JIM CROW

LAWS Henry Martinez

JFKHS

In the autobiographical novel Down These Means Streets, Piri decides to travel down south in his quest for an understanding the self. The south he encounters is quite troubling and somewhat traumatic for the writer. During the period Piri Thomas describes, the South enforced strict segregation laws, called “Jim Crow” laws that were not in effect in the North.

TASK: You will conduct a web-based research into the history of these laws.

Find out what was allowed for African Americans, and what was not allowed? How long did these laws remain in effect, and when and why did they end? Inform us through a power-point/oral presentation of the out come of your research.

PROCESS: In order to complete this web quest, first, you must follow the Public Policy steps found at the TIPS web site. At this web site, you will use the first six steps and you must complete the worksheets related to each of the Public Policy steps; in order to complete those steps you will, you will read about the issue of domestic violence, and answer questions related to domestic violence by using one of the related links. You must also find out what the history/policy on Jim Crow Laws. And finally select an aspect of Jim Crow laws from the links provided below that you are going to discuss as a group for the class.

Worksheets 1-6 on the TIPS PPA website.

a. Define the Problem Worksheet 1 http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/select.html

b. Gather Evidence Worksheet 2 http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/gather.html

c. Identify Causes Worksheet 3 http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/identify.html

d. Evaluate Policy Worksheet 4 http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/existing.html

e. Develop Solutions Worksheet 5 http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/solutions.html

f. Select best Solution Worksheet 6 http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/bestsol.html

RESOURCES: The class should examine Remembering Jim Crow from the History Matters website History Matters. Particularly good sections from this site include those entitled "Bitter Times," "Danger Violence and Exploitation," "Whites Remember Jim Crow," and "Jim Crow Laws." Each of these sections is a link that leads to vivid descriptions of the south during the time of Jim Crow. Each site makes use of audio clip interviews as well as slide shows featuring people who remember and experienced life in the South when segregation was the norm and the color barrier seemed undefeatable. Of special interest is the link to "Jim Crow Laws" which lists and describes by state and topic (education, housing, entertainment, etc.) the ways in which blacks and whites were to be separated. When browsing this site, students should consider what the slide pictures and the audio clips tell them about life for African Americans under Jim Crow laws—what do they learn from looking at the slides and hearing the voices?\

QUESTIONS

• Define Jim Crow. What is a Jim Crow law? http://www.ferris.edu/news/jimcrow/who.htm
• Describe the economic, social, and legal status of African Americans during the time of Jim Crow. http://americanradioworks.publicradio.org/features/remembering/bitter.htm
• How were African Americans attacked during this time? Did African Americans have any legal recourse against acts of violence waged against them?
• How do whites now regard their treatment of African Americans during this time? http://americanradioworks.publicradio.org/features/remembering/whites.html

Evaluation

Presentation Rubric- evaluating student presentation

Excellent	Satisfactory	Minimal Satisfactory	Unsatisfactory
Organization Student presentation is logical, clear and fully captivates audience interest.	Organization Student presentation is logical, clear and somehow captivates audience interest	Organization Student presentation is logical and somehow clear but not captivating.	Organization Student presentation is illogical and distorted.
Subject Knowledge Student demonstrates full knowledge of subject matter and beyond	Subject Knowledge Student demonstrates knowledge of subject matter	Subject Knowledge Student demonstrates a little knowledge of subject matter subject matter	Subject Knowledge Student does not know subject matter
Accuracy No grammatical errors	Accuracy Very few grammatical errors	Accuracy Some grammatical errors	Accuracy Too many grammatical errors that distorts meaning of words

Conclusion: When you have completed this activity, you will have a greater understanding of an important historical moment in U.S. history. You will have demonstrated your ability to use the Internet to research topics relevant to you and society. You will have used critical thinking skills to make decisions on what policies would be most effective.

In addition, you will have received skills that coincide with the following New York State standards:

E1c: Read and comprehend informational materials.

E2a: Produce a report of information.

E3c: Prepare and deliver an individual presentation