Voices of Change: Analyzing Speeches by LGBTQ+ Women
By Angela Andriesse
Description
Guiding Question: Can one person inspire change?
Big Idea: Empowerment
This lesson plan offers a focused and detailed approach to exploring the contributions of LGBTQ+ women through the analysis of their speeches, fostering a deeper understanding of their impact on social and political movements.
Time
30 minutes
Objective
- Understand the significant contributions of LGBTQ+ women to social and political movements.
- Analyze and interpret speeches by prominent LGBTQ+ women.
- Develop skills in critical thinking, historical analysis, and rhetorical analysis.
Materials
- Copies of speeches by Janet Mock (“My Sister’s Keeper”) and Laverne Cox (speech at SPARK! 2018 Gala)
- Janet Mock’s speech (text and video): https://janetmock.com/2017/01/21/womens-march-speech/
- Laverne Cox’s speech (text and video): https://transgenderlawcenter.org/watch-the-laverne-cox-speech-you-need-this-week/
- Notebooks/journals for student reflections
- Projector and screen for video presentations
- How To Read a Speech Handout
- Library of Congress’ Teaching with Primary Sources Tools:
- Teacher’s guide: https://www.loc.gov/static/programs/teachers/getting-started-with-primary-sources/documents/Analyzing_Primary_Sources.pdf
- Blank print out for students: https://www.loc.gov/static/programs/teachers/getting-started-with-primary-sources/documents/Primary_Source_Analysis_Tool_LOC.pdf
- Refer to the following resources for historical and social context when the speeches to be discussed were delivered:
- https://www.womenshistory.org/exhibits/feminism-fourth-wave
- https://www.learningforjustice.org/magazine/the-womens-march-protest-and-resistance
- https://prologue.blogs.archives.gov/2019/06/24/pride-in-protesting-50th-anniversary-of-the-stonewall-uprising/
- https://www.zinnedproject.org/materials/lgbtq-history-high-school/
- Refer to https://www.glsen.org/activity/lgbtq-history-timeline-lesson for background information on the history of LGBTQ+ rights in the United States
Procedures
Warm Up:
- Display the image of Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera: https://www.digitaltransgenderarchive.net/files/n009w2632
- And have students do a See/Think/Wonder: What do you see? What do you think about that? What does it make you wonder?
- Turn and talk with a partner and be ready to share with the whole group.
- Next, ask students what they know about the contributions of LGBTQ+ women to social and political movements. Highlight/brainstorm key figures and their roles. Discuss any similarities with other social and political movements.
Activity:
- Introduction to Speeches (5 minutes): Divide the class in half. Provide 1 half of the students with copies of Laverne Cox’s speech and the other half with Janet Mock’s speech. Explain the historical and social context in which these speeches were delivered. Have students read their assigned speech individually or in pairs. Encourage them to highlight or underline key phrases and arguments made by the speakers.
- Guided Analysis (10 minutes): Distribute the Library of Congress’s Primary Source Analysis Tool worksheet. Instruct students to work together to complete the worksheet for their assigned speech. Tell them they should use the 3-2-1 strategy for this analysis: Record 3 observations, 2 reflections, and 1 question. Remind them to comment on the main idea of the speech and how effectively this message was communicated.
- Group Discussion (10 minutes): Students should find a new partner who did not read the same speech as them. Take turns telling your partner about your speech and listening to information about the other speech. When finished, consider together: how have the speeches contributed to social and political movements and the ongoing fight for equality?
- Reflection and Connection (5 minutes): Discuss with the class how the fight for LGBT+ rights has evolved since the time of the speeches. Encourage students to think about current issues faced by the LGBTQ+ community and how the messages in the speeches can inspire action today.
Assessment / Homework
Exit ticket: Ask students to write a short reflection about what they learned from the speeches. Think about how the messages in these speeches are still relevant today.
How do these speeches demonstrate the empowerment of LGBTQ+ women, and in what ways can this empowerment inspire you or others in your own life or community
Future Research / Resources
- For additional LGBTQ+ curricular resources:
- History Unerased: https://unerased.org/
- Facing History and Ourselves: https://www.facinghistory.org/
- Learning for Justice: https://www.learningforjustice.org/
- For Advanced Students: Assign a research project where students explore additional speeches by LGBTQ+ women and compare them to the ones analyzed in class.
- Cross-curricular Connections: Integrate language arts by having students write a persuasive essay or speech on a current issue using techniques they identified in the speeches of LGBTQ+ women. OR use the speech analysis tool (included with this packet) to do a close-reading of the speech.
Standard
C3 Standards:
- D2.Civ.10.9-12. Analyze the impact and the appropriate roles of personal interests and perspectives on the application of civic virtues, democratic principles, constitutional rights, and human rights.
- D2.Civ.14.9-12. Analyze historical, contemporary, and emerging means of changing societies, promoting the common good, and protecting rights.
- D2.His.2.9-12. Analyze change and continuity in historical eras.
- D2.His.5.9-12. Analyze how historical contexts shaped and continue to shape people’s perspectives.
- D2.His.16.9-12. Integrate evidence from multiple relevant historical sources and interpretations into a reasoned argument about the past.
This biography is sponsored in part by the Library of Congress Teaching with Primary Sources Eastern Region Program, coordinated by Waynesburg University. Content created and featured in partnership with the TPS program does not indicate an endorsement by the Library of Congress.
For further information or questions, please contact [email protected].