You have three options:
1) The film Selma features some 29 actual civil rights figures. Watch the film. Choose four characters from the film. Describe, in detail, their roles in the film, then research their actual roles in the civil rights movement. Post on the blog.
2) Investigate the history of the Standing Rock protests. Describe the range of these protests. Do you think this campaign is a good example of Dr. King's nonviolent direct-action campaign? Describe how this campaign meets (or doesn't) the criteria of Dr. King's nonviolent direct action campaign. Focus, as well, on the objective of the campaign which is to create a nonviolent tension.
3) Watch Mississippi Burning (1988), or Freedom on My Mind (1994) or The Butler (2013). Identify the key points and characters in the film, as well as what understanding it sheds upon the injustice that sparked the civil rights movement. Compare the film to the actual events that inspired the film. What did you learn from watching the film? Post on the blog.
2) "Water is life." The Standing Rock protests have been going on for months, almost a year. The proposed plan is to build a 1200-mile long Dakota Access Pipeline near the Standing Rock's Sioux tribe reservation. The pipeline would "destroy life" by destroying the Sioux tribe's main water supply. The protesters, who call themselves "Water Protectors", have kept a peaceful protest over the past months, even though some have been shot (with rubber bullets), arrested, threatened, and surveilled. They are protesting to keep their water supply clean, you know, not with oil in it. The campground chef, Nantinki Young, said, "This pipeline–if it comes in–it’s gonna destroy. It’s gonna destroy life. It’s gonna destroy water. And water is life, water is life. It controls everything."
ReplyDeleteYes, I believe the Sioux tribe's protest is a good example of Dr. King's non-violent direct-action campaign.
These Native Americans, as well as environmentalists have gathered in protests for months, in blizzards, and freezing weather, recently, all to stand for the land that they have lived on for centuries.
In Dr. King's "Letter from Birmingham Jail", he tells the other African Americans that they have to fight for their rights. They had to not be afraid of getting pushed down or hurt; the Sioux tribe at Standing Rock have to abide by this as well. Tear gas and water cannons have been used against them, but they can not back down. That is their land, and they plan to keep it.
Their website contains some information about the whole situation. They ask for donations, as well as their petition to be signed and letters to be sent. They are making a peaceful argument and non-violent tension by not reacting in such a manner that would just get them hurt or into trouble. They are simply standing for their land that is rightfully theirs.
3)“The Butler", was about Cecil Gains, who grew up in the south on a cotton farm, and had to deal with the social injustices of his time. After, his father was killed, he was then taken into the house and served the “whites”, he did so until, he was old enough to leave. Like reality, it wasn’t as simple as leaving, and Cecil struggled a lot. He moved past all of that and worked hard to make a better life for his family. His eldest son Louis, went onto Tennessee state, and joined the freedom riders. He then went on for many years fighting for his rights, and took part in many different civil rights movements. He even later went onto be a congressman. Although it wasn’t until the end of the movie, when Obama, was named president elect, that you could see true hope in Cecil and Louise’s eyes, and that all the injustices had faded away. Like reality, it was a long time, before the boundaries of race were removed, and everyone was equal.
ReplyDelete