Teaching Ideas and Resources to Help Students Make Sense of the George Floyd Protests

Updated, June 8

“The anger is different this time. After years of Americans being killed by the police — more than 1,000 per year, for as long as statistics exist — something has changed over the past week,” begins the June 2 “Morning” newsletter. It continues:

The gruesome video of a Minneapolis police officer kneeling on George Floyd’s neck plays a role. So does a pandemic that’s disproportionately killing African-Americans. And so do the angry, racialized politics that President Trump encourages.

Here are some of the voices from the protests, which have included many people who say they’ve never protested before:

“In every city, there’s a George Floyd,” said Michael Sampson II, 30, of Jacksonville, Fla.

“It could be my father, my brother, my uncle, my cousin, my friend,” said Victoria Sloan, 27, of Brooklyn. “It makes me angry.”

“I’m speaking for everybody, all my kinfolk, all my brothers and sisters who’ve gotten beaten up by police,” said Cory Thomas, 40, who said the police beat him when he was a teenager in Brooklyn. “I don’t condone the violence,” or the looting, he said, “but at the end of the day, no 14-year-old should be beat up by police.”

Teachers know that this news and the issues around it need to be addressed. But for many, the academic year has just ended, and even those still officially in school are teaching remotely. So how do we help our students process and respond to what is going on, understand its complex causes — and strive for solutions?

We don’t have any definitive answers to that difficult question, but we do have some resources we hope can help put this news, which continues to break, into a larger context. Each section below is written directly to teenagers, and we’ve chosen the richest, most student-friendly articles, Op-Eds, videos, photos, graphs and podcasts we could find, from The Times and elsewhere.

We also have a place for teenagers from anywhere in the world to share their thoughts: Our Student Opinion forum “What Is Your Reaction to the Days of Protest That Have Followed the Death of George Floyd?” Many have contributed to a thoughtful discussion about everything from the purpose of protests and the role of policing in our communities to how deeply ingrained racism is within us and within our society. We welcome your students to the conversation, too.

We know this is just a start, and we hope you’ll add your ideas, or suggest resources we’re missing. How are you addressing this news with your students and children? Why? Tell us in the comments, or write to us at LNFeedback@nytimes.com.

The Big Picture: Understanding Systemic Racism

In the video above, three New York Times national correspondents who have been reporting from protests around the country provide their insights in a live discussion. Learn more here.

Essential Question: How has a history of systemic racism in the United States led to what is happening today?

As you follow breaking news about George Floyd, the protests happening all over the country and the world, the Trump administration’s response and more, you might choose from among the resources below — some are fairly simple, others are more complex and immersive — to help understand it in a larger context.

1. The Anti-Defamation League: In a recent edition of their “Table Talk: Family Conversations about Current Events” series, the A.D.L. explores this moment in terms of systemic racism:

Racism is defined as: “the marginalization and/or oppression of people of color based on a socially constructed racial hierarchy that privileges white people.” Racism shows up in all aspects of our lives and society: in interpersonal communication, through discriminatory policies and practices, in biased language, and in our laws and institutions (e.g., education, media, employment, government and the criminal justice system).

Many see Floyd’s death as an example of systemic racism, referring to the way race disadvantages people of color in the criminal justice system. African-American and Latinx men are disproportionately represented in all levels of the criminal justice system, from arrest to sentencing to death row. Moreover, research shows that African-American people are 2.5 times more likely to be killed by police than white people.

2. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: In a much-shared Op-Ed in the Los Angeles Times, “Don’t understand the protests? What you’re seeing is people pushed to the edge,” Kareem Abdul-Jabbar explains:

The black community is used to the institutional racism inherent in education, the justice system and jobs. And even though we do all the conventional things to raise public and political awareness — write articulate and insightful pieces in the Atlantic, explain the continued devastation on CNN, support candidates who promise change — the needle hardly budges.

But COVID-19 has been slamming the consequences of all that home as we die at a significantly higher rate than whites, are the first to lose our jobs, and watch helplessly as Republicans try to keep us from voting. Just as the slimy underbelly of institutional racism is being exposed, it feels like hunting season is open on blacks. If there was any doubt, President Trump’s recent tweets confirm the national zeitgeist as he calls protesters “thugs” and looters fair game to be shot.

3. Trevor Noah: If you learn better by listening than by reading, Trevor Noah talks about the “dominoes” of racial injustice and police brutality, and how the contract between society and black Americans has been broken time and time again. Listen to his “Daily Social Distancing Show” entitled “George Floyd, Minneapolis Protests, Ahmaud Arbery & Amy Cooper.”

4. Times Photos and Interviews: “A protest is an act of desperation and defiance. But why do it if not for the belief, however modest, that the voices in the street will be heard?” writes John Branch in the collection of images and interviews headlined “In Every City There’s a George Floyd: Portraits of Protest.” In this piece you can hear from everyday people about why they are protesting now.

5. The 1619 Project: To make much deeper connections between this moment and American history, The New York Times 1619 Project offers a series of articles, poetry, fiction and multimedia created to observe the 400th anniversary of the beginning of American slavery. To go with it, the Pulitzer Center has created a free curriculum that shows teachers how to use a project that “aims to reframe the country’s history, understanding 1619 as our true founding, and placing the consequences of slavery and the contributions of black Americans at the very center of the story we tell ourselves about who we are.”

Reflect and React

Think About the Protests and Yourself: We know there is a lot to think about here — yet at the same time these resources only scratch the surface. It might be helpful to step back at this point and think, talk or write about how this topic connects with your own life, your family, the communities you are part of, and the people you care about. What experiences with race or racism have you had? How has systemic racism been a part of your family’s experience?

If you’d like some examples, check out “First Encounters With Racism,” a piece for which the Times Race/Related team partnered with Youth Radio to ask teenagers across the country, “What is your earliest experience dealing with race?” We also have a related lesson plan that suggests additional questions and activities.

Reflect on any of what you’ve read or seen via a journal entry, a conversation with a friend, classmate or family member or even a work of visual art. Another idea? Create a “found poem” by remixing the words in any of the articles in this post, or in coverage of all related news. This guide can teach you how, step by step, but you can also look at how winners of our long-running Found Poem Student Contest have done it in the past. For instance, Ryan Nguyen’s “Nothing Less than Heroic” or Bridget Smith’s “When You Were 15 Years Old.”

And, of course, you are always invited to contribute your thoughts to our forum for teenagers, where a discussion of all these issues is in progress.

The History of Policing in the United States

Essential Questions: What is the history of policing in the United States? How does that history reflect the relationship between the police and African-Americans today? Can law enforcement be reformed? Or should it be replaced?

George Floyd’s death is only the most recent case of a long history of black Americans being brutalized or killed by law enforcement officers, who rarely if ever face consequences for their actions. Before Mr. Floyd it was Breonna Taylor, Laquan McDonald, Eric Garner, Michael Brown, Sandra Bland, Tamir Rice — the list goes on.

Bryan Stevenson writes in an essay for The 1619 Project that central to this pattern is the legacy of slavery.

After emancipation, black people, once seen as less than fully human “slaves,” were seen as less than fully human “criminals.” The provisional governor of South Carolina declared in 1865 that they had to be “restrained from theft, idleness, vagrancy and crime.” Laws governing slavery were replaced with Black Codes governing free black people — making the criminal-justice system central to new strategies of racial control.

Today, Mr. Stevenson argues, the racial nature of policing persists:

Hundreds of years after the arrival of enslaved Africans, a presumption of danger and criminality still follows black people everywhere. New language has emerged for the noncrimes that have replaced the Black Codes: driving while black, sleeping while black, sitting in a coffee shop while black. All reflect incidents in which African-Americans were mistreated, assaulted or arrested for conduct that would be ignored if they were white. In schools, black kids are suspended and expelled at rates that vastly exceed the punishment of white children for the same behavior.

Read the rest of Mr. Stevenson’s essay, then choose one or more of the following activities to think about the role of police in our society.

Reflect and React

• Make an “Iceberg Diagram”: Try this activity suggested by the educational organization Facing History and Ourselves: Create an iceberg diagram. At the top of the diagram, you can write “George Floyd dies in the custody of the Minneapolis police.” Next to the bottom part of the diagram (under the water), write your responses to these questions: What are the historical roots of police violence toward black Americans? How does this history impact policing today?

• Learn From a Video: Have you ever had an encounter with the police? Have your parents ever had a conversation with you about what to do if that happens? Watch the video “A Conversation With My Black Son” above. Which moments in the video do you relate to most? Are there other moments that don’t resonate with your own experiences at all? How might your race and the history of policing play a role in the relationship you, your family and your community have with law enforcement?

• Listen to a Podcast: This edition of “The Daily” asks: The Minneapolis police officer whose tactics led to George Floyd’s death had a long record of complaints against him, why was he still on patrol?

• Analyze Graphics: These charts from 2017 show what happened to officers involved in 13 cases of police-involved deaths of African-Americans. Study the charts then respond to the following questions:

  1. What do you notice?
  2. What do you wonder?
  3. What is going on in this chart? What does it tell you about police accountability in the United States?
  4. What are some possible explanations for this data?

• Consider Reform Ideas: Some have argued that, given the racial disparities in arrests, incarceration and fatal police shootings, the police force should be reformed. Do you agree? This Opinion essay from the Editorial Board provides some ideas, like limiting how and when officers can use force. Which, if any, do you think would work and why? What else would you add?

• Consider Policing Alternatives: Others say that because of its origins in slavery, the police cannot be reformed, and instead should be diminished or abolished. What do you think? What are some alternatives to policing that can help keep communities safe? What programs and services could prevent a need for the police in the first place?

• Think About the Role of Police in Schools: In light of the protests, student activists are calling for their schools to cut ties with police departments. Schools in Minneapolis and Oregon have already done so. Read the Time article “‘Police Do Not Belong in Our Schools.’ Students Are Demanding an End to Campus Cops After the Death of George Floyd.” Then reflect: Is there a campus resource officer at your school? What role does he or she serve? What relationship does the officer have with students? Do you think your school should cut ties with the police department? Why or why not?

The Right to Protest

Essential Questions: What role does protest play in a democracy? Is nonviolent protest always the best way to achieve change? Is violence ever justified?

At the core of the First Amendment is our right to assemble and protest. However, not all Americans view this right the same way: some argue that peaceful protests are the only way to create social change, while others do not believe protesting is an effective means of change at all. In the midst of the protests following George Floyd’s death, some have criticized protesters for creating chaos, others say the violence is instigated by outside extremist groups, and many see police initiating violence at the protests.

In response to our Student Opinion question, “What Is Your Reaction to the Days of Protest That Have Followed the Death of George Floyd?” several students expressed confusion and uncertainty about violence at some protests. One student commented:

Scrolling through Instagram, all I can see is people either defending or against the use of violence. I understand both of their points, the ones defending the violence are sick and tired with all the police brutality against African Americans … The one against it are sick and tired about the looting, the riots, the fires, and how it hurt small business owners.

In “Destructive Power of Despair,” Charles M. Blow focuses specifically on the history of violence in the United States and its connection to the protests today:

We can bemoan the violence that has attended some of these protests, but we must also recognize that to have to live in a world, in a society, in which you feel that your very life is constantly under threat because of the color of your skin is also a form of violence.

It is a daily, ambient, gnawing violence. It is the kind that makes a grown man’s shoulder draw up and his jaws clench whenever officers approach, even when there has been no offense or infraction.

It is the kind that forces mothers down to pray whenever a child is out late, pleading to the gods for his or her safe return.

It is the kind that makes a child think to write a parent’s phone number on their skin when they sense trouble brewing, just in case.

This is also violence.

Read the rest of Mr. Blow’s essay, then choose one or more of the activities below to consider what role protesting has in our society.

Reflect and React

• React to the George Floyd Protests: Scroll through this collection of photos of the protests from across the country, or this series of photos headlined “Bird’s Eye View of Protests Across the U.S. and Around the World.” What do you notice? What do you wonder? Which photos stand out to you most and why? Taken together, what do these images say about the United States at this moment? What images from your own camera roll could you add to this collection right now? Might they tell a piece of the story that mainstream media has missed?

• Remember Your Own Experiences: Think about your own participation in specific protests past or present. What was your experience like? Do you think that protest helped to bring about meaningful change? What lessons did you take away from it? Why?

• Analyze Protests in History: Make a list of protests from throughout history, whether in the United States or around the world. For each one, identify what led to the protest, what actions were taken, and what the outcomes were. (For a few ideas, see our lesson plan on moments in history when students have turned to activism and affected change.)

  Then reflect: Do you think protests can effect change? What role have young people played in these movements? Do you believe the current protests will make a difference? Why or why not?

• Question Different Forms of Protest: Watch an excerpt from Martin Luther King Jr.’s speech “The Other America,” or read the transcript. In it, Dr. King says “a riot is the language of the unheard.” What do you think he means by that? How does it relate to Mr. Blow’s essay about the moment we are experiencing now? Do you believe nonviolent protest is always the best way to achieve change? Is violence ever justified?

• Consider the Role of the Police: Countless videos have shown police officers using batons, tear gas, pepper spray and rubber bullets on protesters, bystanders and journalists, often without warning or seemingly unprovoked. A few others have shown officers marching and kneeling alongside protesters. In “For Police Officers, Demonstrations Take a Toll and Test Duty,” The Times quotes a supervisor in a police department in St. Louis who says, “We feel like we’re pawns in a game right now. It’s almost like there’s an agenda and we’re being used on both sides, the left and the right, to further that agenda.” What is your reaction to the police’s use of violence? What role do you think the police themselves should play in protests against police brutality? What responsibility do they have to citizens in this moment?

• Think About Protests and Covid-19: Epidemiologists say the protests will almost certainly lead to more cases of the virus, yet public health experts emphasized that police violence against black people in America also represents a public health crisis — and many protesters say this cause is worth risking their health to defend. Read “Protests Draw Shoulder-to-Shoulder Crowds After Months of Virus Isolation” to learn more, and to think about whether these mass demonstrations have led to a “shift in perspective” about the virus for you, too.

• Reflect: Is It “Different This Time”?: We began this piece with a quote from The Times, “The anger is different this time. After years of Americans being killed by the police — more than 1,000 per year, for as long as statistics exist — something has changed over the past week.” A week later, on June 7, The Times published a piece headlined “Other Protests Flare and Fade. Why This Movement Already Seems Different,” that reports that “the massive gatherings for racial justice across the country and now the world have achieved a scale and level of momentum not seen in decades” and analyzes why.

  Yet in “Allies, Don’t Fail Us Again,” Times Op-Ed columnist Charles Blow points out that many white people have been moved by the current movement — as they were by the civil rights movement in the 1960’s — but wonders, how will they respond when true equality threatens their privilege?

  Do you think things are different this time? Why or why not? Do you think these protests will bring about meaningful change? What do you hope will happen as a result? And, to pose the two questions Mr. Blow asks at the end of his column, “How will they respond when civil rights gets personal and it’s about them and not just punishing the white man who pressed his knee into George Floyd’s neck? How will they respond when true equality threatens their privilege, when it actually starts to cost them something?”

Looking for Leadership

Essential Question: What should leadership look like in a crisis like this one?

When a nation’s people are reeling with grief and rage, our government representatives — from City Council members up to the president of the United States — have a role to play. What should leadership look like during a crisis like this one?

In “Past Presidents Faced Police Brutality and Protests. They Handled It Differently,” Maggie Astor and Zach Montague compare how four past presidents handled similar situations with President Trump’s response:

It is a bleak reality of American history that each of the past four presidents faced the same crisis President Trump is facing now: The police just killed or seriously injured a black man, and the city where it happened is reeling with grief and rage.

They did not all respond the same way. They did not all respond “effectively,” either, if that is measured by whether they calmed the unrest. But none responded the way Mr. Trump has: by issuing an overtly violent ultimatum to protesters.

“When the looting starts, the shooting starts,” Mr. Trump tweeted just before 1 a.m. on Friday, threatening to deploy the National Guard to Minneapolis after explosive protests in response to the death of George Floyd, whom a white police officer pinned to the ground, knee on neck, for more than eight minutes.

Reflect and React

• Consider the Role of the President: What role would you want the president of the United States to play during this crisis? Do you think President Trump is currently fulfilling this role? Why, or why not? What would you want him to say or do in this moment? Collect images, quotes, tweets or other evidence to help support your position.

• How Should Local Leaders Respond to Protests? Across the nation, leaders are imposing curfews and calling on the national guard to quell protesters. How do you think towns, cities and states should respond to the protests? If you were the mayor of a city like New York or Washington, D.C., would you call for curfews? What else might you do? Why?

• Define Good Leadership: What makes a great leader? In response to our related Student Opinion question about leadership during the coronavirus, Varshnie from Richmond Hill High School wrote:

In my opinion, I think that a great leader should always be helpful and try to help their community. Firstly, they must have clarity which means that they are clear and concise at all times there is no question of their vision and what needs to be accomplished. Next, they must have courage to help others and to maintain that pose to being a great leader to others. Having passion is also a key to being a great leader, not just to show others but to also inspire others. Lastly, you must have humility to being a loyal person and giving back to our world today.

Do you agree? Make a list of the qualities of leadership you value most. Then submit your own comment.

• Recognize Great Leaders: What actions or words from other leaders, like governors, mayors and community activists, have you admired? Select an excerpt from a speech, a video clip or an image featuring one of these leaders and explain why it resonated with you.

The Role of the Media

Essential Questions: What role does journalism play in this moment? How can you think critically about the media — articles, images, videos and social media posts — that you consume?

A free press is central to democracy. Indeed, freedom of the press — the ability to report the news without censorship from the government — is enshrined in our Constitution, protected under the First Amendment.

However, while reporting on the protests in Minneapolis and elsewhere in the United States, journalists have found themselves under threat.

In “Police Target Journalists as Trump Blames ‘Lamestream Media’ for Protests,” Marc Tracy and Rachel Abrams write:

Many reporters, photographers and press advocates said the treatment of journalists by police officers in recent days reflected an erosion of trust in the news media that has seeped into law enforcement under President Trump, who has deemed critical coverage of his administration “fake news” and has frequently labeled some news organizations and journalists with variants of the phrase “enemies of the people.”

“This story, in particular, it seems journalists are really being targeted by the police,” Ms. Davidson said. “That’s not something I have experienced before to this degree.”

It is common in autocratic countries for journalists to be arrested during demonstrations and riots, but rare in the United States, where freedom of the press is guaranteed by the First Amendment. In a sign that police officers would not follow the customary hands-off approach, Minnesota State Patrol officers arrested a CNN reporting team live on the air on Friday. That same day, a TV reporter in Louisville, Ky., was hit by a pepper ball by an officer who appeared to be aiming at her while she covered the protest on live television.

In “To Be Black and a Journalist at This Moment,” a piece from The Associated Press, Amanda Barrett writes:

Part of me wants to go off and join the fight. To put aside my journalistic reserve and give full voice to my anger, my disappointment that my country doesn’t always live up to its lofty ideals of equality and justice. To build a brighter future like it seemed on “Star Trek,” where races, nationalities and even species lived together in mutual respect and Lt. Uhura’s presence as a respected, competent black officer assured little Amanda of her place among them.

But I’m doing my part right where I am. I’m telling stories that help readers understand the world around them. I’m sharing the voices of the unheard and holding those in power accountable. Just as important, I am working to make our newsrooms more accurately reflect the communities we cover and to make our storytelling and our decision-making more inclusive.

My voice is the voice of facts and context. My voice is the hope that they can bring the understanding and, eventually, the equality that my country’s founding documents promise.

Read one or both of these articles. Then, reflect on the media’s role in this moment with the activities below.

Reflect and React

• Define the Role of Journalism Now: If you’ve never thought much about the role journalism plays in society in general, consider it now, via one or more of these questions: Do we still need journalists if every citizen with a phone can report the news as it breaks? What is different about the job professional reporters do? To what extent do you think it’s important for the press to be able to freely report what is happening? What role can journalism play in this moment — and what responsibilities come with that role? What influence does the media have on the way the public understands what is happening in these protests?

  As you consider any or all of these, collect examples of reporting that you think is doing an excellent job of capturing the news right now, but also collect reporting you find problematic or lacking for any reason.

• Compare TikTok and The Times: In a call-in to a live interview with the young adult author Jason Reynolds, 17-year-old Cameron noted that in the media the protests looked very violent, but on his TikTok feed, they appeared largely peaceful. Have you had this experience?

  Compare what you see on social media to what you’ve seen from mainstream news sources. How are they similar? How are they different? What do you think could account for these differences? Consider whose experiences are included and whose are left out. What does this activity tell you about the values and limitations of each kind of media?

• Question Media Choices: What bias or stereotyping have you witnessed in media coverage, whether in choices of words, images, headlines, interviews or anything else? How do you think that may have affected perception of the events and their meaning? Examine the language and images different news outlets are using to describe what is happening. What message does this language send about the protesters, police and others?

  For example, many took issue with The New York Times front-page headline in the first edition published on June 2. Many felt that “As Chaos Spread, Trump Vows to ‘End It Now’ did not “come close” to accurately reporting the news that night, as President Trump first made a speech threatening to send the military to bring the protests under control — then walked to a church and posed for photos after the police used smoke, flash grenades and some kind of chemical spray to clear the area of peaceful protesters.

  In addition, readers challenged passive-voice grammatical constructions on that same front page like “Protests in 140 cities bring five deaths.” The Poynter Institute asks, “Does the passive voice downplay police aggression?” in its piece “The New York Times was accused of siding with police because of ill-placed passive voice.” What do you think?

  Finally, just after this resource was originally published on June 3, an Op-Ed piece by a United States senator, Tom Cotton, went online. Headlined “Send in the Troops,” it called for a military response to civic unrest in American cities, and infuriated many both outside and inside the Times. By the end of the week, James Bennet, the editor of the Times Opinion section (which is separate from the newsroom), had resigned. Though there is not the space here to fully examine what happened and why, you might scan the 2,000-plus reader comments on the Op-Ed itself to better understand the debate, then read “Inside the Revolts Erupting in America’s Big Newsrooms” to learn more about the context, which asks, What is the role of journalism today? As the column puts it: “Now, as America is wrestling with the surging of a moment that began [with Ferguson] in August 2014, its biggest newsrooms are trying to find common ground between a tradition that aims to persuade the widest possible audience that its reporting is neutral and journalists who believe that fairness on issues from race to Donald Trump requires clear moral calls.”

• Report the News Yourself: What kind of piece could you report about an aspect of these protests or the issues it raises for you or your community? What form would your reporting take? Where might you post or send this piece based on the audience you’d like to reach? Here are some student journalist resources for covering protests safely and sensitively from The Poynter Institute to help. And if you would like some inspiration, check out “A High School Journalist Dug Into Suspensions of Black Students. What She Found Won an Award.”

Misinformation and Disinformation

Essential Question: Why do we all need to fight misinformation?

What do you know — or think you know — about the death of George Floyd and the protests that have followed? From what sources are you getting your information — social media, cable news, newspapers, your friends or family? Have you heard any conspiracy theories or fallen for any hoaxes? What are the dangers of doing so?

In “Misinformation About George Floyd Protests Surges on Social Media,” Davey Alba explains why this moment is ripe for disinformation:

“The combination of evolving events, sustained attention and, most of all, deep existing divisions make this moment a perfect storm for disinformation,” said Graham Brookie, director of the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab. “All of it is toxic, and make our very real challenges and divisions harder to address.”

The collision of racial tensions and political polarization during the coronavirus pandemic has supersized the misinformation, researchers said. Much of it is being shared by the conspiracy group QAnon and far-right commentators as well as by those on the left, Mr. Brookie said.

President Trump himself has stoked the divisive information. Over the past few days, he posted on Twitter that antifa was a “Terrorist Organization” and urged the public to show up for a “MAGA Night” counterprotest at the White House.

Along with that, people are experiencing high levels of fear, uncertainty and anger, said Claire Wardle, executive director of First Draft, an organization that fights online disinformation. That creates “the worst possible context for a healthy information environment,” she said.

Reflect and React

• Be Aware of Hoaxes: Read the rest of the article to learn about three significant categories of falsehoods that have surfaced on social media platforms about Mr. Floyd’s death and the protests. Or, scroll through this running list of hoaxes and misleading posts about the nationwide police brutality protests from Buzzfeed News. Have you seen any of these types of post in your social media feed? Did you fall for any of them? Repost any of them?

• Practice Media Literacy: Whenever you encounter something that seems dubious, read laterally to evaluate the source of the information you’re viewing. Then you might fact-check the message’s claims using a fact checker like FactCheck.org or Snopes.com.

• Get a Healthier News Diet: Don’t just read The New York Times or your social media feed. Assess the reliability of your sources using tools like Media Bias/Fact Check or the Interactive Media Bias Chart. Here’s what teenagers told us about what happened when they did exercises like this to create their own healthy “media diets.”

• Understand Your Own Biases: Watch this video from Facing History and Ourselves about confirmation bias and disconfirmation bias. Have you yourself ever been guilty of this? Reflect on the biases you might bring to this particular news event and how that might shape your experience of it.

• Ask Yourself These Five Key Questions: Courtesy of the Center for Media Literacy, you can find more information on this page.

  1. Who created this message?
  2. What creative techniques are used to attract my attention?
  3. How might different people understand this message differently than me?
  4. What values, lifestyles and points of view are represented in, or omitted from, this message?
  5. Why is this message being sent?

Take Action and Take Care

Essential Question: What can you do to gain a better understanding of racism and take action against injustices in your daily life?

By this point, you’ve likely explored some of the many resources about racism, policing, protesting and the media we’ve posted above, and you might be left with questions about what this all means for you. Where do you stand? What can you do? What is your role in making positive change?

Madeleine from California shared some ideas in response to our Student Opinion question about the George Floyd protests:

The death of George Floyd has forced the American people to look systemic racism in the eye. We are the next generation and it is our duty to not only educate ourselves but each other and our parents…It all starts with education, the power of knowledge takes you places and soon many of our generation will gain the power to vote. If we want change, we need to get educated first. That also means as a generation we need to wake up and look privilege in the eye. It’s not just about white privilege anymore. As an Asian American I can recognize that I do not face the same type of struggles that my fellow POC face. Asian Americans have fought hard to get where we are today, and it is our duty to help bring every POC up with us.

Some refer to this work as practicing “antiracism.” In “Being Antiracist,” the National Museum of African-American History and Culture explains that “being racist or antiracist is not about who you are; it is about what you do.”

When we choose to be antiracist, we become actively conscious about race and racism and take actions to end racial inequities in our daily lives. Being antiracist is believing that racism is everyone’s problem, and we all have a role to play in stopping it.

You might read the rest of the article to learn more about antiracism and what it might look like for you. Then, try one of the activities below to put what you’ve learned into action.

Reflect and React

• Educate Yourself: Whether you’re just learning the term antiracist or you’ve been doing this work for a long time, the books, articles, lists, film clips and podcasts in this resource guide from the Evanston Public Library can help you learn more. Choose one thing you can read, watch or listen to today. If you want to go deeper, see this antiracist reading list from Ibram X. Kendi in The New York Times.

• Talk About Race: Have you ever had conversations with friends or family about race or racism? What was it like for you? Why do you think race is so hard to talk about? Reflect on your own experience and see what other students had to say on our related Student Opinion question. For advice on how to have difficult conversations about race, listen to the NPR Code Switch episode “How to Talk Race With Your Family.” How can you apply this advice to your own life?

• Take Action in Your Local Community: In this article, the Anti-Defamation League suggests 10 ways youth can engage in activism, from demonstrating and raising money to writing letters and creating social media campaigns. We also have more suggestions in our lesson plan “Ideas for Student Civic Action in a Time of Social Uncertainty.”

• Take Care of Yourself: For black students, especially, discussing the current events, including racism and police brutality, can be traumatizing. Teen Vogue, Vice, and Boston College all have tips on how to take care of your mental health during this difficult time. For educators, Teaching Tolerance has a guide on how to affirm black lives without inducing trauma.

Additional Resources

For Teachers, From Around the Web

Teaching Tolerance | Teaching About Race, Racism, and Police Violence

Teaching Tolerance Unit | Speak Up at School

Rethinking Schools | Teaching for Black Lives

Education Week | As Protests Erupt After George Floyd’s Death, Teachers Grieve With Students From a Distance

Chalkbeat | ‘Moments like now are why we teach’: Educators tackle tough conversations about race and violence — this time virtually

Facing History | Reflecting on George Floyd’s Death and Police Violence Towards Black Americans

Morningside Center | Listening Circle on George Floyd

National Child Traumatic Stress Network | Addressing Race and Trauma in the Classroom: A Resource for Educators

Padlet Resources from Dr. Nicole A. Cooke | Anti-Racism Resources for All Ages

Elyse Eidman-Aadahl on Medium | Resources for Justice and Peace

Gaby Diaz on Medium | Teachers, We Have Work to Do

The Choices Program | Black Lives Matter, the Killing of George Floyd, and the Long Fight for Racial Justice

Some Related Resources from The Learning Network

Lesson Plans for Teachers

Lesson of the Day: ‘“I Can’t Breathe”: 4 Minneapolis Officers Fired After Black Man Dies in Custody’
Lesson of the Day: ‘What We Know About the Shooting Death of Ahmaud Arbery’
Lesson of the Day: ‘Black Americans Face Alarming Rates of Coronavirus Infection in Some States’
Lesson of the Day | Learning About Slavery With Primary Sources
First Encounters With Race and Racism: Teaching Ideas for Classroom Conversations
Equality Under the Law? Investigating Race and the Justice System
Still Separate, Still Unequal: Teaching about School Segregation and Educational Inequality
Celebrating Black History With The New York Times
Text to Text | Colin Kaepernick’s National Anthem Protest and Frederick Douglass’s ‘What to the Slave is the 4th of July?’
25 Mini-Films for Exploring Race, Bias and Identity With Students
The Death of Michael Brown: Teaching About Ferguson

Recent Related Student Opinion Questions for Teenagers

How Much Racism Do You Face in Your Daily Life?
How Should Parents Teach Their Children About Race and Racism?
Is America ‘Backsliding’ on Race?
Are You Able to Be Your Whole Self at School?
What Issues in the 2020 Presidential Race Are Most Important to You?
How Have You Learned About Slavery?
Does the United States Owe Reparations to the Descendants of Enslaved People?
Should All Americans Receive Anti-Bias Education?
Should All Companies Require Anti-Bias Training for Employees?
Is Fear of ‘The Other’ Poisoning Public Life?

Ideas, links and activities for this piece were contributed by four additional Learning Network staff members, Nicole Daniels, Jeremy Engle, Michael Gonchar and Rachel Manley.