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Erika Schlichter Overview Main Ideas As the global economy has rapidly changed at the end of the twentieth century and the beginning of the twenty-first, people have begun to question commonly held beliefs about economic power. Students have been at the forefront of protests in a movement that is tied to both the civil rights and anti-war movements of the 1960s, as well as the anti-capitalist movement of the early twentieth century. Illinois students have organized and attended protests in many locations, such as Seattle, Washington, and Washington, D.C. These protesters in the anti-corporate movement demand a redistribution of power. They target international financial groups and institutions such as the World Trade Organization, the International Monetary Fund, and the World Bank. Protestors argue that with corporate globalization corporations become the purveyors of culture and the guardians of social concerns, roles in which they can damage developing countries economically and socially.
Connection with the Curriculum The following activities and materials are appropriate for the study of Illinois state history, as well as the study of United States history pertaining to protest and social movements. The material could also be used to complement the study of economics and how it impacts political decisions, world affairs, and social movements. These activities may be appropriate for Illinois State Learning Standards 15.A.5a, 15.E.2a, 16.C.5b, 16.C.5C, 16.E.5b. Teaching Level These activities are appropriate for high school students, with adaptations possible for other grade levels. Materials for Each Student
• A copy of the narrative portion of the article. (Possible adaptation: A teacher summary of the narrative portion, depending on students' reading levels)
Objectives for Each Student • Identify the ways in which activism has impacted international economic organizations, such as the World Trade Organization (WTO), the International Monetary Fund
(IMF), and the World Bank. • Describe the political, social, and economic problems regarding the WTO, the IMF, and the World Bank against which Illinois students targeted their activism. • Analyze the process necessary to create a successful protest, either modern or historical. • Make a judgment about the value of the WTO, given its merits and drawbacks, and defend this opinion using supporting data. • Compare the causes and goals of different protests throughout the course of American history. Protesters in Chicago on May Day 2001 display signs and banners that exemplify the wide range of issues joined in the anti-globalization movement. Courtesy: Garth Liebhaber 39
Opening the Lesson • Begin the lesson with a class discussion about protest in general. Ask students what they believe protest means. Ask students what they believe is worth protesting for or against.
• Discuss what types or methods of protest have historically been successful in attaining their objectives. In the case of ineffective protests, ask the class why a protest might fail to meet its goal. • Briefly discuss with students the background of the WTO, the IMF, and the World Bank and the basic functions of these groups. For more information about the WTO and other institutions, see the website: www.wto.org, www.imf.org, and www.howardri.org. Another good resource is Sarah Anderson, John Cavanaugh, and Thea Lee with the Institute for Policy Studies, Field Guide to the Global Economy (New York: The New Press, 1990). • As a class, make a list of positive and negative aspects about the World Trade Organization, the International Monetary Fund, and the World Bank. Ask students which groups might object to these international economic organizations. • Distribute copies of the article and read it with the class, explaining and discussing key concepts as necessary, given the ability level of the class. Developing the Lesson • How you develop the lesson will depend upon your focus in using the material. This material is quite versatile; you may use it to complement the study of social protest, global economics, foreign policy, and others. Because many of these topics will probably not be studied at the same time, some of the activities may be more appropriate to your purpose than others. I have tried to equally distribute the focus by including activities that link the economy to social conditions in a country, and from there, to the protest necessary to change conditions. • Use Activity One, Pre/Post-Reading once before you begin instruction to access prior knowledge and make the topic more meaningful to students. Use it again after the lesson to help students make connections and encourage metacognition. • Depending on the reading level and background knowledge of the class, either assign Activity Two as an individual assignment, or complete it as a class. Use class discussion time to explore questions that require higher level thinking. • Activity Three will be started in groups of two to four students and be completed by sharing information as a class. As students share their webs, create one large "class" web, which can remain posted in the classroom for the duration of the lessons on protest. This assignment helps individuals and the class access prior knowledge about the topic to make it more meaningful. • Activity Four can be modified to fit time constraints, teaching styles, and student ability. It may work well as a supplemental activity about protest in general, or a bridge activity connecting different types of student protest throughout history with modern protest about a current issue. I suggest that the final product be written for presentation to the class and to be handed in. 40 • Activity Five, cartoon analysis, can be completed individually or as a class. Analysis of this political cartoon lends itself to a discussion of the relationship between workers and big business as a cause of protest during the last century. Specifically, this activity requires a working knowledge of the protests of the anarchist movement of the early 1900s, as well as the events of the Sacco and Vanzetti case during that same time period. • In Activity Six the student is asked to expand upon and defend the opinions which might have been formed in the course of discussion during the lesson. Concluding the Lesson • To conclude the lesson, discuss key ideas found in the activities. This may be accomplished in a full class discussion or in small groups in response to directed questions provided by the teacher. As part of the conclusion, emphasize the connections that become apparent when studying the global economy. Economics will affect almost every aspect of life, in both developing and developed countries. In this way, the global economy is linked to human rights, standard of living, education, etc. An emphasis on the relevance of these connections can help to transition into the next topic of study, which will differ for each class and teacher.
Extending the Lesson • Students can interview a person who has taken part in a protest, either writing about the conclusions drawn during the interview, or presenting to the class. Students can seek out individuals active in the civil rights movement, or individuals currently involved in protesting the WTO, IMF, and World Bank. Northern Illinois University has many students who actively protest these contemporary problems. Similarly, an Internet search of other campus newspapers, or the local papers from communities in which college campuses are located, will provide information on locating suitable interview subjects. • Students can choose a developing country and research which multinational companies have located there and how those multinationals have affected that country. Again, the results can be presented in written form or verbally to the class. This activity functions well as a link between geography and economics. • Students can write a letter to a state or national representative or the local newspaper expressing a point of view about the WTO and other groups that further a global economic and political system. • Students can complete an activity analyzing the relative effectiveness of the recent Washington, D.C., protests chronicled in the article, the protests of the anarchist movement in the early 1900s, and the anti-war and civil rights protests of the 1960s and 1970s. Students can begin by focusing on comparing concrete issues about the different protests, such as who took part, where they took place, why the protests occurred, what the goals were, and what tactics were used. Students can then use these comparisons to analyze the effectiveness of the various protests, making judgments about what was successful and unsuccessful, and what could have been changed for greater success in the various cases. Assessing the Lesson • Evaluation can be based on the accuracy of the answers to the questions in Activities Two and Five. • Activities Four and Six can be assessed using pre-determined criteria. • Student understanding and attainment of the objectives may also be evaluated by formal or informal class discussion.
41 Activity 1 - Pre/Post - Reading
Before you read and learn about the World Trade Organization, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and protests against these organizations, find out what you already know. You will use this guide twice: once before you read and learn, and once after. We will see if your predictions about the subject were correct, and whether the reading changed your mind. Check whether you AGREE or DISAGREE with each statement below. Agree Disagree ____ ____ 1. All the important protests ended in the 1960s with the waning of the civil rights movement. ____ ____ 2. Trade between nations benefits all of the people in those nations. ____ ____ 3. Most protests must be carefully planned and publicized in order to succeed. ____ ____ 4. If people live in poverty, they should be happy to work for any wages, no matter how low. ____ ____ 5. Many multinational corporations do not provide their workers in developing countries with an adequate standard of living. ____ ____ 6. As with the civil rights movement of the 1960s, college students today still play an important role in protest social conditions.
42 Activity 2 - Article Analysis.
Answer the following questions using information from the article. Some questions may ask you to use prior knowledge or make your own judgments about ideas or issues. 1. How is student activism in the late-1990s related to the civil rights and anti-war movements of the 1960s? How is modern activism related to the anti-capitalist movement of the early 1900s?
2. Describe how Illinois students contributed to the campus anti-sweatshop movement.
3. What actions have students taken during their protests? How have local police reacted?
4. What has been the response of free-trade advocates to the protests? Explain some of their criticisms of the student protesters.
5. If students at your school became involved in such protests, in what ways would you be sympathetic to their cause? For what reasons might you criticize their participation in anti-globalization protests?
6. Of the many issues discussed in the article, which do you feel is the most important, either because of a positive or a negative impact? Explain why you believe that this issue is important and how you feel it affects your life, family, or area of the country.
Activity 3 -Protest Web How much do you know about protest in the United States? In groups of 2 to 4 students, brainstorm what you know about protest in the past and present. You may include any time period in history, people, dates, purposes, etc. As you brainstorm, make a web detailing your thoughts, using the word "protest" as the topic. You may use this sheet of paper or a larger sheet of paper to post on the wall. REMEMBER - In a brainstorming session do not be afraid to be wrong. If you think of an idea, write it down, even if you are not sure it is correct.
44 Activity 4-Plan a Protest
For years people have used organized protest as a tool for expressing their views and attempting to change the conditions of the world around them. In this activity you will have the opportunity, following the example of such protest leaders as Martin Luther King, Jr., to plan a protest for a specific purpose. During this activity: • You will work in groups of 2 to 4 students. • You will choose a relevant and timely topic about which to protest. • You will plan the protest, using the questions that follow as a starting point for discussion. • You will write out your plan in essay form, and then present this plan to the class. Questions for discussion: 1. What is the goal of the protest? What do you want to accomplish? 2. Who is included in your protest organization? Students? Adults? Community leaders? 3. What is the name of your protest group? 4. What action will your group take during your protest? Make sure you include a detailed description of what you plan to do. 5. Who do you anticipate will oppose your cause? 6. What will be your response to the people who oppose you? 7. What types of expenses will be involved in the protest process? How will you get funds to meet these expenses? 8. How will you know when your goal has been met? 45 Activity 5 - Analysis of a Political Cartoon
"The case of Sacco and Vanzetti in Cartoons from The Daily Worker." Fred Ellis, 1927. Credit: Michigan State University Library, Special Collections Division (public domain image).
1. In the cartoon, what does the man represent? 2. In the cartoon, what does the wheel represent? 3. What is the artist trying to imply about the relationship between working people and industry in the early 1900s? 4. How does this political statement apply to the social situation at the time of the Sacco and Vanzetti case? 5. Although the cartoon was drawn to comment on the Sacco and Vanzetti case in the early 1900s, in what ways might the message apply to the effects of globalization and multinational corporations in the twenty-first century? 6. Do you think the artist who drew this cartoon would support the World Trade Organization and other aspects of the global economy? How do you think he would feel about the ways multinational corporations affect the lives of people around the world? Explain your answer fully. 46 Activity 6 For this activity you will make a judgment about the global economic system that the World Trade Organization, the International Monetary Fund, and the World Bank supports. Choose one of the following options to express your opinion. Make sure that you are able to support and explain your point of view using facts. 1. Write an essay either agreeing or disagreeing with the following statement: The WTO, IMF, and World Bank help to support a global economic system which causes many social and ecological problems. 2. Create a political cartoon expressing a point of view about the World Trade Organization and similar groups. Be sure to plan out exactly what message you would like the cartoon to convey. You may choose to use caricatures, irony, and dialogue to get your point across. 3. Create a flyer either advertising the World Trade Organization or denouncing it. With this flyer you will be attempting to convince others to join your point of view and/or take some action. You may want to include testimonials and stories that illustrate your point, facts and figures supporting your ideas, and catchy slogans that also convey your message. 4. Prepare and deliver a persuasive presentation either supporting the WTO and related groups, or denouncing them. Remember, in a persuasive speech you are attempting to influence your audience's opinion. As in Option #3, you might want to include "true-life" stories that illustrate your point and engage your audience's emotions, facts and figures that support your cause, and/or slogans and catchphrases that will win you support. 47 |
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