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Civic Participation & Citizenship Collection
Community Issues and the Death Penalty:
How Everyday Issues Relate to the Bigger Picture
Toni Maruca, Massachusetts Career Development Institute, Springfield,
MA
Connection
to Civic
Participation and Community Action Sourcebook:
» Section One: Finding Connections to Communities and Issues
» This activity could be used in conjunction with: "Walking
Students Through a Legislative Process" (p. 59), "Prejudice
in a Small Town" (p.89), and "Light in Montana: How One Town
Said No to Hate" (p.165).
Overall Objective and Connection to Civic Participation:
The overall objective of the following series of activities was to help
students identify community/social issues such as violence, racism, gun
control and corruption, critically reflect on their own beliefs regarding
these topics, and connect the issues to the death penalty. Often young
adults (17-21 years of age) make uninformed and rash decisions, and are
influenced by the opinions of their friends. This activity helps them
to think analytically about some of their beliefs and ideally make more
informed choices in the future.
Furthermore, this activity can help students become
aware of the legislative process and what they as individuals can do to
advocate for change. The students in my class are already conscious of
voting and checking into what each political official stands for. They
are also aware of laws and rights they have available to help them receive
fair treatment wherever they may go.
This activity builds on that awareness.
Brief Description of Activity or Project:
This activity focused on linking racism, prejudices, the criminal justice
system, corruption and power/money to the death penalty. I wanted to show
how the things we may experience or read about in our own newspapers often
have greater implications than we realize. To do this I held a separate
discussion on each topic. I then showed a movie related to the topic,
followed by a class discussion. After several different ideas were introduced,
the students wrote essays expressing their own opinions. (This was a good
activity for students preparing for the GED because they are required
to write an essay that supports one viewpoint over another.) This format
was followed for every topic. The last discussion was based on a series
of questions designed to get one to think about the issues from different
perspectives. In the end, it showed the connection between the issues
and the death penalty and helped students to think through the death penalty
debate rather than merely saying they supported it or did not support
it.
Learner Profile:
This activity was done with a level 2 ABE class. The class consisted of
about 10 students, mostly between 17 and 21. The students were completely
unresponsive to any project that would require them to do anything outside
their actual studies, and it was hard for me to find students' areas of
interest. They all were very concerned with improving themselves, individually,
but didn't see how their individual goals were connected to dealing with
the problems of a community. Their focus was on obtaining their GED. So
I wanted to find a topic that would interest them, educate them, improve
their skills, as well as relate to the community. My task was not easy.
I chose movies to grab their attention. I focused on problems and issues
within the community that they could relate to. I then wanted to take
it one more step and relate their community issues to the death penalty.
Materials Needed: I collected information on the death penalty from the internet and distributed copies if necessary. I then used current movies relating to the topics we discussed.
Time Required: The time required varies according to the length of the class, the length of the movies and the amount of time allocated to discussion and essay writing. If all of these activities are done in one session, at least three hours will be needed.
Process:
Lesson 1
I started by collecting information about the death penalty from the internet.
I tried to get several different views on the death penalty from the "anti"
and "pro" groups. Once I collected enough information, I began
the class discussion. We discussed the death penalty and the issues that
pertain to it. I also read them specific cases of those on death row or
those who may have already been put to death. I had them write an essay
on their views regarding the death penalty.
Lesson 2
The next part of the lesson focused on discussing community issues. I
wanted to eventually link the death penalty to these community issues,
but did not make this explicit. I wanted to see if they were able to make
the connection on their own. We began by talking about racism and prejudices.
We discussed the issue of black vs. white, man vs. woman, and rich vs.
poor. I gave facts on crime and punishment to link to these issues. We
then watched the movie True Crimes. It related to the areas we talked
about. It was based on a black man who was at the wrong place at the wrong
time, and was being blamed for a murder. He was even scheduled to die.
A lot of views on the death penalty were shifting, and several "buts"
were added to their opinions. They were asked to write an essay once again.
Lesson 3
During the next class we discussed corruption. We talked about places
that corruption can exist. They came up with several places and agencies,
including the police force, court system, correctional systems, FBI, and
basically anywhere that there is an excess of power and money. We talked
about the OJ Simpson case and the Ramsey murder case. We talked about
the possibility of being framed. I then showed the movie Paradise Lost,
a movie based on a true story of a group of young teens being accused
of a murder many people feel they did not do. I also showed Arlington
Rd. and The Negotiator. Both films are about corruption in powerful government
agencies, and how easily one's life can be destroyed by someone with the
proper resources and the right amount of money. Students then wrote essays
about their thoughts.
Lesson 4
The next class discussion focused on the purpose of the criminal justice
system - what it was designed to actually do, and to see if it is in fact
doing so. The emphasis was on the idea that correctional facilities are
designed to rehabilitate the offender. This is often pushed aside. We
also had a discussion on religious views and their teachings. I asked
how they were taught to forgive, or if they were taught to seek revenge.
They were once again asked to write an essay on their views.
Lesson 5
For the last class, I designed a series of questions
that raised different perspectives on the issues. We went through them
one at a time, building connections among the issues as we went. The questions
linked all the previous discussions to the death penalty. They were amazed
at the connections between the issues they may face everyday and the death
penalty.
Teacher Reflections:
This worked well because the topic I had chosen was very interesting to
the learners and the information was current. The movies we viewed were
also current. There was a lot of discussion about each topic, drawing
on things the students may have even experienced or someone close to them
had experienced. This made it easier for them to be engaged and increased
participation. Even though the project worked well overall, it was very
difficult to introduce something new to them. They are very focused on
bettering themselves and their test scores, and at first they could not
make a connection to how this would help them or what they could learn
from it.
Student Reactions:
The students thoroughly enjoyed the classroom discussions. It was a very
relaxed atmosphere, and they were able to say what they really felt. Also,
they were able to see issues from other people's point of view. They also
enjoyed the movies as they were stories they felt they were experiencing
rather than just reading. The students were not thrilled with writing
the essay part of this activity, but they had no problems in doing so.
They also realized that it was helping them to prepare for the GED.
| Student
Comments • "It was cool to see how things happening here in our own towns could have an impact on a more serious issue, such as the death penalty.” • "It was scary to link corruption, power, and money to the death penalty. It makes you wonder how many people on death row are innocent. We will never really know the truth.” • "The comment in Newsweek about the death penalty being another government program that doesn't work well is crazy! HELLO- we are talking about people's lives!” • "I don't understand how a supreme court can refuse an appeal for someone like Gary Graham. They have no positive evidence and there is a definite doubt of his guilt. This goes against the laws I am familiar with.” • "No judge or
political figure should be allowed to REFUSE DNA evidence in a case.
On what basis could this be justified? If there is something that
could wipe out doubt, then let's see it!” |
Questions
Relating Community and Social Issues
to the Death Penalty
Students were asked not to answer the first question out loud but the
ensuing questions were discussed as a group. At the end of each discussion,
students were again asked to write whether or not they supported the death
penalty.
1. What do you think about the death penalty?
2. Have you ever been blamed for something that you did not do by a teacher, parent, friend, sibling, girlfriend, boyfriend or employer? Did you ever have to prove your innocence?
3. Do you feel racism exists today? In what ways do you see it?
4. How do you think people should be held accountable for their actions?
5. What does your religious group believe
about seeking revenge or getting even? What do you
believe?
6. What is the purpose of the criminal justice system?
7. The law vows to protect society and seek rehabilitation for the offender. Do you think our jails do this? Does the death penalty seek rehabilitation?
8. What are the causes of corruption?
9. How does money affect the exercise of "equal justice for everyone"?
10. How do issues of money and race affect the death penalty?
New
England Literacy Resource Center
World Education
Boston, MA
(617) 482-9485
