“100 Days to Inspire Respect” Week 2: Racism

 

 

 

 

 

Virginia teacher Jennifer Goss introduces her students to 100 Days to Inspire Respect. Photo by Sean Thurston

 

 

Every Friday, the following week’s 100 Days to Inspire Respect educational resources will be previewed.

The theme of the second week of “100 Days to Inspire Respect” is “Racism.” Students will explore racism through close reading of testimony, they will learn how racism is promoted through the idea of Us v. Them and they will learn about the power of protest and identifying ways to counter racism, equipping students with the knowledge, skills and capacities to create positive change and inspire respect.

The week begins on Monday, January 30, with an update to the IWitness Watch page. Testimony clips from across multiple collections and perspectives will be added to the Watch page’s “Racism” topic, which currently includes nine clips. The Watch page is accessible to all visitors, whether or not they have registered on IWitness, and the clips can be downloaded and viewed offline.

On Tuesday, a revised version of an existing Mini Quest activity “Representation and The Power of Words” will be released. The activity will focus on the consequences of racism and hate speech.

Wednesday’s resource is a new Mini Lesson "Meaning-Making and Racism: Leon Bass's Testimony," using a clip from the testimony of American World War II veteran and liberator Leon Bass.

Thursday's resource is an infographic on 5 Ways to Counter Racism Through Testimony.

On Friday, IWitness will debut an Information Quest activity titled "Yet Again -- Racism & Mass Violence."

Saturday’s resource, on Rosa Parks Day, will be a Mini Lesson "Sitting Down to Stand Up" about peaceful protests, featuring the testimonies of liberator and activist Paul Parks and American politician Elizabeth Holtzman.

The final resource on the topic of racism on Sunday is a Mini Quest activity called “Us vs. Them,” which will focus on one of the most central and divisive aspects of racism.