Close the Gap: An Educator Guide

1. How does the loss of land, culture, and religion affect the Native American population today?
2. Why do we need to look at these inequities through an historical perspective? What does race have to do with it?
3. The Department of Corrections estimates the number of prison beds based on 3rd grade reading scores. Thus, if a child does not make adequate progress, he or she becomes a potential prison bed. What are your reactions to this statement? What would help to save money in the long run? What would be a better investment?
4. Why is it important to connect Native American children to their language and culture?
5. How does the well-being of Native Americans affect the future of the Twin Cities in the years to come?
6. What can you do to help eliminate racial disparities in the Twin Cities?

Take a Stand! [1]

1. Introduce the activity. The students will hear statements and decide whether they agree or disagree with them. After each statement is read, they should demonstrate their positions by going to either side of the room with signs "Agree" or "Disagree" posted on the wall. They can stop somewhere in between if they cannot decide to fully agree or disagree with a statement.
   


2. After reading the first statement, go around the room and ask students why they chose this position. Start with students at the opposite ends of the rooms and then ask those in the middle why they could not make a definite decision. Encourage students to listen to each other and think about other students' arguments. After 3-4 students have spoken, tell students that they can change their position if they wish. If they do so, invite them to explain why.
   


3. Read the next statement and repeat the procedure. Allow longer time for discussion after some statements as necessary.
   


4. Debrief with the following questions:
   
   • How did you feel about the activity? Did you feel that your opinions were listened to and properly understood by the group?
   • What were the most difficult and easiest statements to choose? Why?
   • What views were the most surprising to you? Why?
   • What arguments made you change your position? Why?
   • Did you learn something new about the issues discussed? What are the issues you would like to learn more about as a result of this activity?
   • Can you draw parallels between this activity and real life debates? How does it affect politics and decision making?
   • If you did this activity again, what would you change about it? Would you try different arguments trying to defend your position?


5. Follow-up ideas:
   • Invite a Native American leader or organization to speak to your class. Invite the students to discuss the issues or ask questions on the most controversial issues that came up in the Take a Stand activity.
   • Organize a field trip to the Minnesota Indian Women's Resource Center, and have the students work in groups to produce a field report (e.g. pictures, slide show, school newsletter article, etc.).

• Native Americans mascots should not be used in sports.
• Native Americans should not be supported by the government programs because they have casinos to support them.
• It will be more helpful for Native American children to focus on mastering English and math rather than learning their tribal languages.
• Columbus Day should not be celebrated because Columbus was responsible for mass killing of Indians.
• What was done to Indian people by white settlers is wrong and needs to be addressed today through appropriate government policies.
• Native American people deserve an apology from the U.S. government for polices leading to extermination of their culture and people.
• Poverty on the Native American reservations often results from racist and discriminatory polices.
• Disparities undermine economic stability of the Twin Cities region.

1. Human Rights Framework
   
   
   1. Introduce the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, G.A. Res. 61/295,U.N. Doc. A/RES/47/1 (2007).
      After of 20 years of negotiations, the declaration was adopted in September 2007 with an overwhelming majority of 143 votes. Four countries (Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the U.S.) voted against adopting the declaration.
      The Declaration recognizes a wide range of basic human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous peoples, including the right to unrestricted self-determination, an inalienable collective right to the ownership, use, and control of lands, territories, and other natural resources, their rights in terms of maintaining and developing their own political, religious, cultural and educational institutions, along with the protection of their cultural and intellectual property.
      
   
   
   2. Divide students into small group of 5-7 and have them read and discuss the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples: http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/instree/declaration.html
      
      Separate sections/articles may be assigned instead of the full text of the declaration. Have each group discuss:
      
      
      • What is the significance of the declaration? Why is it important to have a separate declaration for indigenous people?
      • Why do you think Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and U.S. voted against adopting the declaration? What do you think about this decision?
      • Give examples of real life situations pertaining to Native Americans in the U.S. which Declaration articles seek to address.
   
   
   3. Have a plenary group debriefing. Collect responses from each group and record them on a flip chart. As a follow-up, the students can be assigned a project or a research paper based on specific articles of the Declaration.


2. Localizing statistics
   
   Students can also review Indians in Minnesota by Kathy Davis Graves and Elizabeth Ebbott, a report that offers statistics and insight into Minnesota's Native American population to promote a better understanding of challenges and realities facing Indian communities.
   
   Other useful sites:
   
   1. Twin Cities Compass www.tccompass.org
   2. Mind the Gap Report http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/Files/rc/reports/2005/10cities_sohmer/20051027_mindthegap.pdf