreau asks rhetorically, "Must the citizen ever for a moment, or in the least degree, resign his conscience to the legislator?" How would you answer this question? Is compromise on moral issues a necessary part of living with other people?
• Many leaders (Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr.) have used Thoreau's ideas on civil disobedience as the guiding force of political movements. Is such a use of these ideas consistent with Thoreau's skepticism about politics? Which (if any) of Thoreau's ideas are valuable in the context of political activism? Which do not pertain?
Become/Serve
Are there any laws that you feel are unjust? Do you feel like civil disobedience would be a good way to help change those laws? Why or why not?
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