Express their impressions of the causes of hate crimes. Write a personal essay expressing their personal views about hate crimes and intolerance and describing a plan for putting their views into action. Give examples to support your answer. Students who wish to speak can have their names added to the list by raising their hands, and names are added to the bottom of the list to maintain the order in which students volunteer to speak. Establish ground rules that prohibit personal attacks, raised voices, and disrespectful language in order to encourage a free-flowing, candid discussion.
Students write a personal essay expressing their personal views about hate crimes.
Students will be evaluated based on written journal response, participation in class discussions, and written personal essay and action plan. Research laws that deal with hate crimes on the local, state, and federal levels. For each law, investigate specific examples of how that law has been enacted in the United States. Find news articles about the murder of James Byrd Jr. and the trial and conviction of John William King and compare them to this op-ed article. Learn about the history and work of the Southern Poverty Law Center and present your findings to the class.