Author:
Connecticut Department of Education
Subject:
Arts and Humanities, U.S. History, World History
Material Type:
Lesson Plan
Level:
High School
Grade:
9, 10, 11, 12
Provider:
CT State Department of Education
Tags:
Language:
English
Media Formats:
Text/HTML

Lesson 4.3: The Struggle Against Jim Crow

Lesson 4.3:  The Struggle Against Jim Crow

Overview

Big Ideas/Topics to be Addressed, including Key Concepts and Terms 

  • Jim Crow/Segregation: White Nationalism and Supremacy 

  • Multiple roles of Black Americans in Black empowerment and agency, beyond servitude (e.g., W.E.B. DuBois vs. Booker T. Washington) 

  • Racial violence, and trauma 

  • White Supremacy 

  • Resistance and activism against Jim Crow 

Vocabulary: Racial Trauma, Jim Crow, Activism, Lynching, Resistance, Racial Apartheid, Freedom Dreaming 

Materials/Resources/Speakers

Jim Crow and Segregation  |  Classroom Materials at the Library of Congress  |  Library of Congress (loc.gov) 

Jim Crow Museum virtual tour 

https://www.whitehousehistory.org/william-monroe-trotter-challenges-president-wilson 

https://www.thirteen.org/wnet/jimcrow/education_lesson7.html 

The Strange Career of Jim Crow: C. Vann Woodward, William S. McFeely: 9780195146905 

W.E.B Du Bois Critiques Booker T. Washington 

Booker T. Washington, Atlanta Exposition Address (1895) 

Reconstruction and its Benefits: W.E.B. Du Bois: Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming 

The Connecticut Historical Society has a number of visuals of artifacts from the Jim Crow Era.  In addition, minstrel shows were commonly viewed at leading theatres throughout Connecticut. 

Booker T. Washington on Opportunities for Black Americans - The Atlantic 

Recommended Learning Activities, including UDL Principles/Scaffolded Supports and Asynchronous and Synchronous Learning Opportunities

Day 1  Jim Crow Laws 

Initiation: Revisit Safe Space.  Advise students of the sensitive nature of the materials and lesson.  Use PROTOCOL Back-to-Back and Face-to-Face 

Teacher will ask students to react to laws with a partner.  Students respond then rotate to another partner after each question (10 minutes). 

  • All Blacks shall be required to own real property in order to qualify to vote. (New York) 

  • Black children shall be prohibited from attending Pittsburgh schools. 

  • No person or corporation shall require any white female nurse to nurse in wards or rooms in hospitals, either public or private, in which Negro men are placed. (Alabama) 

  • It shall be unlawful for a Negro and white person to play together or in company with each other at any game of pool or billiards. (Alabama)  

  • No colored barber shall serve as a barber [to] white women or girls. (Georgia) 

  • The officer in charge shall not bury, or allow to be buried, any colored persons upon ground set apart or used for the burial of white persons. (Georgia)  

After students react to these laws, the teacher will explain that laws such as these existed in the United States and became known as “Jim Crow” laws. 

Activity: Analyze photos of Jim Crow era using Analyzing Images Protocol Teaching Strategy: Analyzing Images | Facing History.  Example of photos can be found: Jim Crow and Segregation  |  Classroom Materials at the Library of Congress  |  Library of Congress (loc.gov) the origins and persistence of the Jim Crow System to 1909 

Closing/Evidence of Learning: Students individually write/depict response to prompt: How did Jim Crow influence the life of Blacks? 

Day 2 Jim Crow and Racial Trauma 

Initiation:  Explore the Jim Crow Timeline in groups, stopping at May 31, 1909-June 1, 1909. Share out and discuss actions of the past and today’s society. https://www.ferris.edu/HTMLS/news/jimcrow/timeline/jimcrow.htm 

Activity:  Ask students to design/create a “Freedom Dream” What is Freedom Dreaming? (message, visual, picture, song) about what changes are needed now to end racial violence and trauma. What will it look and sound like when we get to the Dream or MLK’s mountaintop? Dreams can be created with Apps, paper, or medium of choice.  

  • Form groups of helping trios to give feedback on “Freedom Dreams” from multiple perspectives. Helping Trios 

Closing: Using Inside-Outside Circle, students will share reactions/reflections. Prompts: To what extent is the political and social “goodwill” still present to address lingering and current matters of race and equity? What rights should all Americans enjoy? What rights do only some Americans possess? 

Day 3 W.E.B. Du Bois and Booker T. Washington (Students will participate in a lesson adapted from Alabama History Education Initiative

Initiation: Discuss What did the leading Black scholars of the day (W.E.B. Du Bois and Booker T. Washington) believe? What were W.E.B Du Bois’ critiques of Booker T. Washington?  

Activity: Access the Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois: Two Paths to Ending Jim Crow” PowerPoint from W_E_B_DuBois_Booker_T_Washington_and_Jim_Crow_Lesson_October_2010.pdf (alabama.gov). During the PowerPoint, students will use a Compare/Contrast Matrix to draw their own conclusions about the viewpoints of Washington and Du Bois. 

Closing: Students individually write/depict response to prompt: As the leading Black scholar of the day, did W.E.B. Du Bois believe Reconstruction was a success or failure? 

Home Links/Reflections to Affirm Identity

Reflect on Jim Crow and the residue left today… what actions would you take? 

What discoveries are you making about the role of Black women in this period? 

Extensions/Experiential Opportunities