Week 5 example essay topic

1. Course Description: Study of historical and contemporary race relations. We will Study how racism was created and how it is still present in society today. Examine how modern racism is in a way masked through language and actions. Course Objectives: 1. Show how racism effects the community as a whole not just certain groups.

2. Study past problems and show what affects it still has on today's society. 3. Identify the different forms of prejudice. 4. Show how people unconsciously through language seem to justify racism 5.

Identify how racism began and possible solutions. 6. Recognize the problem with categorizing by race. 7. Explore explanations for discrimination and inequality Course format: The class will meet once a week for 2 hours. The class will consist of lecture, discussion, group work, movies, and a field trip.

Course Outline: Week 1: Introduction to the course. Discuss expectations and fears of the course. Prejudice vs. Discrimination. Talk about how prejudice is learned and perpetuated. Week 2: How is race defined? Is race determined socially or biologically, or both?

Talk about good and bad things associated with black and white. Week 3: Show "Racism 101". Discuss how people change slower than institutions. Has the concept of "race" changed over time? Week 4: Talk about language, present clips from TV shows or movies that show how people can unconsciously justify racism through language. Week 5: Talk about prejudices against multiracial people.

How do they fit in? What problems do they face? Week 6: Show " The Autobiography of Malcolm X". Week 7: Finish watching "The Autobiography of Malcolm X" and discuss different opinions of his work and what he did to fight racism and discrimination.

Agree or disagree with him? Week 8: Show "Cry Freedom" start to discuss how Steve Biko was different from Malcolm and compare and contrast their fights against oppression. Discuss how it effected the whole country. Week 9: Finish "Cry Freedom" discuss the hardships that Donald Woods and his family had to go through just to try and educate people about what was going on in South Africa.

Week 10: Take field trip to the Underground Railroad Museum, write a reflection paper. How have things changed and what things still remain today? Week 10: Discuss racism in the past. Jim Crow Laws, Different Rulings in the Supreme Court that led to the end of segregation.

The "Little Rock Nine" Week 11: Show "4 Little Girls" - video about a racially motivated bombing of a black Baptist church in 1963 that takes the lives of four young girls. Discuss how the country reacted to the crime and what was done to the people who committed it. How did it help to fuel the civil rights movement? Week 12: Hate Crimes, Riots.

Causes and Consequences. How do we stop riots? Show clips from news about riots in Cincinnati. Week 13: Show "Home of the Brave"- Discuss. Why couldn't the agent stop the murder if he was in the car with the members at the time of the shooting? Week 14: Have students break into groups and come up with solutions for racism and think of people who have played a crucial part in the fight against racism and present to class.

Week 15: Discuss affirmative action. Show clips from movies that show affirmative action, find clips from newspaper about affirmative action. Week 16: Discuss how your views have changed throughout the course, what you gained from it.