September 24, 2001

CASTING A WARY EYE?
Examining Views of Race in the Wake of the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks

Grades:  6-8,9-12

Subjects:  Civics, Current Events, Language Arts, Social Studies

Related New York Times Article
"Once Appalled by Race Profiling, Many Find Themselves Doing It", By SAM HOWE VERHOVEK,September 24, 2001

Overview of Lesson Plan: In this lesson, students examine racial profiling of Arab-Americans and Middle Eastern Americans in the wake of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States. By considering attitudes and scenarios in groups, student address related issues and possible solutions.

SUGGESTED TIME ALLOWANCE:
1 hour

OBJECTIVES:
Students will:

  1. Participate in a class poll on views about Arab-Americans using poll questions taken from a recent CBS/USA Today/Gallup poll; consider their responses; examine the idea of "racial profiling."
  2. Learn about the racial profiling of Arab-Americans that has followed the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 by reading and discussing "Once Appalled by Race Profiling, Many Find Themselves Doing It."
  3. Consider quotations from the article that present how some Americans view Arab-Americans and Middle Eastern Americans now; create skits presenting the point of view of the quotations and offering solutions to the problems posed.
  4. Develop feature articles reporting on the concerns of people in their community about the issues explored in class, as well as offering possible solutions to these concerns.

RESOURCES / MATERIALS:

ACTIVITIES / PROCEDURES:

  1. WARM-UP/DO NOW: Upon entering class, students respond to the following prompt, written on the board prior to class: "In a recent CBS/USA Today/Gallup poll, Americans were asked the questions below. Think about how you would answer each question, and in your journal write "yes" or "no" for each, as well why you answered this way.
    • Should Arab-American travelers be subject to more intensive security checks than other Americans?
    • Should Arabs and people who look like they are from the Middle East be required to carry special identification cards?
    • Should "special surveillance" be conducted on all Arabs and people who look like they may be Middle Eastern?
    • Would you feel comfortable about getting on a plane with an Arab-American or a person who looks like he or she is from the Middle East?"
    After giving students approximately ten minutes to write, conduct a vote in your class based on students' responses. The vote should be conducted "blindly," with students putting heads down on their desks and raising their hands, so that they feel free to answer truthfully without fearing the judgment of their peers. Write the class poll results on the board next to each question. Then, conduct a short discussion focusing on student reactions to the class poll results. Do the results surprise students? Do they think that heightened security and greater apprehension are justified in light of recent events? Do they think that these measures are racist? What does "Arab" mean? (Help students identify Arab countries on a map or globe.) What is "racial profiling"? How does this poll relate to racial profiling? Why does racial profiling happen?
  2. As a class, read and discuss "Once Appalled by Race Profiling, Many Find Themselves Doing It," focusing on the following questions:
    1. Why is Adrian Estala against racial profiling?
    2. What information about the terrorists involved in the September 11, 2001 attacks is provided in the article? How does this information contribute to the idea of racial profiling that is addressed in the article?
    3. What happened on Thursday, September 20, 2001 in Minneapolis?
    4. Who is Wali Khairzada? What decision did he recently make, and why?
    5. What positive feedback has Mr. Khairzada received in the past few weeks?
    6. What were the results of the CNN/USA Today/Gallup Poll?
    7. What is Sasha Nyary doing to show her support for the Arabs in her neighborhood?
  3. Pose the following scenario to students: "Imagine that you are at an airport, and while waiting to go through the security checkpoint, you see a police officer pull an Arab-looking man and woman out of the line in front of you. The officer asks them a lot of questions about where they are traveling to and why, searches through their bags, and runs a metal detector over each of them. The officer then asks them to stand aside while other passengers pass through the checkpoint. They are still there when you pass through the security measures to get to your flight." Divide the class into five groups, and give each group an index card that has one of the following quotations from the article written on it:
    • "They shouldn't be offended... They shouldn't take it personally after what's happened."
    • "It's not right, but it's justified."
    • "People's civil liberties are being tarnished, compromised. That's not what this country is all about."
    • "It makes me feel sad, but I feel I should stay away."
    • "I think it's just wrong to do anything like that, even with what's happened."
    Allow students ten to fifteen minutes to discuss, in their groups, whether or not they personally agree with the point of view of the quotation, considering the scenario presented. Students should also consider the views of the couple, the police officer, and other passengers who witnessed this situation.
    Next, have each group develop a skit about racial profiling of Arab-Americans in which the opinion presented on their card is the central opinion. The skit should also provide a resolution to the problem that the quotation poses. Each student in the group should play a role in the skit, with one student playing the role of narrator. The narrator's role is to periodically stop the skit to explain the issues or problems that have arisen and clarify how the solution represents the results of group discussion. In a future class, groups should perform their skits and discuss their ideas.
  4. WRAP-UP/HOMEWORK: Each student should discuss with five people in their community their thoughts about racial profiling in the wake of the terrorist attacks. Then, using quotations from these people, each student writes a feature article, similar to the article read in class, that addresses not only people's feelings about this form of racial profiling but also possible solutions to this problem.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

EVALUATION / ASSESSMENT:
Students will be evaluated based on initial journal response, participation in class and group discussions, creation and performance of group skits, and thoughtful completion of a feature article about racial profiling in the wake of the terrorist attacks on the United States.

VOCABULARY:
wary, tarnished, interrogation, flabbergasted, revulsion, surveillance, deliberately, mosque

EXTENSION ACTIVITIES:

  1. Keep a log of your own reactions to Arab-Americans throughout the next week. Consider both direct personal contact as well as reactions to the media, especially the news. Look at your log at the end of the week and write a reflection about whether you think your attitude has changed since the recent terrorist attacks.
  2. Read a transcript of President Bush's Address on terrorism before a joint meeting of Congress from Thursday, September 20, 2001 (found online at http://www.nytimes.com/2001/09/21/national/21BTEX.html). Write a response to how the issue of racial profiling was addressed in this speech. Based on the text, were you convinced of the President's sincerity? After writing this response, watch a tape of the speech and revisit this question in a second response. Compare your responses. Was one medium more convincing than the other? If so, why?
  3. Conduct field research to find out how Arab-Americans feel about other Arab-Americans (and non-Americans) after the events of September 11, 2001. Are they more or less wary of other Arabs than non-Arab Americans are? How do they feel about how they are being treated since these events? Would they get on an airplane with another Arab-American? Would they be offended if they were asked to leave an airplane? Write an article addressing these issues.
  4. Keep a scrapbook of acts of racial profiling related to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 as they are reported in the media. After each entry, write a personal reflection responding to the event.
  5. Read "Yoko" by Rosemary Wells, or another young children's book aimed at teaching children not to judge others by external appearances. Then, write your own children's book on this theme.
  6. Read Langston Hughes' "Theme From English B" (found online at http://www.eecs.harvard.edu/~keith/poems/English_B.html). Look closely at how Hughes considers traits that he shares with his teacher and those that distinguish him from this teacher. Also think about what the writer determines is "American." Then, write your own "Theme From English B."
  7. Learn about affirmative action and write a personal essay defending or challenging its practice. As you write, consider the following questions: Is affirmative action a form of racism or a step toward equality? How does affirmative action affect you? Is affirmative action the best response to racial inequalities?

INTERDISCIPLINARY CONNECTIONS:
Economics- Insurance companies are given the right to use personal information about their clients to determine premiums and other fees. Research this practice and create a chart showing what type of information these companies may use, and what type of information they may not use, in determining their fees. Also compare the information used by different types of insurance providers (life, health, car, etc). How do you feel about this type of profiling? Why do insurance companies "profile" in this way, and how do they get their information to make their decisions?

Geography- The news coverage of the events following the September 11 attacks have mentioned different countries and regions. On a large world map, indicate with pushpins the places mentioned in the news that are involved in some way. Create a chart that you post near the map that includes, for each place identified, the name of the location (the city, state, country or region), the date on which this location was mentioned in the news, and the reason why this location was mentioned. (Note that many locations will be repeated; no extra pushpins need to be added, but the chart should be updated.)

Global History- Germany's occupation of many European countries during World War II was accompanied by a mandate for leaders of these countries to identify all types of minorities, including Jews, homosexuals, and gypsies. Many countries complied out of fear. One country that resisted was Denmark. Research this story and create a children's book depicting the events and providing an explanation of their significance.

Mathematics- Write and conduct your own poll, like the CBS/USA Today/Gallup Poll referred to in the article, to assess views in your community about Arab-Americans in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks. Include the four questions cited there, and add several of your own. Create graphs displaying your data, and write an analysis of your findings.

Science- How has the definition of race evolved? Compare definitions of race from textbooks, encyclopedias, and other sources over the last 100 years. Chart the change in the definition of race over the course of the century, and provide examples of how each definition shaped contemporary views and practices regarding race.

Copyright 2001
The New York Times Company

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