Collective activism
Photo credit: Redefine Community
Lesson Plan 1 of 2
Purpose: To provide a background of atrocities committed and why war crimes went unpunished, allowing students to learn and analyze common themes, the impact of war from the accounts of victims, and see individual efforts towards finding justice.
Objective: Students will examine first-hand accounts (letters) of victims of WWII in order to analyze how common literary/historical themes (e.g. “war”, “good vs. evil” etc.) apply to lived experiences.
CA H-SS Framework Standard: 11.7 America’s Participation in WWII - How was the war mobilized and fought differently in the Atlantic versus the Pacific? How did America win the war in the Pacific? How did World War II serve to advance movements for equality at home and abroad?
Suggested Time: 1-2 class days
Procedure:
Materials:
[1] 10000 Cries for Justice began with the work of Tong Zeng, a nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize. Tong Zeng sought compensation from the Japanese government for wartime victims, resulting in an outpouring of letters from victims and victim’s family members.
Objective: Students will examine first-hand accounts (letters) of victims of WWII in order to analyze how common literary/historical themes (e.g. “war”, “good vs. evil” etc.) apply to lived experiences.
CA H-SS Framework Standard: 11.7 America’s Participation in WWII - How was the war mobilized and fought differently in the Atlantic versus the Pacific? How did America win the war in the Pacific? How did World War II serve to advance movements for equality at home and abroad?
Suggested Time: 1-2 class days
Procedure:
- Teachers should introduce students to common themes (e.g. good versus evil, war and peace, survival etc.).
- Teachers introduce students to WWII in Asia by providing the short read or create a presentation. The reading provides background information and four major offenses committed during WWII in Asia.
- “Comfort Women”
- The Nanjing Massacre
- Unit 731
- Slave Labor
- Introduce students to 10000 Cries For Justice (CFJ).
- Provide students with translated letters. Students will use the sequence number to find the original letter at www.10000cfj.org
Materials:
- Japanese Atrocities in Asia by New Jersey Hong Kong Network Reading
- Copy of translated letters
- www.10000cfj.org[1]
[1] 10000 Cries for Justice began with the work of Tong Zeng, a nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize. Tong Zeng sought compensation from the Japanese government for wartime victims, resulting in an outpouring of letters from victims and victim’s family members.
Copyright Ⓒ 2018 by Education for Social Justice Foundation. All rights reserved.
For other lesson plans, primary source documents, and additional content, visit e4sjf.org
Lesson Plan 2 of 2
Purpose: This activity teaches students about the unresolved situation and continued activism that “comfort women” and their allies continue to this day. It allows students to process the heavy topic of military sexual violence and slavery and gives them the opportunity, in some small way, participate in activism. This is recommended as a culminating activity for teaching “comfort women.”
Objective: Students will “join” a Wednesday Demonstration by creating a journal entry, short speech, skit, dance, or song directed to former “comfort women,” to the larger audience of the Wednesday Demonstration, or to the Japanese government. They will perform their chosen medium to the whole class.
California History-Social Science Content Standard: 10.8 Students analyze the causes and consequences of World War II. (Part of addressing that standard in the New HSS Curriculum Framework includes, “‘Comfort women’ is a euphemism that describes women who were forced into sexual service by the Japanese Army…”)
Suggested Time: 1-3 class days (at least one hour of class time)
Procedure:
Materials/Handouts:
Objective: Students will “join” a Wednesday Demonstration by creating a journal entry, short speech, skit, dance, or song directed to former “comfort women,” to the larger audience of the Wednesday Demonstration, or to the Japanese government. They will perform their chosen medium to the whole class.
California History-Social Science Content Standard: 10.8 Students analyze the causes and consequences of World War II. (Part of addressing that standard in the New HSS Curriculum Framework includes, “‘Comfort women’ is a euphemism that describes women who were forced into sexual service by the Japanese Army…”)
Suggested Time: 1-3 class days (at least one hour of class time)
Procedure:
- Teachers should spend 5-10 minutes teaching students about the history and purpose of the weekly Wednesday Demonstrations. These protest have been held in Seoul, South Korea every Wednesday across from the Japanese Embassy since January 8, 1992 (putting their numbers into the thousands and making it the longest running, continuous protest in the world). It is strongly suggested that the teachers find and show footage from a real Wednesday Demonstration. There are videos on YouTube that show the demonstrations, including a short clip from KBS News called “Comfort Women Dispute.”
- Once students are familiar with the concept of a rally, they will work individually to create their own personal response as if they were at Wednesday Rally. Students have a variety of options including (but not limited to):
- writing a journal entry reflecting on what they have learned and what they feel about “comfort women” history
- writing a short speech addressed directly to former “comfort women.”
- writing a short speech addressed to the audience at a Wednesday Demonstration.
- writing a short speech addressed to the Japanese government.
- creating a skit about “comfort women” history and/or activism.
- creating a dance about “comfort women” history and/or activism (but student should still include a 1-2 paragraph explanation of their dance and its connection to “comfort women.”)
- writing a song about “comfort women” history and/or activism.
- Students should turn in a written copy of their presentation. They should also prepare and rehearse their chosen medium so they will be ready to perform it in front of the class.
- The class stages its own Wednesday Demonstration and students perform their piece.
Materials/Handouts:
- YouTube clip from KBS News called “Comfort Women Dispute.”
- 25 Years of Wednesdays by Mee-Hyang Yoon for further research.
- Sample rubric for assignment (on next page)
