Outside Cleveland, OH, Lakewood High School students in teacher Joe Lobozzo's Facing History and Ourselves class use video to engage with community members and explore perceptions of changing racial and economic demographics. They continue the conversation with their peers in the student Race and Diversity Club. (5:12)
Discussion Questions:
- The teacher in the video stated that it is important for Lakewood not to just be tolerant and accepting but welcoming and embracing of diverse groups of people entering the community. What do you see as the differences in these terms both in the specific meanings and also what they may tell others about the Lakewood (or any) community?
- We heard about “code words” in this video. What does that mean to you? Can you think of code words that you or others have used in our school or community when talking about issues of race, class, sexual orientation or other cultural groups?
- One of the students shared that the emerging stereotype about Lakewood is that is it “soft” or “gay” because of its efforts to embrace its diversity. Why do you think some people might place a label on a community or a person who is in engaged in social justice efforts? How could you respond to someone who used these labels?
- In this video we see young people leading dialogue about social and civil rights issues with adults in their community. Do you think it is harder for adults to discuss issues of racism, homophobia, etc? Why or why not?
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Learn how to start a NIOS campaign at your school with our free Not In Our School Quick Start Guide [4].
This video is part of the Not In Our School Video Action Kit [5], a comprehensive toolkit featuring films, lessons, and resources designed to motivate students to speak out against bullying, and create new ways to make their schools safe for everyone. Learn more about the Video Action Kit. [5]