Process
Process 1
What is Civil Disobedience?
1. Examine these links. Take notes on anything that strikes you as interesting, shocking, or confusing. You will be answering the questions in #2 below after you have completed the videos.
Be prepared to share your thoughts in your small group.
- Howard Zinn on Civil Disobedience (1960's)
- 1999 World Trade Organization (WTO) Protest in Seattle
- 1996 PETA Fur Protest at Beverly Hills at Neiman Marcus
- 2009 Tax Protest & March to Washington
2. For each video, answer these questions. We will discuss them in class, and they will be turned in for homework points:
- What is being protested?
- What role does violence play? What role does nonviolence play?
- Is it evident if the protest was successful?
- Would you participate in a protest like this?
- What commonalities do you see between these four examples?
- What differences do you see between these four examples?
Read these lyrics from "Testify"by Rage Against the Machine:
The movie ran through me
The glamour subdued me
The tabloid untied me
I'm empty please fill me
Mister anchor assure me
That Baghdad is burning
Your voice it is so soothing
That cunning mantra of killing
I need you my witness
To dress this up so bloodless
To numb me and purge me now
Of thoughts of blaming you
Yes the car is our wheelchair
My witness your coughing
Oily silence mocks the legless boys
Who travel now in coffins
On the corner
The jury's sleepless
We found your weakness
And it's right outside your door
Now testify
Now testify
It's right outside your door
Now testify
Yes testify
Its right outside your door
With precision you feed me
My witness I'm hungry
Your temple it calms me
So I can carry on
My slaving sweating the skin right off my bones
On a bed of fire I'm choking on the smoke that fills my home
The wrecking ball is rushing
Witness your blushing
The pipeline is gushing
While here we lie in tombs
While on the corner
The jury's sleepless
We found your weakness
And it's right outside your door
Now testify
Yeah testify
It's right outside your door
Now testify
Now testify
It's right outside your door
Mass graves for the pump and the price is set
And the price is set
Mass graves for the pump and the price is set
And the price is set
Mass graves for the pump and the price is set
And the price is set
Mass graves for the pump and the price is set
And the price is set
Who controls the past now controls the future
Who controls the present now controls the past
Who controls the past now controls the future
Who controls the present now?
Now testify
Testify
It's right outside your door
Now testify
Testify
It's right outside your door
Now, watch the music video. While viewing, think about the core message of the song: Click Here!
After watching, discuss these questions in your small groups:
1. Do you think that Rage Against the Machine is acting on behalf of civil disobedience? Do you consider them an activist group?
2. Who is their audience?
3. What message or story are they telling?
4. Do you think these methods (music and music videos) are affective in promoting a cause? Can you think of any other examples of artists acting as activists?
Process 2
First, check out:
1. Where Thoreau lived when he moved out to the woods: HERE!
2. A video clip showing modern civil disobedience, and quotes of Thoreau: HERE!
Now that you have seen some modern examples of civil disobedience, you are going to return to the Thoreau text.
Reread or scan the Thoreau text. You will then get into your small groups and answer the following questions together.
- Thoreau fought using his ideas, words, and his own personal actions. Do you think he would have been more successful if he worked with other people who felt the same way he did?
- If Thoreau had organized his own protest, what do you think it would have looked like?
- Is Thoreau contradicting himself when he writes, "How vain it is to sit down to write when you have not stood up to live." Argue your group's final position in writing.
Post your writing to the class blog. (1 blog post per small group.)
Homework: Go to the class blog, and read the other postings. Post one comment on one of the posts.
Process 3
Pick one of these organizations, and look closely at their website. Browse all of the links, and look for their rhetorical arguments. Also, look for any protest work they are planning to do, or have already completed.
Check out these activist groups, and pick one to focus on in your small groups:
- Adbusters -- This group protests global economics, and modern advertising techniques.
- People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) --The most well known animal-rights group.
- Earth First -- Radical environmentalist group.
- Save Darfur -- A global group working to end the genocide in Darfur.
- Free Tibet -- An organization working to free Tibet from Chinese dominance.
- Battle Cry -- A teenage Christian activist group aimed at fighting against modern pop culture, media, and corporations.
As a group, answer these questions, and post to the class blog:
- Which activist group did you pick?
- What stands out about this group? What makes them unique?
- What campaigns have they organized? Are they organizing any protest or campaigns currently?
- What is their main rhetorical argument?
- Do they use any of the appeals? (Logos, Ethos, Pathos) Give examples.
- Are they persuasive? Would you join their cause?
- Do you think this group is successful in their endeavors? Why or why not?
- What do you think Thoreau would think about this group? Are they acting out of civil disobedience?
Each group will present their findings to the class.
Homework: Pick one blog post from this activity, and write a comment.
Process 4
By now you have:
- Read Thoreau's "Civil Disobedience."
- Seen modern day examples of civil disobedience.
- Studied examples of popular activist groups, and have argued whether or not they are effective.
Now it is time to create your own activist group!
What to do:
- In your small group, decide on a social issue on which to create your activist group.
- Create a mission statement for your activist group, outlining its main purposes. Display this information on a poster. Also include your activist group's name, a motto, and a logo.
- In the spirit of Thoreau, write a 2-3 page group essay on which you argue for your cause. Use rhetorical devices and appeals to propel your argument forward. You must fiercely argue--your audience is comprised of people who are not very familiar with your cause. You must 1) inform them of the issue, 2) explain why it is important to fight for the cause, 3) convince them to join your side.
- Post your final essay on the blog.
Each group will present their poster in class, and read a passage from their essay.
Congratulations! You are done!