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Common Grounds: Connecting Across Color Lines and Cultures

GRADE LEVEL: 12

SUBJECT: Social Studies; U.S. Government

INTENDED UNIT: Systems & Power

ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How have people historically, and in the present, challenged systems of oppression?

CENTRAL QUESTIONS/BIG IDEAS:

  • How does leveraging a greater local/national/global diasporic identity help empower individuals/communities into social/political action?

  • What are the benefits of finding cultural intersectionality and connecting a shared goal/struggle/journey with other ethnicities and communities of color?


CONTENT OBJECTIVE:

Knowledge:

  • Grassroots movements. Community organizing. People power.

  • Parallel ethnic/cultural narratives. Shared trauma/sacrifices.

  • Cross-community building. Identity and intersectionality.

Skills: Understanding the societal, racial, and legal pressures that causes groups/communities of different ethnicities/nationalities/ideals to band together out of protection, power, and kinship.

Habits:

  • Understanding the ways developing communities of color leveraged one another’s resources, cultural cachet, and people power to initiate cultural, political, and social change.

  • Identifying the ways AANHPI identity in the western world has expanded and changed, historically and globally.


GRADE LEVEL/SUBJECT AREA STANDARDS:

  • 12.3 Students evaluate and take and defend positions on what the fundamental values and principles of civil society are (i.e., the autonomous sphere of voluntary personal, social, and economic relations that are not part of government), their interdependence, and the meaning and importance of those values and principles for a free society.

  • 12.8 Students evaluate and take and defend positions on the influence of the media on American political life.


CA ELD STANDARDS:

  • Determine the central ideas and information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary that makes clear the relationship among the key details and ideas. (RH 11-12.2)

  • Integrate visual information (e.g., in charts, graphs, photographs, videos, or maps) with other information in print and digital texts. (RH 6-8.7)


IEP/504 ACCOMMODATIONS:

  • This lesson plan will come with accompanying video clips (closed captioning for the hearing impaired), transcriptions of the video clips, links to digital slides, and supplemental web articles and worksheet(s).

  • Students who do not have the means to view any of the online/digital materials outside the classroom may request physical copies.


INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS

  1. Slides (link)

  2. Susan Hayase Oral History 2 (42:03 >> 48:15)

  3. Larry Itliong Article (link), (pdf)

  4. Third World Liberation Front Website ([link](https://bit.ly/caltwlf


LESSON IMPLEMENTATION SEQUENCE:

Step 1: Warmup

Duration: 20 minutes

Purpose: To exercise active listening and reading. Have students think critically about the context of the information presented (time, place). Listen to a ‘primary source’ example. Note words and phrases that will relate to the lesson’s key concepts.


Implementation:

Introduce from the slides the lesson’s essential question and key concepts.

Have students watch/read the excerpt from Susan Hayase’s interview. Ask them to take careful note to focus on the era she lived in at the time and the social/political climate for Japanese Americans and people of color during the mid-20th century.


Step 2: Discussion Questions*

This can be done individually or with a partner.

  1. From Susan’s interview describe the ‘model minority’ myth and how was it deployed against the Japanese Americans/Asian Americans?

  2. Susan talks about a need to build a “multiracial democracy”. From the video/transcription, bring up examples of why there would be a need to bring people from different ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds together?


Resources/Materials:

  • Slides 1-12

  • Susan Hayase Interview 2


Assessment: Class discussion

Step 3: Class Discussion

Duration: 10 minutes

Purpose: Allow students to voice their thoughts openly. Find common and differing opinions from fellow classmates. Unearth ideas and details that they might have missed from the video/transcripti on, or from context clues that were given or pulled from the content.


Implementation:

Call on students to voice their thoughts on the discussion questions and Susan Hayase’s interview.

Introduce the ‘essential question’ again from the slides: “How have people historically, and in the present, challenged systems of oppression?”


Resources/Materials: Slide 13


Assessment: N/A

Step 4: Compare and Contrast

Duration: 20 minutes

Purpose: Exercise their ability to compare and contrast different/similar movements and find a relationship. Understand that the freedoms, equity, platforms etc. we have now have been built on the sacrifices and work of the few. The work to keep these rights is always compounding and that there is a need to continue the work.


Implementation:

Have students read about the Third World Liberation Front (TWLF) movement and the works of Larry Itliong. Ask students to compare and contrast each movement: why were they organizing, the ways they organized, who they organized with, and the goals/demands that they wanted for their efforts.

Have students circle back to what Susan Hayase said about a need for a “multiracial democracy”. Ask them, to the best of their ability, why it is important to have diverse representation in all parts of our society.

This can be a written assignment and/or discussion with their classmates.


Resources/Materials:

  • Slides 14-17

  • TWLF website

  • Larry Itliong article


Assessment: Compare and contrast assignment

Step 5: Reflection

Duration: 10 minutes

Purpose: Allow students to reflect on the class discussion


Implementation:

Propose this last question on the slides:

“What are some local/world events and/or social movements that you have witnessed that brought a diverse group of people together for a common cause? Why do you think they were important? Were they effective?”

In their notebook, or on a piece of paper, have students write down one or more examples. Do address to the class that these could also be examples from the news, the internet and/or social media.

This can be either: discussed in class, turned in for credit, or assigned as homework.


Resources/Materials: Slides 18-19


Assessment: Reflection assignment