|
|
|
|
|
McCormick Freedom Project: TEACHER BULLETIN | April 2010 / Volume 33 |
|
 |
|
 |
Tonight! (Thursday,
April 8) Public Program Up in Smoke: The Marijuana Debate Monday, April 12 Public Program Author Series: Roxana Saberi Saturday, April 17 - Friday, May 28 Seen & Heard on exhibit Newberry Library in Chicago Saturday, May 15 Freedom Express on exhibit during Armed Forces Day and Scout-O-Rama Cantigny Park in Wheaton (free parking day) Saturday, June 12/Sunday, June 13 Freedom Express on exhibit Printers Row Lit Fest in Chicago Monday, July 12 - Friday, July 16 First Amendment Summer Institute Cantigny Park in Wheaton SAVE THE DATE: Saturday, September 11 5th Annual Teacher Resource Fair Union League Club in Chicago |
|
The Freedom Express is Coming Soon! |
|
| Educator Resources & Programs | ||
|
EARLY REGISTRATION NOW OPEN! First Amendment Summer Institute This July 12-16, the McCormick Freedom Project presents its second First Amendment Summer Institute, a weeklong course focusing on the five freedoms - religion, speech, press, assembly and petition - with a specific focus on their application in school settings. Topics will include the free exercise of religion in a classroom, students' free speech rights when engaging in off-campus acts of expression, and a principal's rights in exercising prior review over student newspaper content. Middle and high school teachers will learn from experts in the field including Charles Haynes, senior scholar at the First Amendment Center and Barbara Jones, director of the American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom. Participants will also explore related lesson plans and tour the soon-to-launch Freedom Express mobile museum. Continental breakfast and lunch are provided each day of the institute, which will be held in Wheaton, Illinois. Participants may enroll in the course to earn 3 college credits for a fee of $300. Otherwise, participants can instead earn 35 CPDUS/7 CEUs at no charge. Click here to view the preliminary Institute agenda. Click here to to register today. back to top |
 Participants in the 2009 Summer Institute discussing contemporary First Amendment controversies |
|
|
PLANNING AHEAD FOR MAY Explore Freedom of the Press with Discovery Trunks for Middle School Classrooms On May 31, 1834, the last issue of the Cherokee Phoenix newspaper was printed at the then-Cherokee Nation capital of New Echota in Georgia. To help you connect this historical date to the freedoms in the First Amendment, we're focusing a spotlight on Sequoyah, who created the system for writing the Cherokee language. By requesting a Sequoyah-themed Discovery Trunk for your classroom, your students can explore, through a hands-on, object-based learning experience, Sequoyah’s enduring contributions to the Cherokee Nation and to Native American press. Here’s the story behind two items in the Sequoyah Discovery Trunk, a reproduction of The Cherokee Phoenix from 1829 and an authentic issue published in 2009: In the first edition of The Cherokee Phoenix, appearing in 1828, editor Elias Boudinot wrote: “As The Phoenix is a national newspaper, we shall feel ourselves bound to devote it to national purposes…faithfully published in Cherokee and English…As the liberty of the press is so essential to the improvement of the mind, we shall consider our paper a free paper, with, however, proper and usual restrictions…But the columns of this newspaper shall always be open to free and temperate discussions on matters of politics, religion and so forth.” Despite Boudinot’s commitment to a “free paper,” the Cherokee Nation, at the time, did not recognize a constitutional freedom of the press, nor did its leaders agree on the role of the press. Boudinot, in his reluctant acceptance of removal to lands west of the Mississippi as the only “practical remedy” for the Cherokee Nation, found himself at odds with the anti-removal Principal Chief John Ross, and The Cherokee Phoenix became a pawn in their debate. Under pressure from the tribal politicians who wanted to use the newspaper for public policy and not, as Boudinot wanted, for public discourse, he resigned his position as editor in 1832. Highlighting this difference of opinion over the role of the press, Chief Ross made the following comments after Boudinot’s resignation: “The toleration of diversified views to the columns of such a paper would not fail to create fermentation and confusion among our citizens, and in the end prove injurious to the welfare of the nation.” |
 “Se-Quo-Yah” lithograph Courtesy: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, Washington D.C.  The Cherokee Phoenix circa 1829 and 2009 Courtesy of The Sequoyah Birthplace Museum (front) and The Cherokee Phoenix (back) Related Resources A History of Native American Contributions to News Media, by Mark N. Trahant A First Amendment Lesson Plan for middle school students featuring Sequoyah from the Freedom Forum |
|
|
The original Cherokee Phoenix was printed in New Echota, Georgia from 1828 through 1834, when lack of federal funding shuttered the operation. During that time, the Georgia Guard was clamping down on the Cherokee Nation and they destroyed both the Cherokee Phoenix printing press and the printing office in New Echota. In 1838, Cherokee who still lived in the area were rounded up and marched off to Indian territory on the “Trail of Tears.” In 1844, Cherokee press resumed with the Cherokee Advocate, published from Tahlequah, Oklahoma. However, around the time of the Civil War, Native American journalism ceased and didn’t gain steam again until the late 20th Century. Today the Cherokee Phoenix is an independently operated newspaper covering news, issues and events of the Cherokee Nation, featuring a nameplate in both English and Sequoyah’s syllbary. Click here to find out more about requesting a Sequoyah Discovery Trunk, or any other of the individual themes available, for your classroom. back to top | ||
|
WINNERS & UPCOMING EXHIBIT Seen & Heard: National Student Expression Contest The McCormick Freedom Project is celebrating youth voices by rewarding twelve talented high school students for their depictions of contemporary freedom issues. In the Freedom Project’s national student expression contest, Seen & Heard, students express their thoughts on contemporary social, political or economic issues using four media outlets: editorial cartoons, film, photojournalism and digital design. Each category includes a first, second and third prize winner. The full list of the 2010 Seen & Heard winners can be viewed here. On April 17, the Freedom Project debuts a special exhibit showcasing students’ work from across the country. The Seen & Heard exhibit will be at the Newberry Library through May 28, 2010. An online exhibit will supplement the physical exhibit at the Newberry Library, featuring the 2010 winning students’ work as well as students’ entries from previous contests. The Newberry Library is located at 60 West Walton Street in Chicago, just a few blocks west of Michigan Avenue. Exhibits are free and open to the public. Teachers who are interested in bringing students to the Seen & Heard exhibit should visit the Newberry Library Web site or call 312.943.9090 for hours of operation and additional details. Teachers exploring the Seen & Heard exhibit with their students either online or at the Newberry Library can utilize our Educator Guide, a one-page guide to the exhibit with suggestions for discussion, lesson plans and extensions. back to top |
 Click here to see who won top honors this year!  First Place Editorial Cartoon
The Governator,
John McKeever
|
|
|
POST-EXCHANGE FEATURE STORY The Post-Exchange is the premier news platform for the McCormick Freedom Project’s journalism initiative. It features original and objective reporting, commentary and news aggregation on First Amendment and freedom issues, often with a local focus. Pop Culture & Politicians Experts say political speech often collides with copyright and trademark laws. By Jamie Loo, First Amendment reporter April 6, 2010 CHICAGO—Popular music and borrowing from major product campaigns is common in political advertisements. The problem is the material isn’t totally protected by the First Amendment because of copyright and trademark law, experts say. “I actually think there are a lot of lawyers who believe that there is an exemption for use of protected materials under free speech…without really getting into the specifics of what that entails,” Jackie Leimer said. Leimer, spoke on a panel with Ron Staudt and Richard Renner on the intersection between political speech, copyright and trademark issues at the Chicago Kent-College of Law last week. The three panelists are instructors at the school in trademark and copyright law. Staudt said copyright and trademark deal with different interests than political speech. Copyright protects people like authors and artists by ensuring they receive compensation and credit for their work. Trademark looks at source, commercial growth, and helps consumers be aware of where their goods and services are coming from. Political speech is the most highly protected form of speech under the First Amendment, so combining it with copyright and trademark law is a delicate balancing act. The restrictions in those laws can be seen as an infringement on the free flow of information protected by the First Amendment. However without copyright and trademark laws artists end up losing the intellectual property rights to their original work. Click here for the full story back to top |
  Pepsi or Obama logo?  Related Resources Copyright: A Primer from LearnNC High School Lesson Plans on the Fair Use Doctrine from the Media Education Lab at Temple University |
|
|
RECOMMENDED RESOURCES Professional Development The Dirksen Center invites applications from middle and high school teachers for participation in our national, award-winning education program, now in its 19th year. Developed and sponsored by The Dirksen Congressional Center, the workshop is dedicated to the exchange of ideas and information on teaching about Congress Although the workshop will feature a variety of sessions, the 2010 program will feature a broad overview of Congress with special attention to the mid-year elections of 2010. Complete information about the program and application procedures may be found at The Center's Web site. The registration deadline is April 15. back to top Online Resource: Holocaust Remembrance Day On April 11, Holocaust Remembrance Day, PBS will air The Diary of Anne Frank, a film documenting the life of the renowned Jewish teenager who recorded her observations and experiences while in hiding during World War II. Tragically unfinished, the diary has become one of the most widely-read, personal accounts of the Holocaust, frequently included in both middle and high school curricula. As of the beginning of this year, the American Library Association (ALA) had documented only six challenges to The Diary of Anne Frank since the institution began tracking formal requests to remove or restrict books in 1990. According to Angela Maycock of the ALA's Office for Intellectual Freedom (as cited in The Washington Post), "most of the concerns were about sexually explicit material...One record dating to 1983 from an Alabama textbook committee said the book was a 'real downer' and called for its rejection from schools." Click here to read more about the PBS Masterpiece film and check local listings for air times, or here to learn about the open call for video diaries inspired by Anne Frank. If you are interested in participating in Banned Books Week this year (September 25-October 2), check out the ALA's Web site for ideas, resources and a calendar of events. back to top |
|
|
| Upcoming Public Programs | ||
|
UP IN SMOKE The Marijuana Debate April 8, 2010 6:30 pm FREE with Museum Admission Location: Chicago History Museum, 1601 North Clark, Chicago No registration required Stigmatized and criminalized, marijuana use has been prohibited since the early twentieth century. Yet, its popularity—especially in popular culture—combined with shifting societal attitudes, has rekindled a debate about the legalization of marijuana. What are the costs and benefits of legalizing the narcotic and should the United States amend its stance on the drug? Join a lively discussion about marijuana prohibition and voice your opinion in a public forum. Presented in partnership with the Chicago History Museum. back to top |
 Courtesy of Alex Gaylon |
|
|
AUTHOR SERIES Roxana Saberi Monday, April 12 6 pm Free admission/Registration required Location: Roosevelt University, 430 S Michigan Ave, Chicago Author and journalist Roxana Saberi will discuss her new book, Between Two Worlds: My Life and Captivity in Iran. In this compelling and inspirational true story, Roxana Saberi writes movingly of her imprisonment, her trial, her ultimate release, and the faith that helped her through it. Saberi was born in Belleville, New Jersey, and raised in Fargo, North Dakota. An "All-American Girl," she has a master's degree in broadcast journalism from Northwestern University, and a second master's degree from Cambridge in international relations. She has reported for NPR, the BBC, ABC Radio, and Fox News. Saberi moved to Iran in 2003 and later began working on a book about the Iranian people. This program is held in partnership with Amnesty International, Roosevelt Adjunct Faculty Organization and Northeastern Illinois University's Dr. Mohammad Mossadegh Leadership Fund. back to top |
|
|
To
unsubscribe, please
send us an email. |
|
|
|
|