Resistance, Resiliency and Joy (1941-2013)

Roller skaters

Historical context

People and communities facing oppression and injustice have shown resistance, resilience, and joy, and it's important to uplift those stories when teaching about a painful past.

This set highlights the experiences of various communities, including Chinese immigrants who passed through Angel Island, Japanese Americans interned during WWII, Black Americans facing segregation, and Indigenous people seeking to preserve languages. This document provides additional context and resources.

Culturally relevant pedagogy considerations

Joy is a complex emotion and in the context of history and injustice, it is even more so. Culturally Relevant Pedagogy is learner-centered and teachers should start with the experiences and stories of students in their learning community.

Building off of the connections and experiences learners bring to the classroom, we can see that taking action can take on many forms. Looking at how people expressed their sadness, frustration, and anger through art can provide a great way to think about contemporary art. Just as we look at how people express uncomfortable emotion,s we can see how joy and just being is also a form of action.

Using the primary sources in the set as a starting point and helping students connect to their own forms of action and expression provides a rich learning experience that has relevancy.

This set was compiled by Angela Bianco, fourth-grade teacher in White Bear Lake.

Roller Skaters

Black roller skaters

Date: 1941
Creator: Russell Lee
Type: Photograph

Jumping Rope

Jumping rope on a sidewalk

Date: 1941
Creator: Edwin Rosskam
Type: Photograph

Band Concert

Band concert, Manzanar

Date: 1943
Creator: Ansel Adams
Type: Photograph

Baseball

Baseball game, Manzanar

Date: 1943
Creator: Ansel Adams
Type: Photograph

Manzanar Newspaper

Manzanar Free Press, page 9

Date: March 20, 1943
Creator: Manzanar internment camp
Type: Newspaper

Volleyball

Volleyball, Manzanar

Date: 1943
Creator: Ansel Adams
Type: Photograph

Liner Notes

Indian songs liner notes

Date: 1954
Creator: Willard Rhodes, compiler
Type: Document

Two Cherokee Hymns

Two Cherokee Christian Hymns (no. 16)

Date: 1954
Creator: Willard Rhodes, compiler
Type: Song

Million Native March

Million Native American March

Date: 2003
Creator: Carol Highsmith
Type: Photograph

Interior Angel Island

Interior, Angel Island immigration station

Date: 2013
Creator: Carol Highsmith
Type: Photograph

Angel Island Poem

Poetic verse carved into walls at Angel Island

Date: 2013
Creator: Carol Highsmith
Type: Photograph

Contact

Meghan Davisson (meghan.davisson@mnhs.org), grant director

Disclaimer: Content created and featured in partnership with the TPS program does not indicate an endorsement by the Library of Congress.