STEP 1: Foundational Discussion 

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This Google Classroom is designed to allow teachers from different classes/schools to facilitate collaboration and communication about student allyship, culturally responsive curriculum, and youth voice and empowerment. Before engaging in this culminating classroom discussion, all students should have A) read The Sum of Us B) viewed the primary source video "2023 One Book One San Diego Author Heather McGhee | Live at San Diego Central Library" (above) and  C) discussed and reflected on the reading/viewing of A) & B) with their classmates.

You are welcome to clone this class and share as you see fit within SDUSD. (Scroll up to directly above "Educator Pathway" for cloning instructions or--if you're not an SDUSD educator--a job-aid on how to build your own G-Classroom.)

Please note: Educators may need to go to "Stream" section of the General settings (below) and select "Students can post and comment" if it's not selected in the general settings. 

Classwork #1 Obstacles to Truthful History

1. In the "Question" section of your "Classwork" tab, paste this:  

1. Heather McGhee Prompt: Obstacles to Truthful History

"Hi, I’m Heather McGhee, author of The Sum of Us. In chapter 10 of the book, I outlined Five Discoveries that I made on the course of my journey about what our path is forward as a nation (p.270-271):
1. We have to dismantle the lie of the “zero sum paradigm” and embrace a Solidarity Dividend

2. We have to refill the pool of the public good

3. We have to recognize that one size has never fit all and enacting policies and actions that prioritize equity commensurate with the urgency of that recognition is very important

4. We have to acknowledge that we truly do need each other

5. We have to tell the truth about our own shared history. As I write, we have to get on the same page before we can turn it.

While there is tremendous evidence of progress in each of these five areas, we’ve also seen intense resistance with people really wanting to cling to the racist priorities of our history in service of the status quo. In particular, the fifth discovery that I made about how important it is to tell the truth about our own history has specific implications for you, the youth of our evolving society. Where do YOU see obstacles and threats to our truthful history being told? In some states there is heavier resistance than in others. Why–most importantly–WHY do YOU think that there are these policies and educational rules being enacted across the country that are designed to ban books, to quell conversation and information about our history, to intimidate librarians and educators from teaching about race, gender, and sexuality.  Why do you think this is happening? Who is selling these ideas? And how are they profiting from them?  Who does this serve and who is harmed by avoiding the historical truth?

2. In the "Instructions" section, paste this:  

Synthesizing what you read in The Sum of Us, viewed in the "2023 One Book One San Diego Author Heather McGhee | Live at San Diego Central Library" video, and your own life experiences, view Heather McGhee's prompt (below) and compose a unique post.

Additionally, please respond to at least two other students' posts. Be sure to use academic language, proper punctuation, and respectful dialogue.

Attached is a discussion rubric and expectations for facilitating online communication. 

Classwork #2 Draining the Pool

1. In the "Question" section of your "Classwork" tab, paste this:  

2. Heather McGhee Prompt: Draining the Pool

"In chapter 2 of The Sum of Us, I tell the story of the Montgomery, Alabama of the beautiful Oak Park, the central park of the city that was closed effective January 1, 1959, and the big beautiful publicly funded, grand resort style public swimming pool was drained in order to avoid an integration order. This draining of public pools in order to avoid integrating them happened all across the country and not just in the Jim Crow South.  This became a metaphor for me as a writer in thinking about other public goods, not just literal swimming pools, but metaphorical pools.  When we pool our resources together as a society to accomplish what we simply can’t do on our own. Whether that’s eliminating poverty, providing housing, public education, libraries, all these things we do that are public. . .funded by the public and for the public. This is an essential part of a free and fair society. And yet, throughout our history, who gets to swim in the pool, who gets to have the kind of nice things that are afforded by public investment has been a very fraught conversation. There have been limits on who is involved and who gets to access these public goods. So my question for you is: Where are we seeing modern-day examples of draining the public pool? Of a public safety net being dismantled. . .of things that are common solutions to common problems that face many families that our government simply has not been willing to provide. What are the narratives, the stories, the stereotypes, the beliefs that are used by opponents of these kinds of public goods to stop us from making these kinds of investments in each other.  Another question is that some of these maneuvers are “sold” to a public that has been primed with familiar racist stereotypes and branding while others not so much explicitly about race, but rather are about immigrants, the LGBTQIA community, people with disabilities, religious minorities, Indigenous Americans, and many other demographics. Who loses and who benefits in these modern day efforts to metaphorically drain the pool? And most importantly, what are some actions that YOU can take to “refill the pool” of public goods in ways that benefit everyone or to stop the draining of the pool in the first place?"

2. In the "Instructions" section, paste this:  

Synthesizing what you read in The Sum of Us, viewed in the "2023 One Book One San Diego Author Heather McGhee | Live at San Diego Central Library" video, and your own life experiences, view Heather McGhee's prompt (below) and compose a unique post.

Additionally, please respond to at least two other students' posts. Be sure to use academic language, proper punctuation, and respectful dialogue.

Attached is a discussion rubric and expectations for facilitating online communication. 

Learning About Threats to Democracy

Help your students reflect on the significance of events within recent history that comprise a threat to civil discourse and our democratic system of government. 

Everyday Solidarity: Interracial Organizing Stories from The Sum of Us

Stories, videos, lessons, and resources for educators that teach students about the different components and ideas articulated in The Sum of Us. A LOT of great items for educators to put into play right away with their classes. Curated and coordinated by the Zinn Education Project.