One of our ground rules for this course states: “Acknowledge that one of the mechanisms of oppression (racism, classism, sexism, etc.) is that we have been systematically taught misinformation about our own groups and especially members of devalued/subordinate groups.” I strongly believe this acknowledgement should be fostered in adolescent classrooms during crucial developmental years. One media modality that has become part of adolescent life today that can be used to build the realization of this acknowledgement is Netflix, and even TV shows and movies in general. By helping students gain a critical lens with which to analyze the TV shows and movies they consume, we can help them process the misinformation they may be receiving about themselves and their communities as they continue to develop their identities.
One specific Netflix original production just released this month that I think could help students develop a critical lens is the documentary “13th“, as in the 13th Amendment that outlawed slavery and involuntary servitude, but allowed for lock up as punishment for crimes. (I would caution using it with middle school students – while the documentary tells the truth about our history, graphic images may be too intense for younger students). See the trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V66F3WU2CKk
As the documentary shows, while slavery was officially outlawed with the 13th Amendment, this same amendment is actually at the heart of mass incarceration that has been devastating to poor communities of color. It also highlights how in examining our history we can see that police brutality against people of color is nothing new; today we simply have the technology to capture it and share it for all to see.
I can see this documentary being used in a history unit studying the U.S. Constitution and taking a particular look at the 13th Amendment. Before showing this documentary, I think it would be crucial to have a conversation as a class about what they think freedom is. In “The Land of the Free,” I would ask, do you think all Americans truly are free? Students today will no doubt have seen or heard about police brutality and the Black Lives Matter movement and may bring this into the conversation. It is so important for students to be able to critically analyze how race relations today are greatly steeped in our history, and this documentary is a great tool to begin that exploration.
After watching 13th, I would ask students to work in small groups to answer the question: While slavery is illegal today, in what ways has the racial hierarchy been maintained?
The documentary reveals many ways to investigate this question: the prison-industrial complex, the jailing of activists, the pressure to take plea bargains, to name a few. Students could also choose to explore issues not explicitly talked about in the documentary, such as redlining and inequity in education. I would ask the students to present their investigations on poster boards to create a gallery walk for all the students to see what each group researched. Furthermore, I think it could be really powerful to invite some local police officers into the class and have the students share what they have learned and create a space for the students to have a dialogue with the police officers about how racial injustice in the criminal system can be stopped.
Of course before all of this – watching the documentary and inviting police officers to speak with the students – parents should be notified. The documentary does center around our dark history and can be hard to process. A classroom that partakes in this exercise should be one in which the teacher has created relational trust with the students and hopefully their families.
After watching this documentary, the teacher can encourage students in their watching of other Netflix shows, television shows and movies to see if and how our history is acknowledged and whose voice and perspective is being privileged. Perhaps select clips found by students could be shown to the class to analyze together the misinformation that leads to the perpetuation of stereotypes and prejudice. This can foster another one of our course ground rules in adolescent classrooms: “Agree to actively combat the myths and stereotypes about our own groups and other groups so that we can break down the walls that prohibit group cooperation and group gain.”
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*Course ground rules written by Lynn Weber Cannon, Memphis State University, 1986
I loved this post. We as educators need to respond to constantly changing interests of students based on culture and technology. It is my belief that almost any form of media can be translated into something beneficial to learning. I have viewed SO many excellent documentaries and movies on Netflix that could easily be applied to an educational context. The great thing here is that there is such a wide array of content that there is something for every age and subject, and the choices are constantly changing. It would be wonderful (and I really may do this as a teacher after reading this post) to have a class Netflix account. This also gives students who may not have good access to a variety of movies and TV a chance to choose what they “consume” in terms of media. There are many great foreign movies for use in bilingual or foreign language classrooms. In addition, content restrictions can be set for younger kids. Really this is a perfect form of media for schools; a virtual library. So yes, great post and very true. I just looked through and found A TON of great films…going to watch one documentary now called Witches: a Century of Murder. It investigates historical persecution of women perceived to be witches–very appropriate for Halloween and the kind of movie I might use in a classroom to teach history from a feminist perspective!!