This was a very interesting film to watch. Baldwin had a quote in the film that stood out to me, "Not all white people were devils and I did not want young black people to believe that". I found it interesting that Baldwin made it very clear that he was not angry at ALL white people. He even gave the example of the teacher he really liked and she was white. Baldwin talked about the white teacher ,who when he was 10 years old took him out on fields trips and taught him everything he needed to know as a schoolboy. Perhaps Baldwin having this positive experience changed his view. Baldwin had every right to believe otherwise after witnessing all he has been through, but yet he didn't want the black youth to walk around with hate inside of them.
As a future ELA teacher I think it is important to teach our young adults that not everyone is bad and that hate does not fix anything. Yes, we have to teach them about Black History and discuss all if the horrible things that did happen, but we must also give them the tools to fight for their rights and for their voices to be heard without being filled with anger and hurt. We must turn all that hate, if there is any, and turn it into a passion so that they can fight for what is right. Like Baldwin said, "not all white people are the devil", so we cannot have our youth walking around with all this hate inside of them. I l really like how Baldwin wants better for the youth.
I think Baldwin's implications for ELA teachers is that we have the power to teach our students of everything people in the past have fought for in order for us to be her in this school learning. Like Baldwin himself said in the film, "history is not the past it is out present. We carry our history with us. We are our history, if we pretend otherwise we literally are criminals". As ELA teachers we can keep history present in our classrooms by introducing more black authors into the curriculum, doing research papers, and reading the speeches of Medgar Evers, Malcolm X, and Martin Luther King. This will be both educational for our white and black students and hopefully the future will be a much nicer place for all of us to live in peacefully.
Hi Michelle!
ReplyDeleteI really like your blog post and found it interesting. I agree that it is our duty as ELA teachers to teach and read black authors. I also agree that we should not harness hatred in our students. We need to allow them to see for themselves what has happened and what is currently happening in our country. We need to show them that with care and kindness they can make the changes that they want to see!
Hi, Krissy,
DeleteYes! I totally agree with you. Our duty as ELA teachers is to supply our students with knowledge and give them the tools necessary to be able to communicate effectively via writing or public speaking , protesting. All of these are good ways for our youth to be able to demand changes while being respectful and kind to one another. We as teachers are not trying to teach hate but, instead we are opening eyes.
Hi Michelle,
ReplyDeleteYou brought up a really interesting point from the film (Baldwin stating his "like" for white people). As I was reading your blog it reminded me of how I felt when I heard him say those things in the film. I made me feel kind of sad when he was talking to the white men who were interviewing him or in his audience because it seemed like he probably felt like he had to make that clear so they would not be angry with him. I think the idea of having to preface what he is saying with "not all whites are bad" is just unfortunate. He (and other non-white people) should be able to speak about their experiences without feeling like they need to make such statements. Do you know what I mean? I think he probably was doing this to defend himself and make white people more willing to listen to him, which probably was effective, but it is too bad that is how it had (or has) to be. I wondered if you thought about this at all. And as it relates to students, it is really complicated because of course I don't want them to hate all white people, but I also would want them to feel like their experiences are valid and they do not need to justify them to me.