Writing Across Cultures

After taking your open-book test during period 1, if you finish before the end of the period, please read the handout articles on Frantz Fanon, Paul Gilroy, and Elijah Anderson's philosophy/sociology for additional sources for your presentation. When all tests are submitted, we will have a discussion on the book. Remember that you will receive a grade for your participation in this discussion. You should place your "pennies" in the dish as instructed. American War discussion - A Penny for your Thoughts! The book has two epigraphs . The first reads, "The one you must punish is the one who punishes you." from The Book of Songs by 10th-century poet Kitab al-Aghani. How does this epigraph set the tone for the book and prepare us for events in the book? How effective was the author in setting up his setting for the narrative? What elements of the setting (locations, time, season, weather, items/props, etc.) are most vivid? How does the author establish this ...

Briefly, this morning, please gather in your small groups and work on your upcoming presentation on race. When attempting to answer this question, together, with your partners, use probing questions to get at what your group thinks is important about the topic. Here are some examples to try: What would you have to change in order to solve the problem of Race in America? What's another way you might have to approach the question? What do you assume to be true about Race? What's the connection between ____ and ____? (for example, economics and race, or education and race, or fear and race?) What questions do you still need to understand in order to answer this question? What criteria should or could we use when determining a solution to this problem? What is wrong about the way we deal with Race issues in America? What if the opposite were true, and the Racial minority you are using as an example, was a Racial majority? How would this new "majority" treat t...

Period 1: Booker T. Washington bio  and the Atlanta Compromise speech Video: Explained . Racial Wealth Gap. Read the handout of poems and  the Atlantic  article by Ta-Nehisi Coates:  "The Black Family in the Age of Mass Incarceration."  Use your creativity to write a poem or essay draft inspired by one of these poems or what the article sparks. Suggestions: Write a poem about a nickname (or racial slur) you or someone you know earned in school.  Write about a time you had to declare your racial heritage. Write about your parents (or a parent/relative, etc.) that had to assimilate or taught you something about your culture. Write about a relative or neighbor that you know in prison. Write a fictional story from the perspective of an inmate in a State or local prison or from a family member or law enforcement officer affected by crime or our prison system. To help you see the following sites: Race & Homicide in America  (US World Ne...

Period 1: Announcements: community service opportunity; April 6 with Writers & Books. Read the article summary on Booker T. Washington & WEB DuBois. Things to research (in the lab, on your own, during this unit, etc.): One drop rule Better Baby contests Beauty contests (& beauty pageant history) Nature versus Nurture Immigration Jim Crow laws The Negro Motorist Green Book  Current events regarding immigration Women in minority cultures/races Classroom: America's Sources of Immigration 1850 to Today Crash Course Sociology: Dubois & Race Conflict Prejudice & Discrimination: Crash Course OP Docs: A Conversation with Police about Race OP Docs: A Conversation about Growing Up Black OP Docs: A Conversation with Black Women about Race When we say "Race" in America, is that just a buzz word for "Black"? What about other "races"? Being Native American in the US OP Docs: A Conversation with Native Americ...

Period 1: Read the article summaries: Lincoln & Garvey. Short videos to consider as inspiration/knowledge for your writing. Watch, take notes, brainstorm ideas for stories, plays, poems, podcasts, scripts, essays, memoirs, speeches, etc.: The Twisted Logic Behind America's Shameful Eugenic History  (6 min) Further race/ethnicity info  (Kahn Academy lecture, 6 min) The "real" Problem with Black America : Ben Shapiro Let's Talk About Race: TedX Black Self/White World: TedX Give Racism a Chance: TedX What Beyonce Taught Me About Race: TedX The Top 5 Issues Facing Black Americans The Myth of Escaping the Ghetto: TedX Why are Black Women so Angry The History of Eugenics in America  (video series) (about 130 minutes, broken into 10 min videos) National Identity is Made Up CRISPR Things to research (in the lab, on your own, during this unit, etc.): One drop rule Better Baby contests Beauty contests (& beauty pageant history) Nature v...

Read the handout on Malcolm X & Martin Luther King, Jr . Galton, (remember him?) the biological determinist who coined the idea of nature vs. nurture, supported the idea of  eugenics : The belief (and practice) of improving the genetic quality of the human race through selective breeding, extermination, (or sterilization in some cases), separating the superior from the inferior. Eugenics was practiced in the US years before Hitler got his claws into the idea to exterminate the Jews (and others). During the  Progressive Era , eugenics was seen as the best way to preserve and improve the dominant Hegemony in our population.  Perhaps not surprisingly, the American eugenics movement received funding from various corporate foundations (the 1%) including the Carnegie Institution and the Rockefeller Foundation. The Eugenics record office (ERO) was located in Cold Spring Harbor, NY by Charles Davenport. The ERO was one of the leading organizations to promote eugen...

Period 1: 20-minute writing/wrap up for Gender unit. Please complete your assignment draft from last class. See the previous post for details! Complete your essay draft and submit your essay draft as a test grade (and for your portfolio). Then, we'll hold a 10-15 minute discussion about chapter 1 of American War. Period Two: Race . What does Race mean to you? (5 minute reflection): [on a scale how important is race to you? Why study race in school/this class?; what are the biggest issues/problems facing races today?; who's on top or bottom, who's in, who's out? Personal experiences regarding race? Other?] Race : Define it in your own words. Ethnicity : Define it in your own words. Minority : Define it in your own words. Let's start with this crash course video:  Race & Ethnicity: Crash Course Sociology . Take notes as a writer would--seek to pull out issues surrounding this topic that inspire/drive or interest you to examine the issue fu...

As you watch, please use the film and play script as resource materials to write a researched/analysis or creative personal narrative/essay using the Gender criticism notes given to you at the beginning of this unit. You may wish to expand your discussion to personal understanding or experiences, or comment on contemporary culture. This essay will serve as a "test" for the film/play script. Consider the following as you watch: Rock & Roll, particularly  "heavy metal"  is often viewed as being primarily a masculine musical form. Why? Examine the film/play's depiction of transgender identities in roles traditionally played by c is-gender  actors  cross-dressing .  In your opinion, does the film/play teach you anything you did not know about gender? Is the play relevant today? Why or why not? Examine pop culture in regards to gender and identity (particularly transgender, for example). Has pop culture helped or hurt the transgender community? Has the...

During period one there will be some activity the "climate committee" would like us to do. Then use time until 8:00 to write for your portfolio and/or discuss the play the Vagina Monologues . We will then view the play/film Hedwig & the Angry Inch. Details : Written/Directed by StephenTrask (music & lyrics) & John Cameron Mitchell (book). Rolling Stone called it the best rock musical ever. It premiered off-Broadway in 1998 and then closed in 2000 after 857 performances. It has been revived throughout the world in London's West End, England, Germany, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, The Netherlands, Turkey, Italy, Thailand, the Czech Republic, and Austria. It was revived on Broadway in 2014 with Neil Patrick Harris as Hedwig and won a Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical. Actors as diverse as Taye Diggs , Michael Cerveris , Ally Sheedy  of the Breakfast Club .    and Michael C. Hall who played the serial killer Dexter . As you watch, please use t...

After viewing Eve Ensler's performance of her play, let's discuss some of the following: 1. Examine gender in The Vagina Monologues . What ideas or themes in the play connect the women represented? Are these themes/ideas universal for all women? Or is The Vagina Monologues unnecessary for us today, and/or too "shocking" or inappropriate to view? 2. What do the monologues teach/show us about how gender is socially constructed? 3. How do The Vagina Monologues treat women’s lived experiences? That is, has Eve Ensler helped break a longstanding silence about vaginas? Why or why not? What do we learn about our bodies, our selves by viewing/reading this work? What might viewing/reading this work help us understand as true or important to learn as a society or as an individual? How might the play change us or our attitudes toward this subject? 4. How effectively does The Vagina Monologues represent differences among women as their identities intersect with race, sexua...