AP African American Studies Unit 4

Reading and Writing Workshop

Unit 4 SAQ

Unit 4 dbq

Unit Plan

African American Life in the Gilded Age and Progressive Era (c. 1877–1919)

Activities

Teaching with E.L.O.N.  (Enriched Learning Opportunity Nexus) that seamlessly integrates AI 

Unit 
Unit Overview:
This unit examines the experiences of African Americans in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, focusing on systemic racial discrimination, resistance, and advocacy efforts. Students will explore segregation, disenfranchisement, racial violence, economic and social challenges, and key leaders who shaped African American responses to these conditions.
Unit Objectives:
By the end of the unit, students will be able to:

• Explain the impact of Reconstruction’s end on African Americans.
• Analyze the effects of Jim Crow laws and racial segregation.
• Evaluate the methods of disenfranchisement and their consequences.
• Examine instances of racial violence, including lynching and race riots.
• Compare and contrast key African American leaders’ approaches to racial uplift.
• Assess African American social, economic, and cultural contributions during this period.

Week 1: The End of Reconstruction and the Rise of Jim Crow
Essential Question: How did the end of Reconstruction affect African Americans?
Key Topics:

• Compromise of 1877 and the withdrawal of federal troops
• Rise of the Jim Crow system
• Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) and the legal justification for segregation
• African American migration patterns (Exodusters movement)

Primary Sources:

• Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) majority and dissenting opinions
• Political cartoons on Jim Crow laws (e.g., Thomas Nast’s work)

Activities:

• Close reading and analysis of Plessy v. Ferguson
• Gallery walk analyzing political cartoons on Jim Crow
• Discussion: The impact of federal abandonment on African Americans

Week 2: Disenfranchisement and Political Disempowerment
Essential Question: What tactics were used to disenfranchise African Americans, and what were their effects?
Key Topics:

• Poll taxes, literacy tests, and grandfather clauses
• The Mississippi Plan (1890) and the systemic exclusion of Black voters
• White primary elections and political exclusion
• Rise of the Democratic Party’s dominance in the South

Primary Sources:

• Excerpts from Ida B. Wells’ "Southern Horrors"
• Southern state voting laws targeting African Americans

Activities:

• Document-based discussion: Comparing voter suppression tactics
• Political simulation: Students attempt to pass a literacy test or "understanding clause"
• Debate: How did disenfranchisement affect Black political power?

Week 3: Racial Violence and Resistance
Essential Question: How did racial violence impact African Americans, and how did they resist?
Key Topics:

• Lynching as a tool of racial terror
• Role of the Ku Klux Klan and other white supremacist groups
• 1898 Wilmington Race Riot and 1906 Atlanta Race Riot
• Ida B. Wells and anti-lynching activism

Primary Sources:

• Excerpts from Ida B. Wells’ writings on lynching
• NAACP’s 1919 report on racial violence
• Photographs and newspaper accounts of race riots

Activities:

• Source analysis: Comparing white and Black newspaper accounts of race riots
• Historical role-play: Ida B. Wells’ anti-lynching campaign
• Research project: Students investigate and present on a specific act of racial violence

Week 4: African American Leadership and Responses to Racial Injustice
Essential Question: How did African American leaders respond to the challenges of segregation and disenfranchisement?
Key Topics:

• Booker T. Washington vs. W.E.B. Du Bois debates
• The Niagara Movement and founding of the NAACP
• Role of Black newspapers (e.g., The Crisis, Chicago Defender)
• Rise of Black institutions (HBCUs, Black churches)

Primary Sources:

• Booker T. Washington’s "Atlanta Compromise" speech (1895)
• W.E.B. Du Bois’ "The Souls of Black Folk" (1903) excerpts
• NAACP founding documents

Activities:

• Seminar discussion: Comparing Washington and Du Bois’ philosophies
• Persuasive writing: Students write a speech arguing for either approach
• Primary source jigsaw: Students analyze different sources on Black activism

Week 5: African Americans and the Progressive Era
Essential Question: What opportunities and challenges did African Americans face during the Progressive Era?
Key Topics:

• African Americans and labor (sharecropping, industrial work, unions)
• Black women in the Progressive Movement (Mary Church Terrell, National Association of Colored Women)
• Great Migration beginnings and the shift to northern cities
• Impact of World War I on African American aspirations for equality

Primary Sources:

• Mary Church Terrell’s speeches and writings
• Photographs and advertisements from the Great Migration

Activities:

• Case study: The role of Black women in reform movements
• Mapping activity: Visualizing migration patterns and urban change
• Historical fiction assignment: Students write a diary entry from the perspective of a migrating African American

Summative Assessment Options:

1. Thematic Essay: How did African Americans respond to segregation and disenfranchisement during the Gilded Age and Progressive Era?
2. Debate: Who had the better approach to racial progress—Booker T. Washington or W.E.B. Du Bois?
3. Project: Students create a museum exhibit showcasing African American experiences during this period using images, documents, and analysis.

Extensions & Enrichment:

• Field Trip or Virtual Tour: Visit the National Museum of African American History and Culture exhibit on Jim Crow America.
• Film Analysis: View and analyze clips from Birth of a Nation (1915) and its impact on racial attitudes.
• Community Connection: Invite a historian or local expert to discuss African American history in the community.

Conclusion:
This unit will provide students with a deep understanding of the challenges and resilience of African Americans in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Through primary sources, debates, and interactive projects, students will critically engage with this complex period in history.

​The following activities include AI tools that enhance student engagement, provide data-driven insights, and facilitate personalized learning. ​
1. AI-Powered Historical Newspaper Analysis🔹 Objective: Analyze primary sources to understand how segregation and disenfranchisement were covered in historical newspapers.
🔹 AI Integration:

• Use AI-powered tools like ChatGPT, Google Bard, or Perplexity to analyze historical newspaper articles from the Library of Congress (Chronicling America) or digital archives.
• Have students upload excerpts of articles discussing Jim Crow laws, voter suppression, or Black resistance.
• AI can summarize key themes, help identify bias in language, and generate discussion questions.
  🔹 Student Task: Compare newspaper coverage from Black-owned newspapers (e.g., The Chicago Defender) vs. mainstream white newspapers.

2. AI-Generated Jim Crow Era Political Speech Analysis🔹 Objective: Examine the rhetoric used to justify or resist segregation.
🔹 AI Integration:

• Use AI to generate speeches from different perspectives (e.g., a Southern segregationist, a Black civil rights activist, a Northern politician).
• Students fact-check AI-generated content using historical sources and analyze how political rhetoric shaped public opinion.
  🔹 Student Task: Rewrite an AI-generated speech to remove bias or distortions.

3. AI-Powered Mapping of Jim Crow Laws🔹 Objective: Visualize how segregation laws differed by state.
🔹 AI Integration:

• Use AI tools like ChatGPT or Google Sheets with AI plugins to compile Jim Crow laws by state.
• Students can input laws into AI-generated data visualizations (e.g., Google Maps, Flourish, Tableau) to track patterns in segregation laws across the U.S.
  🔹 Student Task: Present a visual map of segregation policies and discuss regional variations.

4. AI-Assisted Analysis of Voting Restrictions🔹 Objective: Understand how African Americans were disenfranchised through literacy tests, poll taxes, and grandfather clauses.
🔹 AI Integration:

• Use AI to simulate literacy tests from the Jim Crow era.
• AI can explain complex legal texts from Supreme Court cases like Williams v. Mississippi (1898) or Giles v. Harris (1903).
  🔹 Student Task: Compare AI-generated "fair" voting laws with actual historical ones.

5. AI Chatbot Debate: Booker T. Washington vs. W.E.B. Du Bois🔹 Objective: Understand different Black leaders' responses to segregation and disenfranchisement.
🔹 AI Integration:

• Use AI to simulate a dialogue or debate between Washington and Du Bois.
• Students fact-check AI-generated arguments based on primary sources (Up from Slavery, The Souls of Black Folk).
  🔹 Student Task: Write a response from a third historical figure’s perspective (e.g., Ida B. Wells).