Wednesday, April 6th, 2022

Socratic Seminar: Civil Rights Era

Question: How does responding to injustice change the world?

Students:

Er:
● People should not be judged by the color of their skin.
● MLK got people to listen to him by talking “in a big voice.”
● People listening to MLK’s speeches clapped a lot, probably because they agreed with him.
● Because lots of people clapped, it probably made other people notice MLK and agree with what
he said.

Jo:
● MLK led many protests. He gave speeches in many different places. He had many enemies.
● Questioned whether segregation still exists.
● Wondered whether bathrooms separated by male and female counted as segregation.
● MLK’s speech probably resonates deeply with Black people in the South because they’re treated
so badly.
● When Sylvia Mendez’s family filed their lawsuit, it helped everyone.

Ev:
● MLK was a leader. When he spoke, many people clapped.
● Talked about Afghanistan and how girls aren’t allowed to go to school after a certain age. Asked
whether this counts as segregation.
● Agrees with Josie’s comment about Sylvia Mendez.
● Ruby Bridges was probably scared but she was brave going into the Frantz school every day, and
this helped people in the future.

Fa:
● Cited MLK’s Missippi quote (“I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a desert
state sweltering in the heat of injustice and oppression, will one day be transformed into an oasis
of freedom and justice.”) and emphasized the powerful language in “the heat of injustice and
oppression, will one day be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.” Cited text evidence
from the I Have a Dream book.
● Black people and White people can be together based on the content of their character. Cited
MLK text again.
● MLK’s voice tone changes in that it “rises and falls.”