Teaching Resistance With Primary Sources

Abstract

This article explores how primary sources can be used to teach students about race and racism. Researchers co-taught a general education class on Critical Race Theory and utilized a combination of primary and secondary sources. This article includes a review of relevant literature that informed the development of this class and one major assignment in particular, examples of student work and evidence of their learning, and next steps for social studies teachers at all levels to teach about resistance.

Keywords:

• Race
• primary sources
• resistance

Disclosure statement

The authors report there are no competing interests to declare.

Notes

1 Our texts included, among others, the textbook, Critical Race Theory by Delgado & Stefancic, 2018; A series of pieces of high quality investigative journalism (e.g., Khazan, 2018; Villarosa, 2018); documentary films (e.g. 13th and Race: The Power of Illusion); and essays and books written by scholars such as James Baldwin, LaGarrett King, Andrés Reséndez, Bettina Love, Carol Anderson, bell hooks, etc.

2 This research was sponsored in part by the Library of Congress Teaching with Primary Sources Eastern Region Program, coordinated by Waynesburg University.

3 We explain to our students that because Black history is our area of scholarly focus, we tend to contribute to what is referred to in CRT as the Black-White Binary (Delgado & Stefancic, 2018). We also acknowledge our positionality as white people who research and teach about race, specifically Black people and movements.

4 *All student names have been changed.