“Say Her Name” The Death of Breonna Taylor

Introduction

This activity is built for distance learning and designed to give students a look at current events around the world. Students will be introduced to who Breonna Taylor was and the “Say her name campaign” going on around the world. 

Task

Students will be using a creative work approach, that will require them to process and transform the information they've gathered into an electronic project. Students will create a meme from the information and emotions that they feel and the information they have gathered. This will be a (6 weeks) assignment. Each week students will be presented with another part of this case and asked to discuss it in-depth with a partner. Also, students will gather and add the facts to their flow charts.

Process

Turning Breonna Taylor into a meme, then, risks turning the conversation around what justice looks like for her into a temporary fad. Other than the firing of one police officer involved in her killing, there have been no real moves toward rectifying the situation. And so, as “Arrest the cops who killed Breonna Taylor” gets repeated over and over again, it becomes an abstraction, it begins to lose meaning.

  • Students will complete a “Warm Up” activity that will help them to develop some background information about the Breonna Taylor case.
    1. Next, students will be shown an article that displays pictures of the protests around the United States.
    2. Then, students will be asked probing questions about the protests.
  • What is going on in these pictures?
  • What do you see that makes you say that?
  • What more can you find?
  • What feelings come up as you look at the photo?
Evaluation

Students will use this flowchart to organize the information they gathered about the Breonna Taylor story in order to help them make a decision on what they want to see on their meme final project. Students will fill in the left portion of the flow chart with the actual outcome. Then, students will fill out the right side with another possible outcome that could have happened in this case if things went another way.

 

Topic:

Step One

Actual Outcome:

Potential Outcome

Step One

Step Two

Final Outcome:

 

       
     
 
   

Meme Assignment: “Say Her Name” The Death Breonna Taylor Rubric

For this assignment, you will create a meme following the “Say Her Name” The Death Breonna Taylor format discussed in class.

Level 1 (5)

Level 2 (6)

Level 3 (7)

Level 4 (8-10)

-The idea that you are trying to represent and the image that you have chosen are unclear.

-The pictures you have chosen lack any clear connection to your ideas.

-Limited use of meme form, convention and techniques.

 

-The idea that you are trying to represent and the image that you have chosen is not completely clear.

-The pictures you have chosen and the idea do not fully connect.

-Some use of meme form, convention and techniques.

 

-The idea that you are trying to represent and the image that you have chosen work well together.

-You have chosen solid visual representations for your idea.

-Good use of meme form, convention and techniques.

 

-Your ideas and chosen images work above expectations together.

-You have chosen solid visual representations for your ideas and they work together to create a flow from beginning to end.

-Excellent use of meme form, convention and techniques.

 

-3 errors in spelling, grammar or punctuation.

-Meme is not tidy and had limited visual appeal.

-2 errors in spelling, grammar or punctuation.

-Meme is somewhat tidy and visually appealing.

-1 error in spelling, grammar or punctuation.

-Meme is tidy and visually appealing.

-Flawless use of spelling, grammar and punctuation.

-Meme is exceedingly tidy and visually appealing.

 

Total:                     /20 Media

 

Comments:

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Conclusion

This assignment is a small part of teaching young people about anti-racism in America. Students will form their own opinion about whether or not this case had anything to do with racism. The main idea is to educate students to start looking at unfortunate situations that happen to people of color and forming their own opinions about whether outcomes are right or wrong.

Are the internet and the news correct with polarizing Breonna’s death and shining a light on social injustice towards people of color? Or is this another example of a political agenda to bring attention to racism during the presidential election?  

 

Credits
Teacher Page

Responses:

What did you learn from this activity?

I learned a lot more about the Taylor case and things get pushed under the rug when it comes to people of color. I was able to come to my own conclusions and I think one officer isn’t enough. (JH)

I learned a lot more about the topic of Brianna Taylor. I only knew the facts the news was giving me. I think it is important for students to look up information on their own in order to get the truth about the case. This assignment also shows the biases in different media sources. This assignment also shows the importance of voting in America. (GP)

I think that these kinds of things happen all the time within all the races. Yes, I do think that there are still major race issues in our country but I think this is more of a way to take the light away from what is going on with our law enforcement. In this case a black woman was wrongly shot but not because she is black. Either way, the officer should still face time for a crime.(MT)

Other ideas, comments or suggestions related to this activity.

​​​​​​​This is another example of how police departments in America justify the killings of innocent people of color. What I mean by that is only one officer was charged in this case and the only reason they did that was to try to hush the black community by saying at least someone went to jail. In my opinion, is still not enough, nor am I satisfied with the outcome. (JH)

I think it would be good to have the students come up with a chart and compare information that different news sources provided about the case. Then have the students try to find evidence to support the evidence that the news source provided. (GP)

This assignment is a great way to get kids to start formulating ideas and thinking about the world around them. This is how students become part of our society and hopefully ones that get involved in fighting injustice. (MT)