What About Justice?

Here is what I was thinking about as I was in the shower this morning, "should I continue with my lesson on the geography of Ancient Greece or should I talk about Eric Garner?"  Since I am not planning on taking Chloe to any of the demonstrations happening around the city, I figured that this was my way of contributing to the struggle.  Below are brief descriptions of the two activities that I did with my students today.

What's Going on in this Photo?

Photos: Reuters

In the 6th grade we have been studying the concept of irony; irony can be difficult to identify and define for adults so I try to point out examples from real life as often as I can.  This lesson required students to do a close reading of a photograph in the same way they would do a close reading of a paragraph.  Students were instructed to do the following:

• Copy the definition of irony from the board.  List two examples of irony from short stories that we have read.
• Look at the following photograph, and describe what they think is going on.  Write down specific details that answer the following question words:

Who 

What 

When 

Where

Why

How

(Student responses to this were interesting; some students thought that the picture described a "riot," "mass suicide," or "meditation."  A small minority knew what was actually happening).

Next, students listened as I explained the death of Eric Garner and the Grand Jury's decision not to indict.  In my first class, many students were horrified, but were hesitant to say that race played a part in the killing or the decision not to indict. 

When I questioned them further and mentioned the recent Ferguson decision one person described it as a "coincidence," and referred to "black self-pity," while another began to talk about "black on black" crime.  When I invited them to think about why there were no black students in their class, one student indignantly asked "what about Justice?" referring to the single black student in the 6th grade (who is not even in our class.)  

I had to channel my inner Claire Huxtable this morning.  Photo: Tumblr

In my second class, students were outraged and  talked about hearing the protesters outside of their apartment buildings.  Finally, we tackled the issue of irony.   Students pointed out the the American Flag, black police officer, and the white protesters.

A Tale of Two Speeches

Photo: The New York Post

This lesson was an effective way to have students identify main idea, summarize, and analyze tone and body language in public speeches.  Students were instructed to:

• Watch Mayor de Blasio's speech reacting to the decision not to indict Eric Garner.
• Write four bullet points summarizing the main points of the speech.
• Watch President Obama's speech reacting to the decision not to indict Eric Garner.
• Write four bullet points summarizing the main ideas of the speech.
• Write a persuasive paragraph explaining why one speech was more effective than the other, taking both content and delivery into account.  

According to the 6th grade, there was not a clear winner, but both men were critiqued for not offering any concrete solutions.   Personally, I thought that de Blasio gave the better speech.  Quite ironic; don't you think?

The Invisible Men

A person that I dated (who shall remain nameless) once dismissively told me that I viewed the world through the fantasy world of literature.  He was right.  I do interpret the world through the prism of literature, but not because it's fantasy.  In my mind, literature represents the highest reflection of our reality as human beings.  There is no greater expression of this than the words of Ralph Ellison's novel Invisible Man.  I taught Invisible Man for several years to 7th and 8th graders at The Children's Storefront School in Harlem.  At first it was hard for many of my students to make a connection to the novel because, according to them, it was about "back in the days of slavery," or "back in the days of segregation" (the latter statement being highly ironic because the school where I taught was 99% Black).  

This book should be required reading for all Americans

As I look at images from across the country, I am reminded of how relevant Ellison's novel is today.  It is a shame that a book that was written in 1952 continues to reflect the racism and rage that is part of our current reality as Americans.  The connection between Ellison's words and the images coming out of Ferguson, Missouri cannot be denied.  If you look closely, you will see that Fact and Fiction are one in the same. 

"I am an invisible man. No, I am not a spook like those who haunted Edgar Allan Poe; nor am I one of your Hollywood-movie ectoplasms. I am a man of substance, of flesh and bone, fiber and liquids -- and I might even be said to possess a mind. I am invisible, understand, simply because people refuse to see me. Like the bodiless heads you see sometimes in circus sideshows, it is as though I have been surrounded by mirrors of hard, distorting glass. When they approach me they see only my surroundings, themselves, or figments of their imagination -- indeed, everything and anything except me."

Photo: New York Post

"Then too, you're constantly being bumped against by those of poor vision. Or again, you often doubt if you really exist. You wonder whether you aren't simply a phantom in other people's minds. Say, a figure in a nightmare which the sleeper tries with all his strength to destroy. It's when you feel like this that, out of resentment, you begin to bump people back."

Photo: St. Louis Post Dispatch

"Beware of those who speak of the spiral of history; they are preparing a boomerang. Keep a steel helmet handy."

Photo: USA Today

"I don't know if all cops are poets, but I know that all cops carry guns with triggers." 

Photo: St. Louis Post Dispatch