Unit Overview: Developing Media Literacy for Well-being, Relationships and Democracy
Use this handout to get an overview of the lessons, materials, and activities in this unit.
![A teacher helps students during class.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-08/2020_DSC04333_FH2122257_teaser.jpeg?h=56d0ca2e&itok=QfWGU4nH)
The Influence of "The Birth of a Nation"
The three-hour silent film The Birth of a Nation did “incalculable harm” to Black Americans by creating a justification for prejudice, racism, and discrimination for decades to follow.
![Member of Ku Klux Klan holding a torch on a horse.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/REC_12_The_Birth.jpg?h=da7ce804&itok=o8NJxzoX)
All-China Resistance Association of Writers and Artists
Learn about a resistance group that used literary efforts to respond to the Japanese occupation of China.
![This scene depicts the Taiping Rebellion, a period of civil war and uprising in China that lasted from 1850–1864.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-05/IMAGE_11_2_TAIPING.jpg?h=4b6de878&itok=VszUtAnT)
"How to Bloom in Dark Places” by Warsan Shire
Poet Warsan Shire tells the story of a young Somali-born refugee in this poem from the film Brave Girl Rising.
![The short film, "Brave Girl Rising" was produced by the nonprofit organization Girl Rising in collaboration with the International Rescue Committee.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-05/shorthand_image140of143.jpeg?h=4dc35482&itok=n38DLgVw)
Hope Frye's Testimony on Child Migrant Detention
Immigration lawyer Hope Frye describes the conditions at child migrant detention centers in her congressional hearing testimony.
![Undocumented immigrant families walk from a bus depot to a respite center after being released from detention in McAllen, Texas, U.S., July 27, 2018.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-05/PerspectivesonDetention_RTX6D3SR_fullres_Medium_res.jpg?h=c9f93661&itok=on7f84Gi)
Peril and Promise (1980-2000)
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Part six of Latino Americans covers the years since 1980, when a second wave of Cubans arrived in Miami and hundreds of thousands of Salvadorans, Nicaraguans, and Guatemalans fleeing civil wars, death squads, and unrest migrated to the US.
![](/sites/default/files/brightcove/videos/images/posters/image_1366.jpg)
Propaganda during World War I: An Appeal to You!
Journalist, lecturer, and author Adam Hochschild discusses the use of propaganda during World War I.
![](/sites/default/files/brightcove/videos/images/posters/image_589.jpg)
The Rights of Refugees
Sasha Chanoff, Co-Founder and Executive Director of RefugePoint, explains the definition of the term “refugee” and illustrates how the international community has sought to address refugee issues since the end of World War II.
![](/sites/default/files/brightcove/videos/images/posters/image_658.jpg)
The Wooden Shoes
Cassania, a high school student in Boston who emigrated from Haiti, tells the story of a pair of wooden shoes her grandfather gave to her as a gift.
![](/sites/default/files/brightcove/videos/images/posters/image_1406.jpg)
Triumph of the Will (Triumph des Willens)
Triumph of the Will is a Nazi propaganda film made by Leni Riefenstahl.
![](/sites/default/files/brightcove/videos/images/posters/image_277.jpg)
Where Are You From From?
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Through the voices of ten young people living in Berlin, Germany; and New York, USA, Where Are You From From? highlights the insight of children of immigrants in two societies struggling with migration and national identity.
![](/sites/default/files/brightcove/videos/images/posters/image_1422.jpg)