Part two of And She Could Be Next peels back the curtain on one of the most insidious threats to American democracy: voter suppression. In this concluding episode, the spotlight turns toward the growing and tireless coalition work of multiethnic and multiracial organizers powering the grassroots campaigns of the women of color candidates featured in episode one. In their mission to expand democratic participation to communities of color, immigrant communities, disengaged voters, young people, and low-income communities, viewers witness firsthand how their efforts are met with systematic attempts to upend progress by stripping communities of their votes and voices.

In this lesson, students will learn about varied historic and contemporary voter suppression tactics used to exclude, silence, and intimidate potential voters in predominantly BIPOC communities. Students will research laws and policies, such as voter ID laws, proof of citizenship requirements, and voter registration policies, and analyze how these regulations expand or impede democractic participation to all. This lesson is intended to build on concepts introduced in lesson one but can also be a standalone lesson. The lesson also provides ample opportunity for interdisciplinary collaboration across subject matter curricula for educators who want to develop grade-level unit plans across content areas (e.g., history, ELA, mathematics, government).

A Note from Curriculum Creator, Stacia Cedillo

We are taught in America that justice is inherent in the failsafe architecture of our democratic institutions. We are taught that our three branches of government — designed to operate in perfect balance by those we entrust to lead — form infallible pillars of accountability, fairness, objectivity, and oversight. We are taught that we have a fundamental and inalienable right to seek justice through a court system that ensures fair trials and due process. But what we aren’t taught about justice, we learn through other means. And what we learn from the “array of facts” about voting in America is that our institutions, and the people who lead them, are not always neutral arbiters of justice and democracy, as we are taught.

This journey of un-learning what we are taught about American democracy can be a difficult journey for many of us, including those like myself, who view schools and education as potential sites for radical transformation. I cringe when I think back to my first year teaching, recalling all the ways I uncritically taught American mythologies of equality, democracy, and justice to my eighth-grade students. My un-learning process has involved years of political engagement with grassroots activists, ongoing reflection of my own complicity in white supremacy as a white Latina, and a deep commitment to studying historic texts written by those who knew, long before I, that democracy and justice have never been a guarantee to everyone in America. One such scholar-historian is the great Ida B. Wells, quoted above, whose foundational reporting on lynching continues to shape my understanding of the perpetual presence of anti-Black intimidation and violence in this country. As a critical pedagogue, I believe that it is these encounters with truths-never-learned — moments of conscientização, to use Paolo Freire’s term — that are the beginnings of the necessary journey to re-imagine and re-work schools to be sites of emancipation, liberation, and justice.

A Note to Teachers

For many, discussion of the 2016 U.S. Presidential election can activate trauma, anxiety, and anger. The anti-immigrant, racist, misogynistic, and violent language that characterized that election carried over to the 2018 primary elections that are featured in this film. Take care to pay attention to students in your classroom whose identities, families, and communities are the intended target of this hateful rhetoric.

Subject Areas

• Civics
• Government
• U.S. History
• Language Arts
• Political Science

Grade Levels: [8-13+]

Objectives:

In this lesson, students will:

• Understand and analyze how specific U.S. laws, policies, and regulations enable targeted voter suppression and voter disenfranchisement.
• Discuss ways that policies can be improved to advance fairness in U.S. elections.
• Research local voting rights advocacy groups and grassroots organizations.

Materials:

• Film clips
• Notebook
• Writing utensil
• Chart paper, dry erase board, or document camera
• Internet access, or pre-prepared packets with up-to-date information on:
  • Your state’s voter registration laws
  • U.S. voter suppression laws

Time Needed:

Two to three 50- to 60-minute class periods.

Clip 1: The New American Voter (1:06:56 - 1:10:31, length: 3:34)

The clip begins at 1:06:56 with Nse Ufot explaining the mission of the New Georgia Project, “every voter, every election.”. It ends at 1:10:31 with a conversation among new Latinx organizers discussing how they organize to plant seeds of defiance.

Nse Ufot of the New Georgia Project describes reasons why Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp’s gubernatorial run is laden with troubling political and legal conflicts of interest. Ufot details voter suppression tactics utilized in Georgia in recent years, and how the New Georgia Project has worked to educate the public and engage voters. Young people of color describe how they are underestimated as a political force.

Clip 2: Activating Asian American Voters (1:10:31 - 1:17:37, length: 7:12)

The clip begins at 1:10:31 with a close-up of a political yard sign that reads “Asians for Abrams.” It ends at 1:17:37 with a shot of a news clipping from MSNBC’s The Rachel Maddow Show that is being used to illustrate Brian Kemp’s role in purging voter rolls as Secretary of State of Georgia.

Asians for Abrams describe their motivations for organizing, and viewers get a behind-the-scenes look into what it’s like to canvass to this diverse multiethnic, multilingual demographic in an election that features racist and xenophobic campaign ads. Nse Ufot of the New Georgia Project explains how laws like “exact match” disproportionately prevent Black, Asian American, and Latinx communities from voting.

Clip 3: Voter Suppression: How It Works (1:26:05 - 1:29:41, length: 3:40)

The clip begins at 1:25:05 with Stacey Abrams explaining the relationship between civic disengagement and voter suppression. The clip ends at 1:29:41 with Nse Ufot outlining the political and legal mechanisms behind the suite of voter suppression laws on the books in Georgia.

What does voter suppression look like in Georgia? Stacey Abrams and the New Georgia Project explain how lawmakers have used their power to exclude and marginalize voters of color. As early voting begins, issues begin to arise. Nse Ufot details how dozens of laws and policies in Georgia work to disenfranchise voters of color, immigrant voters, and low-income voters.

Clip 4: Election Day in Georgia (1:47:03 - 1:52:00, length: 4:47)

The clip begins at 1:47:03 at a home in Atlanta where “linewarmers” are preparing snacks for voters waiting in line to vote. It closes with interviews from white suburban Georgians who say they have never seen or experienced any issues with voting or voter suppression. .

On election day in Georgia, confusion and long lines are prevalent in communities of color. Voters express frustration and anger at the lack of information provided to them about election polling places and procedures. Organizers work on-site at polling locations to triage misinformation and poor communication from election officials.

1. Activate prior knowledge. Begin by asking the class: What are the rules and requirements that must be followed/met in order to vote in the U.S.? Are these rules the same in every state? Write down their responses on a piece of chart paper, board, or screen displayed at the front of the room. Students will likely know that you must be 18 years old but are less likely to know the details of how voter registration works in their state (and that it differs from state to state). Prompt them to think about other requirements such as deadlines, citizenship status, identification requirements, polling locations, etc.

Once you have a list of rules and requirements, compare the list created by students with your state’s actual policies, which you can find at Rock The Vote’s How to Vote state database. After reviewing your state’s actual voting laws, ask students which, if any, of the current laws are fair/unfair, reasonable/unreasonable, discriminatory, and/or necessary.

1. Framing the film in historical context. Before viewing the film, provide a brief explanation of the history of voter suppression and the fight for voting rights in America. Trace how voter suppression has evolved from the times of slavery, to Reconstruction, to the Jim Crow era, to the Civil Rights Movement and the Voting Rights Act of 1964, to the present day. If possible, find historic examples or primary source texts (e.g., flyers, photos, legal documents) from the community you live in. (Recommended resources: Voting Rights: A Short History; TIMELINE: History of voter suppression in the United States; The Voting Rights Act: Ten Things You Should Know.) Tell students to watch the film with this history in mind.
2. Sidebar discussion: Spotlight on Asian American disenfranchisement and activism (Note: for teachers viewing the film over multiple class periods, this may be a good end-of-day-one discussion.) Discuss some of the ways the film (e.g., film clip #1 and film clip #2) shows how Asian American voters are discouraged or prevented from voting. What do the activists in the film do to respond? How did you respond to seeing Asian American political activists organize at the grassroots level? Is it something you’ve seen portrayed in the media before? Did it change any preconceived notions you had about political activism in the Asian American community? In lesson one, we discussed the term intersectionality. What are the dimensions of intersectionality in the Asian American community shown in the film? (Race/ethnicity, language, immigration status.)
3. Jigsaw group research activity: Voter suppression laws. Break students up into groups, and assign each group to research 1-2 voter suppression laws/tactics (bullet-pointed in the list below) from film clip #3. Each group should construct a poster, PowerPoint, or other form of visual representation that explains the laws or regulations that enable these tactics, the justifications for these policies, and how they work to suppress voter turnout and/or voter participation. Have each group present their findings, or do a gallery walk.

• Voter ID laws
• Proof of citizenship requirements
• Poll closures and poll site changes
• Voter roll purges
• “Use it or lose it” laws
• No paper ballots
• Not enough provisional ballots
• Outdated software
• Not enough voting machines, power cords, or other necessary hardware
• Signature match laws
• “Exact match” laws
• Untrained poll workers

Teachers may provide students with a list of quality secondary sources to draw from, such as the one below, or have students locate sources on their own.

Voter Suppression Resources

League of Women Voters: Fighting Voter Suppression

The Brennan Center: The New Voter Suppression

Center For American Progress: Voter Suppression During the 2018 Midterm Elections

ACLU - Block the Vote: Voter Suppression in 2020

ACLU: The Facts About Voter Suppression

Teaching Tolerance: Teaching the Truth About Voter Suppression

1. Discussion. Facilitate dialogue around voter suppression and the scenes depicted from election day in film clip #4. What about these laws, policies, or tactics surprised you most? Do you think any of these laws are necessary -- why or why not? If you were in charge, how would you change these policies? What new policies would you create? Introduce current debates around felon voter rights (such as Florida’s 2018 Amendment 4), mail-in ballots, and same-day voter registration. Have students discuss the merits of these policies, and evaluate the arguments against them.
2. Advocating for change. Have students research local voting rights or elections-related grassroots activist/advocacy organizations in their community. What are their current initiatives and/or campaigns? How are they working to build political power? Are there particular laws or policies they are currently advocating for? What volunteer opportunities do they have?

Language Learners:

• Create graphic organizers that include illustrations that may help language learners distinguish words related to voter suppression, such as the example from the film shown in the screenshot below:

• In tandem with reading and writing practice, create opportunities to build verbal language fluency around these issues by having students orally articulate how specific voter suppression laws work.

Diverse Learning Spectrum:

• Using the metaphor of running in an unfair race, talk about the way ableism is used to disadvantage differently abled people from voting. Have students discuss how they felt when they heard that the American Disabilities Act was being used in Georgia to close down polling locations.
• Pre-prepare handouts with information on election turnout and voter participation demographics.

College-level (grade level 13+) extension:

• Using a research database, identify a reputable academic journal in one of the following fields: political science, political communication, rhetoric, gender studies, race studies, or another scholarly field approved by your instructor. Locate an article that focuses its analysis on the 2016 election. Read the article and write a 3-4 page summary of its research question(s) and argument(s), analytical methods, and conclusions. Include your own voice: Why did you choose this article to analyze? What about it interested you? What do you think the author(s) do really well? If you had to give the researcher(s) one piece of constructive criticism, what would it be? In what ways are the conclusions/arguments the authors make about the 2016 election relevant or important to the upcoming 2020 election?

Helpful Sources (Optional)

• Carol Anderson, One Person, No Vote: How Voter Suppression Is Destroying Our Democracy, 2018 (book)
• Gilda R. Daniels, Uncounted, 2020 (book)
• Rick Hasen, Election Meltdown: Dirty Tricks, Distrust, and the Threat to American Democracy, 2020 (book)
• Darryl Pinckney, Blackballed: The Black Vote and U.S. Democracy, 2014 (book)
• Ida B. Wells, The Light of Truth: Writings of an Anti-Lynching Crusader, 2014 reprint (book)
• The Washington Post - Perspective | A lesson on voting rights — and suppression — during a pandemic that students won’t learn in textbooks

Resource List

Voter Rights and Registration Advocacy Groups

• The New Georgia Project: Non-partisan group featured in And She Could Be Next that directs its efforts towards registering and civically engaging the rising electorate in the state of Georgia.
• Mijente: Political organization dedicated to bringing attention to and addressing the lack of political organization in Latinx and Chicanx communities.
• National Domestic Workers Alliance: Advocacy group working to advance labor protections for domestic workers, the majority of whom are immigrants and women of color.
• Black Futures Lab: Organization that supports progressive Black candidates, Black-run political campaigns, and legislative advocacy on issues that impact Black communities.
• Project South: Works to advance and cultivate social movements in the South that contend with state repression directed towards immigrants, migrants without documentation, Muslims, and young Black people.
• Campaign Legal Center: Non-partisan legal non-profit that works to support fair elections and unrestricted access to voting.
• Asian Americans Advancing Justice: Non-profit that uses legal advocacy and political outreach to influence civil rights issues that have a strong impact on Asian Americans, Pacific Islanders, and immigrant communities.

Standards

RH.6-8.7 Integrate information presented in different media or formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively) as well as in words to develop a coherent understanding of a topic or issue.

W.9--10.2d Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to manage the complexity of the topic.

SL.11--12.1 Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 11-12 topics, texts and issues, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.

This resource was created, in part, with the generous support of the Open Society Foundation.