“Allies and Allyship” explores how Brooklynites resist racism through alliances. This happened during the era of racial slavery as well as during the Civil Rights movement. Resisting racism in Brooklyn brings together diverse communities who stand together and say that Black Women's Lives, Black Trans Lives, Gay Black Lives, and Immigrant Black Lives Matter. When Black Brooklynites resists racism, they stand up and say that an injury against one is an injury against all.
Lesson 1: Churches
This lesson is broken into multiple parts and may need more than one class to complete.
Essential Question: How did Brooklyn’s churches fight for Black freedom?
Focus: Brooklyn churches fought against slavery by helping enslaved people find freedom despite the risks of imprisonment, bodily harm or death.
Activity: Abolitionist Churches
Part A
Step 1: Have students examine the images of Henry Ward Beecher and Pinky, and Reverend James Gloucester using the Image Worksheet. Post the following questions:
- What types of jobs do you think Beecher and Gloucester had?
- What clues do you see that helped you reach your conclusion?
- How did abolitionists like Beecher and Gloucester work with enslaved people?
Step 2: Then, use the Venn Diagram to compare and contrast the images.
Part B
Step 3: Watch the video, Abolitionists Churches, using the Video Worksheet.
Step 4: Discuss students’ findings from the video.
Part C
Step 5: In groups or individually, have students read The Black Church and answer questions in the Handout Worksheet.
Step 6: Discuss their answers as a class.
Step 7: Ask students to summarize the role of churches in helping Black people find freedom.
Step 8: Have students, individually or in groups, use information from their summaries, images, video, and worksheet, to write a short story discussing how churches helped enslaved people.
Lesson 2: Draft Riots
Warning: This lesson discusses terrorists acts and extreme violence in New York City during the 1800s.
This lesson is broken into multiple parts and may need more than one class to complete.
Essential Question: Who helped Black Brooklynites escape the Draft Riots?
Focus: During the Civil War, New York City was the site of one of the most violent acts of racial terrorism when mobs attacked Black New Yorkers in what has become known as the Draft Riots. In 1863, days after the battle of Gettysburg, the government announced that the Union Army would draft soldiers for the Civil War. However, those who could pay $300 could hire someone to take their place and avoid service. In response, white mobs retaliated against Black New Yorkers and abolitionists for supporting the war to end slavery in the United States. The white mobs lynched, drowned, and killed nearly 100 people, causing widespread destruction across New York City. On July 13, 1863, The Colored Orphan Asylum was attacked and burned to the ground. However, the 233 children who lived there managed to escape through the back door. Firemen, Chief Engineer Decker and Paddy McCaffrey, among others, led the children to safety and attempted to save the burning orphanage.
Activity: Escaping the Draft Riots
Part A
Step 1: Review the details of the Draft Riots with students. Make sure they understand the scale of destruction and terror enacted upon Black New Yorkers and their allies.
Step 2: As a class, look at the image titled, The Riots in New York: Destruction of the Colored Orphan Asylum. Have them independently fill out the Image Worksheet.
Step 3: Reconvene as a class and review their responses together. Then, ask the class what kind of sounds you would hear if the drawing had audio resembling a video. Explain that 233 children who lived there managed to escape through the back door with the help of two firemen, Chief Engineer Decker and Paddy McCaffrey.
Teacher Note: On July 13, 1863, The Colored Orphan Asylum was attacked and burned to the ground during the New York Draft Riots. The Orphanage, which was located on Fifth Avenue between 43rd and 44th streets, was founded by three Quakers, sisters Anna and Hanna Shotwell, and Mary Murray, to provide shelter and care to orphaned Black children who were barred from existing orphanages because of their race. Dr. James McCune Smith, who was also the first licensed Black doctor and Weeksville resident, worked as the medical director of the institution from 1846. He, among others, helped to lead all of the children to safety and attempted to save the burning orphanage.
Step 4: As a class read an excerpt from Maritcha Remond Lyons’ memoir. Before reading the excerpt, ask the class to look for examples of allyship and discuss their observations after.
Lesson 3: Allyship Examples
This lesson is broken into multiple parts and may need more than one class to complete.
Essential Question: How are allies helping Black Brooklynites continue to fight racism?
Focus: Allies from all walks of life have helped Black Brooklynites fight racism with their voices and actions. Here, we look how allies helped the Bibuld family fight against school segregation, and how the 2020 Marches after the killings of Breonna Taylor and others empowered people to say, “Enough.”
Activity: Marching
Part A
Online version: If teaching online, we suggest using Jamboard or Padlet to answer the questions.
Step 1: Individually or in groups, have students examine the Bibuld family and Bury Jim Crow images.
- Who do they think the people in the images are doing?
- Are they helping the Bibuld family? How? Is this an effective way to assist them?
Step 2: List any questions they have about the images on large pieces of paper.
Step 3: Have students read the Bibuld Sit In Article using the Articles and Ads Worksheet to discover more information about the Bibuld family. Based on the article, have them make connections to the image. Then, discuss their answers.
Step 5: Review the Brooklyn CORE video and have students re-examine the images and article.
Step 6: Discuss how Brooklyn CORE demonstrated allyship to the Bibuld family.
Part B
Step 7: Look at the video, Resisting Racism Continues using the Video Worksheet.
Step 8: Now, give students the Breonna Taylor Protest, Breathe, and Marching images. Using the Image Worksheet, have students examine one or all of the images. Have them share their answers.
Step 9: Discuss your students' thoughts on this protest. If possible, have them conduct an internet search to find first-hand accounts and discuss with the class.
Part C
Step 10: Individually or in groups, have students choose either the Bibuld Family or Jim Crow image, and compare and contrast it to either the Breonna Taylor Protest, Breathe or Marching images using the Venn Diagram. Discuss their thoughts.
Step 11: Now, have them conduct internet research to find results from the Bibuld Sit In and the summer of 2020 protest. Discuss their findings.
Step 12: Based on the images, articles, video, and internet research, have students develop a list of strategies people can use to be effective allies to Black Brooklynites and create an article, blog post, drawing, etc discussing their strategies.