Some context will make my exuberance clearer: last semester was one of the hardest for me. At mid-terms I realized that all of the students who earned academic alerts were young men of color. Several Muslim students from the Middle East enrolled in my Cross-Cultural Masculinities course where we talk about challenging subjects related to sex and violence. Many students struggled to turn in assignments in any kind of shape, let alone good shape (thoroughly and thoughtfully done). We talked about slavery, racism, white privilege, prejudice, inequality and sexual assault (among others). Despite my efforts to carefully frame these targets and foster inclusivity, by the end of the semester just about every student had a reason to feel like they belonged in a targeted group. The final projects in two of the three classes were barely average. By May, I vowed to never, ever teach the Interrogating Paris class again.
Fast forward to the end of semester when my favorite class, Monsters and Mayhem in the French-Speaking World, presented projects on Haiti. Specifically, they rewrote a scene from the novel Reflections of Loko-Miwa by Lilas Desquiron. The photos below show the visuals they chose to use to act out the changes.
They really poured themselves into the project. Several were surprised by the drama they were able to channel into their acting. Almost all said it helped them more thoroughly understand the characters and the challenges they experienced due to racism, economic problems, and gender codes.
