Lesson: The American Dream Deferred - The 1950s African American Experience

Digital media and primary sources from the Montgomery Bus Boycott introduce our students to the civil rights movement in America. As historical problem solvers, we joined the ranks of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr and Rosa Parks--as well as Claudette Colvin, Bayard Rustin, Jo Ann Robinson, and Virginia Foster Durr... Names we may not (yet) know, but probably should.

We began our inquiry (historical problem solving) with two pivotal questions:

1) "What might this poster suggest about the people and organizations behind the Montgomery Bus Boycott?"

2) "How might an act of civil disobedience, like breaking an unjust law, spark a nationwide movement?"

A demanding challenge and a hard-fought victory:

The students' responses were thought-provoking and very well reasoned. Their ability to cite specific evidence is emerging, and as our exercise continued, they confidently referenced details from both the bus boycott flier as well as Rosa Parks' booking photo and accompanying question.

It gave me such pride to share this experience with our students' corporate work study supervisors--approximately twelve visitors happened to be on tour while we were discussing the warm-up questions and image above.

The ensuing scene was inspiring, magical, and reminiscent of a Morgan Freeman movie about a school "turning lives around and opening hearts in the process". The students and their supervisors took turns playing off of each other, bringing up points about the style of the poster, the size of the font, the homemade details... Truly, it was one of those moments that make you feel the electricity that comes from engaging in the learning process. 

Our students collaborated in groups of up to three people, working through a textbook entry (A) and four additional primary sources (B-E). 

In each round, they constructed a claim addressing the question "Why was the Montgomery Bus Boycott successful?"

To answer this, our students needed to cultivate reasons that the artifact used to suggest that the protesters would prevail and specific evidence that they could cite in support of their claim.

Again, working with primary sources poses a far greater challenge than textbook entries, as students must construct meaning and place the ideas within a historical context. It's a sophisticated task that requires patience, skill, and above all else, practice.

I'm incredibly proud of our students and the work that they have accomplished. It gives me joy to share this lesson with you in the hopes that you may find the inspiration to work with primary sources and integrate this Monthomery Bus Boycott playlist into your class, too.

Digital media: 

- Montgomery Bus Boycott Playlist

- Archives: Civil Rights Digital Library - The Montgomery Bus Boycott

- Archives: National Civil Rights Museum - The Year They Walked

- Archives: Amistad Digital Resources - The Montgomery Bus Boycott

Curriculum & teacher resources:

- Stanford History Education Group: Reading Like a Historian MBB Lesson

- Google HyperDoc: MBB Notes

(links to primary and secondary sources)

On the horizon:

Our students will begin production of YouTube videos about 1950s American life. We are collaboratively constructing claims, sourcing the best digital media and primary source evidence to support the assertions, and we will roll out our first iterations in the week to follow. It's incredible to witness how far we have come in this short amount of time together.

Invaluable resources:

@SHEG_Stanford

@PSNTPS

@TeachingLC

@librarycongress

@pbsteachers