DAY ONE: WHY ARE THEY RUNNING?

1. Activate prior knowledge. Begin the discussion by displaying and posing the question: “Why do politicians run for public office?” to the class. Individually, in pairs, or in groups, have students create a list (in their notebooks or on poster paper) of reasons that they think motivate people to run for office. After about 5 minutes of brainstorming, discuss their responses by displaying their posters or creating a class list at the front of the room. The goal of this brainstorm is to unpack students’ perceptions of what they believe motivates politicians to run for office, in order to later critically reflect on the unique motivations of the women featured in this film. As you discuss, press students to explain vague responses such as, “to make the world a better place,” by encouraging them to provide detail and specificity about what “better” means or looks like.
2. Interrogate preconceptions. Follow up questions: After discussing political motivations for running for office, ask students about the “typical politician” they were picturing in their head when they were creating this list: What gender, race, ethnicity are these imagined “typical” politicians? What language do they speak? What are they wearing? Where are they from? What is their profession outside of politics?
3. Give purpose for watching. Before beginning the film, have students draw a chart in their notebook with 3 columns and 7 rows (see below). Have students label the first column with “Name of Candidate,” the second column with “Motivations to Run for Office,” and the third column with “Thoughts and Other Notes About this Candidate.” Teachers can also create paper copies of this chart in advance.

Instruct students to fill in this table as they watch the film clips (also forewarn them that the names are listed in alphabetical order, not the order as they appear in the film). Tell students to use the “thoughts and other notes” to write down things about the candidate that strike them as interesting, unusual, or compelling. Encourage students to use the bottom or back of the page to write down any other reflections or notes that come to them during the film, including scenes that generate an emotional response (e.g., sadness, anger, frustration, joy).

1. Day one reflection. After film clip 5 (around the 0:35:00 minute mark), stop the film and take stock of students’ recorded responses and reflections.

• Discuss the unique motivations that compelled these women to run for office in 2018, two years after the shocking election of Donald Trump. Ask questions such as: Are there similarities among their political motivations, and if so, what are some shared themes? How are these motivations similar or different to the ones that the class came up with before watching the film? How do these women candidates match the image of the imagined candidate discussed before watching the film? What unique obstacles do they face in running for office as women, and as women of color?
• Reflect on what makes the candidacies of these women so unique, special, or historic — especially in the year 2018, a decade after the election of the nation’s first Black President, Barack Obama. Is the nation as “post-racial” as people claim? Encourage students to examine these questions and the women’s candidacies in light of historical U.S. contexts beyond the 2016 election, events such as the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks, the civil rights movement, the women’s rights movement, Jim Crow, Reconstruction, and slavery.

DAY TWO: GRASSROOTS ORGANIZING

1. Activate prior knowledge. Begin by giving students 2-3 minutes to jot down as many possible roles and people involved in a political campaign as they can think of. Have students share out, and record their responses on a piece of chart paper or on the board or document camera at the front of the class.
2. Give purpose for watching. Ask students if they know the meaning of the word “grassroots.” Allow a handful of students to share their definitions, and record these on the chart paper at the front of the class. Tell students to watch the film with this idea of “grassroots” in mind, and to note examples of activities, roles, or characteristics of grassroots organizing.
3. Open reflection and discussion. Watch the film through film clip #6. Stop the film and have students discuss their reflections, thoughts, and feelings thus far. Encourage open discussion, but strive to focus the conversation towards core concepts of grassroots organizing. Other topics to discuss may include racism, sexism, or the intersection of racism and sexism.
4. Mapping concepts. Individually, in groups, or as a class, give students 5-10 minutes to create a concept map (example below) around the term “grassroots.” To create a concept map, students should link three or more core concepts, characteristics, features, or qualities that illustrate the concept of grassroots (examples may include accountability, minorities, organizing, engagement, community, or lack of money).

9. Discussion and film analysis. Discuss the qualities of grassroots organizing the students came up with. Ask questions that get students to interrogate the differences in grassroots and traditional big-money political organizing, such as: How is grassroots organizing different from your idea of a traditional political campaign? What does it involve, and what does it require? How do racial, ethnic, and gender identities play a role in grassroots organizing -- in the film, and in real-life examples? Why do you think the filmmakers wanted to highlight the behind-the-scenes grassroots work of these women’s campaigns? How important is voter engagement in America? (Optional assessment: Teachers can also choose to use one of these questions as an Exit Ticket assessment for the day’s lesson, or have students turn in their concept maps.)

DAY THREE: (WHY) DOES DIVERSE LEADERSHIP MATTER?

1. Intersectionality, oppression, and politics. Introduce Kimberlé Crenshaw’s idea of intersectionality, which can be defined as “the overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination or disadvantage.” Teachers may aid the explanation of this idea by drawing a picture of two intersecting streets - one named “sexism” and one named “racism.” Have students discuss (in pairs, groups, or as a class) ways in which oppression looks or materializes differently at the intersection of those “streets” for women of different races, ethnicities, and beyond (e.g., class; sexualities; citizenship status; ability; religion). Encourage students to make connections to the women portrayed in the film, and how their identities represent different intersectionalities of oppression.

After this discussion, return to film clip #2 (13:50 - 17:50). Re-watch the clip together. Then, pose the following questions: “When the organizer says, ‘When we solve for black women’s issues, we solve for everyone’s issues,’ what is meant by this? Do you agree with this statement? Why or why not?” Ask students to reflect on this question individually in their notebook, then discuss in pairs. Share out and discuss as a class.

1. Give purpose for watching. Pose the following question to students: “Does diverse leadership matter?” Instruct students to think about this question as they watch the rest of the film. Tell them to be prepared to justify their perspective.
2. Final reflections. Dig deeper into the film’s theme that diversified leadership is understood to lead to expanded justice and democracy for all. Have students discuss this perspective in groups, then discuss as a class. Have students reflect on how the candidates’ motivations to run for office shed light on how their racialized and gendered identities and experiences may be critical to democracy, freedom, and equity for all. Challenge students to respond to critiques of this perspective, including questions or positions such as: What about white people? Aren’t we all equal? I don’t see color. These campaigns, and their focus on race, are divisive. Racism is in the past -- we elected Barack Obama!
3. Optional extension activities and discussions.

• What aspects of And She Could Be Next caused you to think about running for office in a new way? How has your thinking changed?
• Ask follow-up questions that encourage students to consider the role of politicians in constructing societies, such as: “Do you think it is possible for politicians to create lasting change?”
• Essay prompt: Imagine working on a political campaign. What kind of work would you do best? Are you more of a behind-the-scenes type person, a communicator, or a candidate?
• Essay prompt: What type of political messaging is convincing to you? What kinds of political messages turn you off?

DAY FOUR: DO MY REPRESENTATIVES REPRESENT MY COMMUNITY?

14. Research Project. Use this class period and any additional class or out-of-school time to allow students to conduct research on their local, state, and federal representatives. The following guiding question should be used to structure this research project: How do the demographics of your local, state, and federal elected officials reflect or compare to the racial and gender demographics of your local community?

Students should construct a visual representation (e.g., poster, infographic, PowerPoint) including charts, tables, or other figures that illustrate how the demographics of at least 3 elected office holders and the demographics of these governing bodies (e.g., school board; city council; state legislature; congresspeople) compare to the population demographics of their local community. (See example of a table students can use to organize their research below.) Write a 1-page summary that responds to the guiding question: How do the demographics of your local, state, and federal elected officials reflect or compare to the racial and gender demographics of your local community? Does the elected leadership match the demographics of my community?

[Note: Consider that community can be defined in different ways (e.g., as city, town, neighborhood, family, or church). Teachers can allow students the flexibility to highlight the community that feels most salient to themselves as individuals, as long as they are able to quantitatively compare the demographic characteristics of their selected community to the demographics of their elected officials. For example: If a student feels that the demographics of their church prayer group represents their community best, they must be able to illustrate the racial and gender demographics of their church prayer group in order to have a numerical figure to compare against the racial and gender characteristics of current officeholders. This may require allotting extra time for students to collect data.]

1. The New American Majority: Then and Now. After students have compiled the demographic data of their communities and compared them to the demographics of at least 3 elected offices and governing bodies, have them research how the gender and racial demographics of current elected officials compare to those who have historically held that office. Create another visual representation to illustrate if, and how, the demographic face of this office has changed. Teachers can adjust the difficulty or depth of this research project by assigning a specific span of time to research (e.g., changes since the year 2000 or changes since the year 1900).

For example, in 2018, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a Latina, was elected to represent New York state’s 14th congressional district. That district had previously been occupied by Carolyn B. Maloney, from 2000-2012, and Joseph Crowley, from 2012-2018. Maloney and Crowley are both white. Students can illustrate this through graphs, charts, tables, or pictures. (Optional extension: After projects are completed, teachers can lead a discussion around how and why students chose different ways of presenting their data, and what ways of representation communicated findings most effectively.)

1. Research extension: Analysis of political ads. Have students use YouTube or the internet to look up campaign ads of 1-3 current office holders. Use the following questions to analyze the rhetoric of these campaign ads: What platforms and promises do these candidates communicate to their audience? Who is the intended audience? How are race and/or gender portrayed in the ad? Is it clear who is understood, or who gets to be understood, as an American? By what margin did this candidate win their election? Would you have voted for this candidate; why or why not?
2. Evaluation. Create a rubric to evaluate students on the readability and quality of their visual representation, and the level of critical engagement with the guiding question.