A Class Divided (full documentary) | FRONTLINE

Summary

The video script recounts Jane Elliott's groundbreaking classroom experiment addressing discrimination and prejudice, initiated after Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination. By dividing her third-grade class in Riceville, Iowa, based on eye color, Elliott created a microcosm of societal bias, illustrating the arbitrary nature of discrimination. The powerful exercise, which included differential treatment and restrictions based on eye color, aimed to make students empathize with the experiences of marginalized groups. The script also discusses the long-term impact of the lesson on students and its adaptation for various audiences, including a high school reunion and a prison sociology course.

Takeaways

• 🕵️ The script recounts a powerful educational experiment conducted by Jane Elliott, a third-grade teacher in Iowa, aimed at teaching her students about the harmful effects of discrimination and prejudice.
• 📚 The experiment was initiated in response to the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., as a way to address the topic of racism in a tangible and impactful manner to young students.
• 👁️ The 'Eye of the Storm' exercise divided the class based on eye color, creating a microcosm of society with artificial social hierarchies based on a physical characteristic.
• 🚫 The exercise included rules that favored blue-eyed students over brown-eyed ones, simulating the experience of discrimination and the associated feelings of inferiority and injustice.
• 🔄 The roles were reversed the next day, allowing students to experience both privileged and oppressed positions, highlighting the arbitrary nature of such divisions.
• 🧐 The exercise had profound psychological effects on the students, causing them to reflect on their behavior and attitudes towards others, and the impact of discrimination on self-esteem and social interaction.
• 🤔 The script reveals the students' reflections years later, showing the lasting impact of the exercise on their understanding of discrimination and their attitudes towards others.
• 📉 The experiment also had unintended academic benefits, as students' test scores improved following the exercise, suggesting a link between self-perception and academic performance.
• 🏛️ The film of the exercise has been used in various settings, including prisons and schools, to foster discussions on prejudice and discrimination.
• 👥 The script includes a high school reunion where former students revisit the exercise, indicating the long-term effects on their personal development and social awareness.
• 💡 The story of Jane Elliott's class serves as a potent reminder of the importance of empathy and understanding in combating discrimination and building a more inclusive society.

Q & A

What significant event happened 27 years prior to the video script's recording, and how did it affect America's cities?

The assassination of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. occurred 27 years prior to the script's recording. This event led to an eruption of grief and frustration in America's cities.

What was the teacher's name in Riceville, Iowa, who decided to address the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. with her third-grade class?

The teacher's name was Jane Elliott, who decided to deal with the topic of the assassination in a concrete way with her third-grade class.

What was the unique experiment conducted by Jane Elliott in her classroom to teach her students about prejudice and discrimination?

Jane Elliott conducted an experiment based on eye color, dividing her class into 'blue-eyed' and 'brown-eyed' groups and assigning different privileges and restrictions to each group to simulate discrimination.

What was the immediate impact of the eye color experiment on the students' behavior as observed by Jane Elliott?

The experiment quickly turned thoughtful children into discriminating individuals, showing how quickly prejudices can form and affect behavior.

How did the students feel after experiencing the discrimination exercise, according to their reflections during the high school reunion?

The students felt a range of emotions, including anger, humiliation, and a sense of being demoralized. The experience made them more empathetic towards those who face discrimination.

What was the unexpected academic outcome observed by Jane Elliott after conducting the eye color exercise with her students?

An unexpected outcome was that the students' academic scores improved, particularly on the day they were treated as superior and maintained a higher level for the rest of the year.

How did Jane Elliott's lesson in discrimination spread beyond her classroom?

The lesson spread through the film 'The Eye of the Storm,' which was widely used with students, teachers, and organizations concerned about human relations, even being used in a maximum-security prison.

What was the reaction of the corrections department employees when they were subjected to Jane Elliott's discrimination exercise?

The employees experienced feelings of powerlessness, anger, and frustration, which helped them empathize with the experiences of minority groups facing discrimination.

What was the main message Jane Elliott hoped to convey through her discrimination exercise?

The main message was to demonstrate the unfairness and harm of discrimination, to promote empathy, and to encourage individuals to challenge and resist bigotry.

How did Jane Elliott's approach to teaching about discrimination evolve over time, and what were the long-term effects on her students?

Elliott's approach remained consistent, focusing on experiential learning through the eye color exercise. The long-term effects included a deeper understanding of discrimination and a lasting bond among her students, who felt like a family after the exercise.

Outlines

00:00

📚 A Bold Lesson in Discrimination

The script introduces a third-grade teacher's response to the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., which led her to conduct a daring experiment in prejudice with her students in Riceville, Iowa. The teacher, Jane Elliott, aimed to provide a concrete understanding of discrimination by assigning social status based on eye color, creating a microcosm of societal divisions. The exercise was captured by ABC News and later shown to the students as adults, revealing its profound impact on their lives.

05:01

👀 The Eye Color Experiment

This paragraph delves into the specifics of Jane Elliott's eye color experiment, where she divided her class into 'superior' blue-eyed and 'inferior' brown-eyed groups, instituting rules that favored one group over the other. The experiment quickly transformed the children's behavior, illustrating how quickly discrimination can take hold. The narrative captures the emotional turmoil and the stark change in the classroom dynamics, highlighting the power of the exercise to evoke empathy and understanding.

10:05

🔄 Reversal of Discrimination

The third paragraph describes a dramatic shift in the exercise when the teacher reversed the roles, proclaiming the brown-eyed children as superior. This sudden change in status led to a new set of behaviors and attitudes among the students, with the previously privileged blue-eyed children now experiencing the brunt of discrimination. The paragraph captures the emotional reactions and the stark realization of the unfairness of discrimination, as well as the educational value of the experience.

15:07

📝 The Lasting Impact of the Discrimination Lesson

This section reflects on the long-term effects of the discrimination lesson, as the students, now adults, revisit their experiences. They discuss the profound insights gained about prejudice and the personal transformations that resulted from the exercise. The narrative emphasizes the power of the lesson to change perspectives and the continued relevance of these lessons in their adult lives, including their interactions with others and their understanding of social injustice.

20:08

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 The Ripple Effects of a Teacher's Commitment

The fifth paragraph explores the broader impact of Jane Elliott's teachings on discrimination, beyond her classroom. It discusses the reactions and reflections of her former students during a reunion, where they share personal anecdotes about how the lesson influenced their attitudes towards racism and prejudice. The narrative underscores the teacher's unwavering commitment to addressing bigotry and the deep, lasting impressions her lessons left on her students.

25:10

🧐 The Unsettling Reality of Prejudice

This paragraph examines the unsettling reality of prejudice as experienced by the students during the exercise. It captures the raw emotions and the internal conflicts that arose from the discrimination they faced, as well as the realization that prejudice is a learned behavior. The narrative highlights the students' reflections on the exercise, their recognition of the arbitrariness of the discrimination, and the lessons learned about the human capacity for cruelty and empathy.

30:11

🏢 The Exercise Beyond the Classroom

The sixth paragraph discusses the expansion of Jane Elliott's discrimination exercise beyond the classroom, into various sectors including government, business, and labor organizations. It also mentions the unexpected academic benefits observed in the students' performance following the exercise. The narrative explores the potential of the exercise to foster understanding and combat prejudice in diverse settings, including its use in a maximum-security prison.

35:14

👮‍♂️ Addressing Prejudice in the Iowa Department of Corrections

This section details Jane Elliott's work with the Iowa Department of Corrections, where she was hired to conduct her discrimination exercise for prison staff, including guards and parole officers. The narrative captures the initial confusion and subsequent realizations of the participants as they experienced the exercise, highlighting the discomfort and frustration that arose from the artificial division based on eye color.

40:20

🤔 The Struggle with Listening and Learning

The eighth paragraph focuses on the challenges faced by the participants in the exercise, particularly their struggle with listening and learning from the experience. It captures the dynamic between the instructor and the participants, the resistance to accepting the lesson, and the difficulty in acknowledging personal biases. The narrative reflects on the importance of active listening and the barriers to learning in the context of confronting one's own prejudices.

45:25

💔 The Emotional Toll of Discrimination

In this paragraph, the emotional toll of discrimination is brought to the forefront, as the participants grapple with feelings of powerlessness, anger, and frustration. The narrative explores the personal impact of the exercise, the recognition of the need for empathy, and the participants' reflections on their own behaviors and attitudes towards others. It also touches on the complexities of sexism and the participants' struggles with respect and recognition.

50:26

🤝 The Power of Empathy and Unity

The final paragraph concludes the script with a reflection on the power of empathy and unity. It discusses the participants' realization of the potential for societal change if the principles of equality and respect were genuinely embraced. The narrative highlights the transformative effect of the exercise on the participants' relationships with one another, creating a sense of familial bonds and a shared commitment to reject discrimination.

Keywords

💡Discrimination

Discrimination refers to the unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of people, especially on the grounds of race, age, sex, or disability. In the video's theme, discrimination is portrayed through the teacher's exercise that divides students based on eye color, illustrating the negative impacts of prejudice. The script shows how quickly discrimination can manifest, even among children, when one group is labeled as superior.

💡Prejudice

Prejudice is a preconceived opinion or judgment that is not based on reason or actual experience. The video uses the exercise of eye color discrimination to demonstrate how prejudice can be internalized and acted upon, leading to the unfair treatment of the 'inferior' group. It is a central concept that underpins the harmful effects of discrimination shown in the script.

💡Racism

Racism is the belief in the inherent superiority of one race over another, which often results in discrimination and prejudice towards people based on their race or ethnicity. The video's narrative uses the classroom exercise as a metaphor for racism, showing how such beliefs can be perpetuated and the psychological impact it has on individuals.

💡Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King Jr. was an American civil rights leader who fought for equality through nonviolent means. His assassination, mentioned in the script, serves as a backdrop to the teacher's motivation to address racism and discrimination in her classroom. His ideals of equality and brotherhood are contrasted with the discriminatory exercise conducted by the teacher.

💡Dehumanizing

Dehumanizing is the act of depriving someone of their individuality or humanity, often a result of discrimination or prejudice. In the script, the teacher's exercise inadvertently dehumanizes the 'inferior' group by assigning them negative traits and limiting their privileges, reflecting the dehumanizing effects of discrimination.

💡Social Experiment

A social experiment is a study that investigates how individuals or groups interact within a controlled setting, often to test a hypothesis about human behavior. The teacher's classroom exercise is a form of social experiment aimed at demonstrating the realities of discrimination and the ease with which prejudice can take hold, as shown through the students' reactions.

💡Eye Color Exercise

The eye color exercise is a specific method used by the teacher to simulate discrimination based on a superficial characteristic—eye color. It serves as a powerful tool in the video to highlight the absurdity of discrimination and its impact on both the 'superior' and 'inferior' groups, as seen in the students' experiences and reflections.

💡National Brotherhood Week

National Brotherhood Week is a time designated to promote unity and understanding among different racial and religious groups. The script mentions this week as the setting for the teacher's lesson, emphasizing the contrast between the intended message of brotherhood and the discriminatory exercise that follows.

💡Empathy

Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. The video's theme of discrimination and the eye color exercise is designed to foster empathy among the students by having them experience the negative emotions associated with being part of a discriminated-against group, as expressed in their reflections during the reunion.

💡Segregation

Segregation is the practice of separating individuals or groups based on race, color, religion, or other attributes. In the script, the teacher's exercise creates a form of segregation within the classroom, with different rules and privileges for those with blue and brown eyes, mirroring the historical practice of racial segregation.

💡Authority

Authority in this context refers to the power or right to give orders, make decisions, or enforce obedience. The teacher's position of authority is central to the exercise's effectiveness, as it influences the students' willingness to comply with the discriminatory rules, demonstrating how authority can shape social dynamics.

Highlights

27 years after Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination, a third-grade teacher in Iowa initiates a daring experiment to teach her students about racism and prejudice.

The teacher, Jane Elliott, uses eye color to create a microcosm of societal discrimination within her classroom.

Blue-eyed students are initially labeled as superior, leading to the discrimination of their brown-eyed peers.

Elliott's exercise demonstrates how quickly children can internalize and act on discriminatory beliefs.

Students experience the negative impacts of being part of the 'out-group', including feelings of demoralization and humiliation.

The exercise reveals the psychological effects of discrimination, such as lowered self-esteem and increased aggression.

Elliott's classroom experiment is filmed by ABC News for a documentary, 'The Eye of the Storm'.

Former students reunite to reflect on the long-term impact of the exercise on their understanding of discrimination.

The exercise unexpectedly improves academic performance, as students perform better when they believe they are superior.

Elliott's method is used in various settings, including prisons and corporations, to raise awareness about prejudice.

The exercise is critiqued for its potential to cause harm if not conducted properly, emphasizing the need for sensitive implementation.

Jane Elliott's approach is seen as a powerful tool for educators to address bigotry and promote empathy.

Participants in the exercise report a heightened sense of empathy and a reluctance to discriminate after the experience.

The debriefing session post-exercise is crucial for understanding the psychological impact and societal implications of discrimination.

Elliott's work has inspired a movement towards using her methods to combat racism and prejudice in various professional fields.

The exercise serves as a stark reminder of the arbitrary nature of discrimination and the potential for societal change.

Jane Elliott's lesson in discrimination has had a lasting impact on individuals, fostering a sense of unity and 'family' among diverse groups.

Transcripts

[Music]

27 years ago when civil rights leader

Martin Luther King jr. was assassinated

grief and frustration erupted in

America's cities and far away in Iowa

one third-grade teacher knew she had to

do something the shooting of Martin

Luther King could not just be talked

about and explained a way there was no

way to explain this too low third

graders in Riceville Iowa I knew that it

was time to deal with this in a concrete

way not just talk about it because we

had talked about racism since the first

day of school it was a daring experiment

in the prejudice

I watched wonderful thoughtful children

turn into can one teacher in one day

change the lives of her students forever

tonight

a class divided autist 1984 a high

school reunion brings some 50 former

students to Riceville Iowa 11 of them

some with their spouses and children

arrived early for a special reunion with

their former third-grade teacher Jane

Elliott

[Music]

[Laughter]

[Music]

14 years earlier when they were students

in her third-grade classroom ABC News

filmed a two-day exercise for a

documentary the eye of the storm now at

their request they will see that film

again and relive the experience of her

unique lesson in discrimination

[Music]

my sweet this is a special week does

anybody know what it is national

Brotherhood week what's Brotherhood be

kind to your brothers treat everyone the

way you would like to be treated treat

everyone as though he was your brother

and is there anyone in this United

States that we do not treat as our

brothers yes black people who else in

absolutely the Indians and when you see

when many people see a black person or a

yellow person or a red person what do

they think look at the dumb people what

else do they think sometimes what kinds

of things do they say about black people

in a city many places in the

United States how are black people

treated how are indians treated how are

people who are of a different color than

we are they don't get anything in this

world why is that because they're

different color do you think you know

how I would feel to be judged by the

color of your skin

I don't do you think you do no I don't

think you'd know how that felt unless

you had been through it would you it

might be interesting to judge people

today by the color of their eyes would

you like to try this sounds like fun

doesn't it since I'm the teacher and I

have blue eyes I think maybe the

blue-eyed people should be on top the

first day I mean the blue-eyed people

are the better people in this room oh

yes they are mm-hmm all right people are

smarter than brown eyed people

[Music]

are you sure dad cried you know one day

you came to school and you told us that

he kicked you he dude do you think a

blue-eyed father would kick his son

brings daddy's blue-eyed he's never

kicked him but Rex is dead

blue eyed he's never kicked him this is

a this is a fact blue eyed people are

better than brown eyed people are you

brown eyed or blue eyed hello why are

you shaking your head are you sure that

you're right why what makes you so sure

that you're right blue eyed people get 5

extra minutes of recess while the right

people have to stay in the brown eyed

people do not get to use the drinking

fountain you'll have to use the paper

cups you brown eyed people are not to

play with the blue eyed people on the

playground because you are not as good

as blue-eyed people well the brown eyed

people in this room today are going to

wear collars so that we can tell from a

distance what color your eyes are on

page 127 127 is everyone ready everyone

but Laurie

ready Laurie she's a brown-eyed you'll

begin to notice today that we spend a

great deal of time waiting for

brown-eyed people the yardsticks dog

well okay I don't see the yardstick to

you oh you think if the brown-eyed

people get out of hand that would be the

thing to use who goes first to lunch the

blue-eyed people

no brown-eyed people go back for seconds

blue-eyed people may go back for seconds

brown-eyed people do not run don't you

know that damn reason might take too

much

[Music]

and it seems like when we were down on

the bottom everything bad was happening

to us the way they treated you you felt

like you didn't even want to try to do

anything seem like mrs. Elliott was

taking our best friends away from us

[Music]

what happened at recess for two of you

boys fighting John what happened John

that's so Pony names

[Music]

[Music]

yeah what's wrong with being called

bride it means that we're stupid wrong

like that

Oh same way as other people call black

people yeah that's the reason

you're hitting John did it help

did it stop him they make you feel

better inside mmm make you feel better

inside it make you feel better to call

him brown eyes why do you suppose you're

calling brown eyes Freddie 15

Seth the only reason he didn't call him

brown eyes yesterday he had brown eyes

yesterday didn't he get some pinkies

always this teasing no well he what were

you doing it for fun to be funny who are

you doing it to be mean I don't know

don't ask me did anyone laugh I watched

what had been marvelous cooperative

wonderful thoughtful children turn into

nasty vicious discriminating little

third graders in space of 15 minutes

yesterday I told you that brown-eyed

people aren't as good as blue-eyed

people that wasn't true I lied to you

yesterday the truth is that brown-eyed

people are better than blue-eyed people

[Music]

Russell where are your glasses

I forgot them you forgot them and what

color are your eyes

Suzan ginder has brown eyes she didn't

forget her glasses

Russell ring has blue eyes and what

about his glasses he forgot them

yesterday we were visiting and Greg said

boy I like to hit my little sister as

hard as I can that's fun what does that

tell you about blue-eyed people

the brown-eyed people may take off their

collars and each of you may put your

collar on a loo eyed person

the brown-eyed people get five extra

minutes of recess

you blue-eyed people are not allowed to

be on the playground equipment at any

time you blue-eyed people are not to

play with the brown-eyed people

brown-eyed people are better than

blue-eyed people they're smarter than

blue-eyed people and if you don't

believe it look at Brian do blue-eyed

people know how to sit in a chair very

sad very very sad who can tell me what

contraction should be in the first

sentence throw the board and write it

John come on let's do it again

loosen up up come on

that's better now do you know how to

make a W okay write the contraction for

we are now that's beautiful writing is

that better yeah

brown-eyed people learn fast don't they

boy I do with brown-eyed people learn

fast very good

[Music]

Gregg what did you do with that cup will

you please go and get that cup and put

your name on it and keep it at your desk

blue-eyed people are wasteful okay it

might be time this morning I news

orton-gillingham phonics we used the

card pack and the children the

brown-eyed children were in the low

class the first day and it took them

five and a half minutes to get to the

card pack the second day it took them

two and a half minutes the only thing

that had changed was the fact that now

they were superior people couldn't you

get them yesterday oh and you couldn't

think as well with the collars on 4

minutes and 18 seconds I know how long

did it take you yesterday 3 minutes how

long did it take you today

what happened when done why

are you thinking of this I hate today

because I'm glue I there's nothing it's

not funny it's not fun it's not pleasant

this is a filthy nasty word called

discrimination we're treating people a

certain way because they are different

from the rest of us is that fair

no nothing fair about it we didn't say

this was going to be a Faraday did we

and it isn't it's a horrid day ready

what did you do people who are wearing

new colors now find out today prison

make your channel not up in the prison

you're throwing the key away should the

color of some other person's eyes have

anything to do with how you treat them

no all right then should the color of

their skin no should you judge people no

no I the color of their skin no you're

going to say that today and this week

and probably all the time you're in this

room you'll say no mrs. alley

every time I asked that question no then

when you see a black man or an Indian or

someone walking down the street are you

gonna say does it make any difference

whether their skin is black or white or

yellow or red is that how you decide

whether people are good or bad what

makes people good or bad let's take

these collars off would you like to do

with them go ahead now you know a little

bit more than you knew at the beginning

of this way

do you know a little bit more than you

wanted to yeah this isn't an easy way to

learn this is it okay now let's all sit

down here together blue eyes and brown

eyes hey listen okay now we're back that

you have make any difference in the kind

of person you are does that feel like

being home again girls

[Music]

[Applause]

[Laughter]

this was the third time Jane Elliott had

taught her lesson in discrimination the

first two years earlier was in April of

1968 on the day after Martin Luther King

was killed by one of my students came

into the room and said they shot a king

last night mrs. Elliott why'd they shoot

that King I knew the night before that

it was time to deal with this in a

concrete way not just talk about it

because we had talked about racism since

the first day of school but the shooting

of Martin Luther King who had been one

of our heroes of the month in February

could not just be talked about and

explained away there was no way to

explain this to low third graders in

Riceville Iowa as I listened to the

white male commentators on TV the night

before I was hearing things like who's

going to hold your people together as

they interviewed black leaders what are

they going to do who's going to control

your people as though this was these

people were subhuman and someone was

going to have to step in there and

control them they said things like when

we lost our leader

his widow helped to hold us together

who's going to hold them together and

the attitude was so arrogant and so

condescending and so ungodly that I

thought if white male adults react this

way what are my third graders going to

do how are they going to react to this

thing I was ironing the teepee we

studied an Indian unit we made a teepee

every year the first year the students

would make the teepee out of pieces of

sheet we'd sew it together and the next

year we decorate it with Indian symbols

I was ironing the previous year's teepee

getting it ready to be decorated the

next day and I thought of what we had

done with the Indians we haven't made

much progress in these 200-300 years and

I thought this is the time now to teach

them really what the Sioux Indian prayer

that says oh great spirit keep me from

ever judging a man until I have walked

in his moccasins really means and for

the next day I knew that my children

were going to walk in someone else's

moccasins for a day

like it or lump but they were going to

have to walk in someone else's moccasins

I decided at that point that it was time

to try the eye color thing which I had

thought about men

many times but had never used so the

next day I introduced an eye color

exercise in my classroom and split the

class according to eye color and

immediately created a microcosm of

society in a third grade classroom

Riceville hasn't changed much in the 17

years since then it's still a small

farming community surrounded by corn

fields its population is still under a

thousand and it's still all white and

all Christian and though Jane Elliott

has continued to teach her a lesson in

discrimination there's been little

outward local reaction no objections

from school authorities or the parents

of the 300 odd students who have by now

been through it the reunion of her

former third graders was Jane Elliot's

first chance to find out how much of her

lessons her students had retained Raven

why I wanna know why you were so eager

to discriminate against the rest of

these kids yeah

at the end of the day I thought the

miserable little Nazi really I just I

couldn't stand you it felt tremendously

evil you could all your inhibitions were

gone and no matter if they were my

friends or not any pent-up hostilities

or aggressions that these kids had ever

caused you you had a chance to get it

all out

it felt like I was a king like happy you

know and you did it all day yeah how did

you feel when you were the out-group boy

that day after we went home

who gonna talk about hating somebody it

was there you hated me yeah of what you

were putting us through nobody likes to

be looked down upon nobody likes to be

hated teased or discriminated against

and it just boggles up inside of you you

you just get so mad where you're just

angry or was there more than that

I felt demoralized humiliated is the

learning worth the agony yeah it made

everything a lot different than what it

was you uh we was a lot better family

all together even in our houses we was

probably because it it was hard on you

when you have your best friend one day

and then he's your enemy the next it

brings it out real real quick in you I

don't know some of the remarks were the

kinds of things I would have wished I

could have programmed into them if I had

been able to program them they're the

things I would have wanted them to say

some of the things were just

mind-blowing you know you hear these

people talking about you know different

people how they're you know me

difference and they'd like to have a

mother country wish they'd go back to

Africa you know and stuff sometimes I

just wish I had that caller in my pocket

I could whip it out and put it on and

say wear this and put your put yourself

in their place I wish they would go what

I went over you know do what I went

through we was at a softball game a

couple weekends ago and there was a

black you know I really and we hugged

each other and everything and some

people really look just like what are

you doing with him you know and you just

get this Bernie feeling insatiable let

it out

and put them through what we went

through to find out they're not any

different myself sometimes when I see

some people together and I see how they

act you know I think well that's black

and then right in the next second don't

even finish the thought I'm saying well

I've seen whites do it I've seen other

people do it it's not just the blacks

it's everyone acts differently it's just

the different color is what hits you

first and then later as I said I only

have finished that thought before I

remember back when I was like that and I

remember not you know everyone acts the

same way it's just your way of thinking

is the difference like one of my

grandparents just somebody and they

started talking about old times and they

say the Japs and all this and that and

they

start you know holding that against them

I think how'd you like to have been them

Japanese Americans get sworn into this

camp just because they happened to be

part Japanese you know I I just calm

down and think about it but when they

get older they set in their ways and

they're not gonna change when you get

older I'll be set in my ways but they're

different than that way when fellas

absolutely enthralled Sandi dolmens

statements that when my son comes home

with the word and the other

things that he hears downtown I say to

him listen that isn't the way we judge

people you don't judge people by how

they look you judge them by what's on

their inside not their outside I'm glad

that she's teaching him not to hate

because even though he does hear this

from the other people he if he goes home

anything's on mom and diet dad like the

black people I'm gonna like him too so I

don't think he's gonna pick nothing bad

about it you chose your husband well he

chose me taken you know they listened a

lot of other people too so they're gonna

end up kind of confused over it yeah

kind of person you kids are or is he

going to be the kind who judge people

whether well he'll know right somewhat

right from wrong the ideas he won't be

judging him by their color but he won't

know what we know fully having been

through it

he won't learn collar the prejudice

Piermont dollar he won't look prejudice

first handed yeah

they don't learn to be prejudiced from

us I mean they won't learn to

discriminate between people from us they

might he might hear from others but

never from us okay what's it like to be

married to somebody like that and I was

gonna marry Sheila I knew it for my

future that I was going into the

military at first I thought is she gonna

be able to handle being with all the

different nationalities

and then I read the storm read the book

a class divided the class divided before

we got married and before I joined the

army and I said hey she's not gonna have

any problems should every should every

child have the exercise or should every

teacher I think every school ought to

implement something like this program in

their in their early stages of education

if Jane Elliot's lesson in

discrimination changed the way these

young people feel about discrimination

and racism it also had a totally

unexpected result the second year I did

this exercise I gave little spelling

tests math tests reading tests two weeks

before the exercise each day of the

exercise in two weeks later and almost

without exception the students scores go

up on the day they're on the top down on

the day they're on the bottom and then

maintain a higher level for the rest of

the year after they've been through the

exercise we sent some of those tests to

Stanford University to the psychology

department and they did a sort of an

informal review of them and they said

that what's happening here is kids

academic ability is being changed in a

24 hour period and that isn't possible

but it's happening something very

strange is happening to these children

because suddenly they're finding out how

really great they are and they are

responding to what they know now they're

able to do and it has happened

consistently with third graders the film

made of Jane Elliott's third graders in

1970 has been widely used with students

and teachers and by government business

and labor organizations concerned about

human relations perhaps the most unusual

use of it is here at Green Haven

Correctional Facility a maximum-security

prison in Stormville New York

[Music]

here in a sociology course taught by

Professor Dewayne W Smith of Dutchess

Community College is almost exclusively

black and Hispanic classes have been

seeing the film for more than 10 years

what I'd like to do is introduce the

subject of prejudice and discrimination

through this film called the eye of the

storm

[Applause]

[Applause]

[Music]

Sandra and her brown-eyed friends didn't

like that day but did you think the

children by this process really learned

the meaning of the discrimination most

of the children before the film started

they had played and lived together in

harmony

and certain action of coming from the

teacher and seeing the teacher has an

authoritarian figure and someone to

respect they accepted the views that was

being given to him but I think in at the

end of the lesson they would they could

clearly see that prejudices and other

forms of discrimination are things that

people build within their minds and

they're not actually actual physical

barriers that say yo you can't cross the

street the one kid I could really agree

with was at recess it was a brown-eyed

kid he had this inner turmoil against

this feeling of being divided or

prejudiced against where he would hit

another kid that he is known for so many

years in the gut whether he also stated

that it didn't help any so that

automatically should be a lesson to

every adult in the world violence

doesn't open

and you know this is a film that I hope

my children good to see unlike New York

Iowa is 98% white anglo-saxon yet even

here minority groups account for more

than 20% of the prison population to

make sure its prison system employees

are sensitive to the concerns of this

large minority the Iowa Department of

Corrections last fall hired Jane Elliott

to give her lesson to some of them the

group which included prison guards and

parole officers was told only that it

would be attending a day-long workshop

David Stokes buried most of our training

you go to people give you information

and you learn that way Lou I when I

first came with the sign up and such and

and got put in the group I didn't know

when I start seeing the signs around you

know brown eyes only in such I figured

they were the better group because they

had a lot of spaces available and and

they were done for the blue eyes so when

I got put in the blue eyes group and put

the collar on and I I knew well then I

was going to be in the deprived coop

again okay now you can stay in this area

the workshop was supposed to begin at

9:00 they took the brown eyes in about

9:00 and then left us standing in the

hall but I'd literally stood because

there weren't enough chairs and I didn't

know whether or not I'd wanted to fight

to take a chair down it and know if

somebody'd come and take the chair away

from me if I did while David Stokes

Barry and the other blue-eyed people

waited inside the meeting room Jane

Elliott prepared the brown-eyed people

for what was going to happen

now this is not something I can do alone

this exercise won't work without your

cooperation blue eyed people aren't

allowed to smoke blue eyed people aren't

allowed to sit in these empty chairs

do not let a blue-eyed person sitting

next to you you know you can't trust

them and besides which they don't smell

good everybody knows that about

blue-eyed people you don't know what you

can catch from a blue-eyed person by

9:20 I felt someone tagging

and I'm stuck out here for 20 minutes

standing waiting I still say we always

see what kind of reaction we'd get by

everyone just simply going in no one

wants to do opposed and by all senior

song we shall overcome I need to have

you keep it down I don't how many times

I need to give that instruction but you

need to keep it down so you don't bother

the people in the little workshop mm-hmm

I was pretty well ticked off by the time

we got taken in their home person

already pointed at your own feet have

you butchered person to coat the coin

it would be to your advantage in the

future people if you'd get to meetings

on time it would also be to your

advantage if you'd put your gum away put

your gum away you want to get paid for

today well then stay but put your gum

away I'm sure that you are inventive

enough to find a place for the gum now

I'd like for you to notice where she put

her gum you have this problem with

blue-eyed people you gives them give

them something decent and they just

wreck it you'll also notice that

blue-eyed people spend a lot of time

playing look at me see how cute I am I

can be funny I can make a joke of this

this is amusing I'm amused by this

another thing that is obvious about

blue-eyed people is that they're poor

listeners the first thing you have to do

when you get when you're teaching in a

segregated situation when you're working

in a segregated situation is teach the

listening skills the listening skills

are number one good listeners have quiet

hands feet and miles everyone needs to

write these down I'd like for you to

look at the man in the back in the black

jacket the game we're playing is playing

it cool this is a favorite blue eyed

game playing it cool nobody can bother

me man

I can handle this I don't have to do

this I'm gonna ignore this whole thing

number two good listeners keep their

eyes on the person who is speaking I

take it you don't have a pencil

you're you perhaps you could borrow one

from one of your neighbors sir I realize

that you feel that you don't need to

write it down but whether or not you

write it down perhaps you could remember

it good listeners have quiet hands feet

and miles do you know what that means

I'm not sure I believe that

do you want me to explain it to you ok

I'll get a pencil and write this down

directly

look blue-eyed people all many of you

have pencils well one of you please lend

him a pencil or don't you trust me which

I can understand from the last 10

minutes what have you observed about

blue-eyed people you lie people are very

stubborn very self-centered and wish to

control as much of their surrounding as

possible people that wise I mean very

inconsiderate people I don't even know

what you're having here in the first

place we have them here because we are

required to have them here this is one

of the things you have to put up with

number three good listeners listen from

the beginning to the very end

okay good listeners decide to learn

something and this is the thing you'll

have the most difficulty with with

relied people they decide not to learn

something some of you have had trouble

with blue-eyed people in your home

environment some of you have had trouble

with blue-eyed people in your workplace

does anybody have an example of that

that they'd like to talk about anyone

two nephews ones blue eye and one brown

eye and the blue eye one that King never

cleans his room and he's real lazy and

the brown you know he doesn't seem to

have a lot of energy the blue eye one

but the brown eye one he's draw outgoing

and he plays in sports and then he's

pretty good at it you know he just seems

like a better kid so if I have kids I

hope they have brown eyes you are you

married no I think it's a good thing you

don't have kids in it right well you

will know what to do when it's when you

choose a mate right would you like to

read that first listening skill to me

have we got on that paper yet oh why is

that

I am the borrow the pencil to write it

down as yet how do you think it's

unnecessary at this particular point yes

I do

why

well I have it in my head for the most

part they're a base up there for it

isn't their friend do you suppose you

could tell me what it is it had

something to do with keeping your hands

and feet still that's something to do

with that I find it interesting that

you're amused by our having to stand

here and wait for this man to do

something that everybody else has

already done I find that highly

interesting stupid but interesting if if

you are in a situation where someone is

constantly constantly refusing to do

what the people in authority ask them to

do what do you know about them what do

you know about that person well I think

it's a game with them attention has it

gained anything for this gentleman

disrespected from I think for the

brown-eyed people has it proven anything

to brown-eyed people yeah this is a

typical trait of a blue-eyed person I

read the second one yeah I don't have

the second one can I read it off right I

don't have the second one either you

have you are keeping it in your head

what happened to that plan just them

just the first one I had in my head not

this the other three aren't important

well they're probably more important but

not important enough for you to write

down right well they're important I

should have written them down most

probably most probably does anybody back

there knows you don't have it written

down either I want you to take a look at

these two so-called gentlemen

now we need to hear the good listening

skills from you I don't want you to

think that I'm badgering you boys but on

the other hand on the other hand you're

here to learn something and if you learn

nothing else today it would be nice if

you would learn the listening skills

what do you know now about brown-eyed

people that you didn't know before you

about blue-eyed people that you didn't

know before you came in here finding I'm

gonna have to explain things a bit more

explicitly to a blue-eyed person that I

went to a brown that person how many

times did I have to repeat the listening

skills for Roger brother Rogers having a

rough time two days man it was about six

seven different times you think that's

amusing Roger apparently somewhat

amusing as part of the lesson the

corrections department employees took a

written test all right I need these

names and the scores are just initials

they are just an initial no last name no

names

how many eleven in Jordan or Charles I'm

not sure thank you sir tell me the name

again

Jordan you can't read the name no I

can't I can't make it out

what's your name my name is chambers

first name Janine and what was her score

thanks you Riley with a 5e e Riley

well a Riley please stand you know it's

what you do to the image of blues with

your behavior is unfortunate what you

three people do to the image of women

with your behavior really makes me angry

the fact that you do this kind of thing

and this kind of sloppy work reflects

badly on women I resent that ee yes

ma'am I'd really appreciate it if you'd

call us by name when you say you three

people we don't know who you're speaking

to it could be anyone here my dear if

you wanted me to call you by name you to

put your name on your paper it's on my

it was to be on your paper you didn't

see my papers I didn't get your name

either because it wasn't on your paper

all right now how can one call you by

your name if you don't care enough about

your name to put it on your paper don't

expect me to worry about it don't expect

me to worry about it if you don't put it

on your paper don't sit here and say my

name is important to me after you have

just deliberately not put it on your

paper you're being totally unrealistic

important to me I remember saying I like

to know who you're speaking to you when

you say you three then what should you

do ask you to use my name which I did

and where should your name of the bin

right where it is on your paper and on

my birth certificate is it on your paper

no ma'am where'd you get a birth

certificate same place you got out of a

slot machine same as you did lady I

think you're probably right about your

own at least I know who my parents are

ma'am

being rude yes she's being inconsiderate

very being uncooperative very being

insulted yes are all those the things

that we've accused blue-eyed people of

being yes

is she proving that we're right yes does

anyone have any comments to make at this

point do you feel that there are

important blue-eyed people there are

exceptions to every rule and what are

those exceptions there are a few

important blue eyed people very few you

should think that you're one of them

no that is why are you up there then I'm

blue eyed the difference between you and

me is I have a brown eyed husband and

brown eyed offspring I've learned how to

behave in a brown-eyed society and when

you can act brown enough then you too

can be where I am I wouldn't be where

you are are you certain

absolutely how'd you like where you are

I love where I am you liked it so much

that you don't even identify your self

on your paper I don't need to lady her

using the term lady where I'm concerned

what you think she's trying to do is it

ignorant or is it deliberately insulting

I wouldn't say was deliberately

insulting if it's ignorance she needs to

be taught that to many of us the word

lady is a pejorative I don't appreciate

it

it is it's a put-down and it's used to

keep women in their place

I'm sorry calling it by a correct name

after this I won't be kind that was

kindness on your part yes then you are

sure come when a lady is a kindness then

your problem is ignorant you shouldn't

call me lady anytime you like I wouldn't

do that to you no I really wouldn't I I

think that and that's part of the

problem is a total lack of awareness and

what sexism amounts to and how much you

contribute to the sexism that keeps you

where you are it's not like where I am

lady

get up with this whole bunch of garbage

just brown-eyed people's are no

different than we are I hate to tell

them that they have these false

delusions and such are they being

erected no you trained them very well I

think that's what they did with the

stormtroopers in Germany also you guys

do a real good job sitting where do I

think I am the Jews after a break for

lunch Jane Elliott helped the

corrections department employees analyze

what had happened did you learn anything

this morning I was powerless there was a

sense of hopelessness I was angry I

wanted to speak up and yet I at times I

knew if I spoke up I'll be back in a

powerless situation I'd be attacked a

sense of hopelessness had you had you

experienced that before I realized this

morning that there are very few times in

my life that I've ever been

discriminated against very few and you

are this uncomfortable in an hour and a

half I was amazed at how uncomfortable I

was in the first 15 minutes can you

empathize it all then with blacks

minority group members in this country

I'm hoping better than before we tried

to argue with you you you would use just

the mere argument as the reason for us

being lesser than the brown-eyed folks

you know you couldn't win don't we do

that every day I think I think some do

yeah but I would hope that I never get

so unreasonable I died

you know the statements you were making

were groundless and such and yet we

couldn't argue with them because if we

argued then we were argumentative and

you know not listening and and getting

out of our place and all that stuff and

and that was frustrating to me and then

frustrating to me was the other

little green tags who are sitting on

their hands my group here was I didn't

think the boisterous enough in our

opposition to the whole thing why didn't

you people support one another why

didn't the blue-eyed people who I people

on this side just sat there and let's

face it you're covered your asses right

why did you just sit there I think that

symptomatic of the problem as a whole we

see that you know in society in general

you see a few people who are making a

lot of noise and the rest of people

sitting back waiting to see what they're

going to do okay as long as I was

picking on you to him I was leaving you

alone right right I'd say a lot of

people accept that they let have a few

people do their fighting form and they

stand back and and if this person's

gonna win then they'll get on this side

if that person's not gonna win they'll

stay back over here you know that's just

how it works if you were in a real

situation where you had to do something

about racism well just would you stand

up and be counted

what I would do I don't know it would

depend on the existing I couldn't go

home tonight and face my kids if I

didn't how did you brown eyed people

feel while this was going on did you

have the right color eyes absolutely I

really understood at least I felt that I

understood what it was like to be in the

minority why are you angry first of all

because it was unreasonable secondly

because I felt discriminated against

thirdly I think that all of us everyone

in this room has dealt with

discrimination on both sides you don't

have to be black or Jewish or Mexican or

anything else to have felt

discrimination in your life and as you

become an adult you learn to deal with

those feelings within yourself you learn

to handle those and when you feel

yourself in a situation that you can't

get out of which we couldn't we were a

captive audience and it was not a normal

situation because normally aren't

badgered what if you had to spend the

rest of your life this way

I don't know how to answer that you

don't wake up every morning knowing that

you're different you wake up as a white

woman who is going to her job at 8

o'clock whatever where a black person is

going to wake up knowing for a minute

they get up out of the bed and look in

the mirror they're black and they have

to deal with the problems they've had to

deal with ever since they were young and

realize that I am different and I have

to deal with life differently things are

different for me and I don't think you

can really say that you have felt maybe

it felt some sort of discrimination but

you haven't felt what it is like for a

black woman to go through the daily

experiences of arguing and saying listen

to me my point of view is good you know

what I have to offer here is good and no

one wants to listen because white is

right that's the way things are I think

the necessity for this exercise is a

crime no I don't want to see it used

more widely I want to see it's the

necessity for it wiped out and I think

if educators were determined that we

could be very instrumental in wiping out

the necessity for this exercise but I

want to see something used I'd like to

see this exercise used with all teachers

all administrators but certainly not

with all students unless unless it's

done by people who are doing it for the

right reasons and in the white right way

I think you could damage a child with

this exercise very very easily and I

would never suggest that everybody

should use it I think you could have

training classes for teachers bring them

in put them through the thing explain

what happened do the debriefing and then

practice doing this until teachers until

a group of teachers were able to do it

on their own and I'd that teachers are

not disabled learners they could learn

to do this obviously if I can do it most

anyone can do it it doesn't take a super

teacher to do this exercise what began

in a third-grade classroom has spread

from students to teachers to corrections

officers at the center is still a single

teacher determined to inoculate her

students both young and old

against the virus of bigotry after you

do this exercise when the debriefing

starts when the pain is over and you're

all back together and you're all one

again you find out how society could be

if we really believed all this stuff

that we preach if we really acted that

way you can feel as good about one

another's those kids feel about one

another after this exercise is over you

create instant cousins I thought maybe

that lasted just while they were in my

classroom because of my superior

influence but indeed these kids still

feel that way about one another they

said yesterday over and over the remark

was made we're kind of like a family now

they found out how to hurt one another

and they found out how it feels to be

hurt in that way and they refused to

hurt one another that way again and they

said we're kind of like a family now and

indeed we were

[Music]

you

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you

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