Darfur Now Lesson Three: Understanding Activism

In Lesson Two, students were exposed to six examples of activism on behalf of the people in Darfur. The purpose of Lesson Three is to help students think more deeply about the complexity of activism. They will accomplish this goal as they design a poster representing the work of the activist assigned to them during Lesson Two and as they listen to the presentations of their peers.

First, most of the activists describe personal experiences, biographical information, and/or deeply felt values that have inspired their activism. Students will distill this information in order to present one quotation or paraphrase that represents a significant source of motivation for the activist's work. This step will help students appreciate that the same factors that might motivate their own actions have also inspired the work of these activists. They will reflect further on this point in Lesson Four.

Second, each of the activists adopts a specific strategy to achieve his or her goal. To communicate this approach to the rest of the class, students will create a visual symbol representing this strategy; for example, Pablo Recalde's strategy might be symbolized by a horn of plenty or a sack of grain, and Adam Sterling's might be represented by a dollar sign. Then students will analyze this strategy by listing the benefits and drawbacks of this approach as it relates to ending the violence in Darfur and preventing future genocides. Students' discussions might focus on the short-term and long-term consequences of a particular strategy. For example, Hejewa Adam's strategy to join the rebels in fighting the Janjaweed might yield short-term benefits, such as protecting her people from further violence. Yet the long-term consequence may be to exacerbate the conflict and make a peaceful resolution more difficult. Even Hejewa explains that the conflict in Darfur will not be settled by guns, "not even in a hundred years," but by people who "go to school and get an education."

Third, students' posters will include one important quotation by the activist. Throughout the film, the activists share many thought-provoking ideas, but students should choose the statement that they think would be most likely to inspire their classmates to think about their own choices in relation to the genocide in Darfur. In order to make this selection, students must step back and look at the big picture of their activist's work and ideas. Then they must consider their audience when answering the question, "Which of the activist's words might get our classmates to think deeply about activism, Darfur, and their own choices?"

While the group work helps students develop their understanding of activism by focusing closely on the work of one activist, the presentations are intended to help students appreciate the breadth and variety of activism. The six individuals profiled in Darfur Now demonstrate that there are various motivations, goals, and strategies that can be applied toward addressing a common cause. Ending a genocide, or any other regional or ethnic conflict, is a massive task requiring work on many levels (humanitarian, judicial, economic, etc.). An awareness of the scale and complexity involved can help students appreciate why, despite the efforts of so many individuals, the genocide has not ended. At the same time, acknowledging the depth and breadth of activists' work also highlights the progress that is being made to end the violence, punish the perpetrators, and take care of the victims. Students learning about historical atrocities that are a testament to cruelty and indifference can come away from this study feeling pessimistic or cynical about human behavior. Therefore, a thoughtful discussion about efforts to help the people of Darfur can emphasize the progress made possible by compassion and determination, despite the scale and complexity of the problem.

Finally, a discussion synthesizing the ideas from the presentations might focus on how to evaluate the success of these activists' efforts. In this conversation, students might debate whether success is measured by small victories, such as the passage of Assembly Bill 2941 which required the state of California to divest from any companies doing business with the government of Sudan, or by larger triumphs, such as a complete halt to the violence in Darfur or the prevention of future genocides.

This lesson is part of the Darfur Now Unit