Racism & Freedom Writers
When I was reading the section of Racism in Multicultural Class, the facilitator’s way of handling the subject “Racism” reminds me ‘’Freedom Writers” the movie, which is based on a book of Erin Gruwell -a new teacher at Woodrow Wilson High School in Long Beach. She chose the school because of its integration program, but she did not expect a class consist of students who have racist problem. Students splitted into different racial groups, who are ready for fighting, hate each other, but also they hate Erin more than anybody else.
On the other hand, senior teachers of the school just ignored the students and they did not make an effort to pave for solving racist problems. Somehow teachers believed that students come to school because of their parents’ insistency and they are not eager to study. Actually, teachers did not want to budge from their privileged positions. When Erin attempted to take a step for the good of students, she is told to do just her job –train them discipline and to obey the rules.
Instead being a commanding teacher, Erin wanted to provide a safe space for students to express their feeling, so she asked them to write their own diaries as an assignment, which is not graded. Despite all the resistance, students started to develop trust to her and wrote everything about what it feels to be ‘other’. After they share their narratives and started to communicate with each other.
They develop more sensitiveness and interest to other ethnicities by engaging class activities such as visiting the Museum Of Tolerance, and reading the stories from history The Diary of Anne Frank. Erin was happy to see the transformation of them. Before, the students did not have any motivation to success and refuse to interact with other groups because of they do not have hope, but after they develop awareness about tolerance and importance of each life. Erin gave these children what they are not offered before. Respect is the key of the racism problems.
