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Thematic Teaching
justice: related resources
About the Author | Activity Ideas | Related Resources
Find Below: PBS Web Sites, Other Recommended Links, Recommended Books
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The U.S. Justice System:
Frontline: An Ordinary Crime
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/ordinary/
Was a man put in prison simply because he had the wrong name?
Frontline: A Crime of Insanity
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/crime/
Explore how the psychiatric and criminal justice worlds sometimes collide through a case study.
Frontline: Juvenile Justice
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/juvenile/
Should teenagers who commit violent crimes be tried as children or adults?
Frontline: Real Justice
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/bostonda/
What's it like to work in a district attorney's office?
Frontline: The Case for Innocence
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/case/
Explore how DNA testing is calling some verdicts into question.
Frontline: Justice for Sale
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/justice/
Are campaign contributions corrupting America's courts?
NOW with Bill Moyers: A History of the Freedom of Information Act
http://www.pbs.org/now/politics/foia.html
International and Human Rights:
Kofi Annan: Center of the Storm
http://www.pbs.org/un/
Explore the life and work
of the Nobel Peace Prize-winner and Secretary General of the United Nations.
Frontline: The Long Walk of Nelson Mandela
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/mandela/
Learn how Mandela transformed himself in prison from an impetuous, risk-taking radical into a mature leader and statesman.
NOW with Bill Moyers: Egyptian Prisoner of Conscience
http://www.pbs.org/now/transcript/transcript_prisoner.html
Follow the story of one political prisoner in Egypt.
Enemies of War
http://www.pbs.org/itvs/enemiesofwar/
For nearly a decade, El Salvador had been experiencing the cruel intensity of civil war, a conflict reportedly fueled by billions of dollars in aid from the United States government. Learn about the horrific murders of six Jesuit priests and the subsequent political and social ramifications as seen through the eyes of a Salvadoran family, a United States congressman, an ex-ambassador and an American priest.
Justice and the Generals
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/justice/
At a time of civil war in El Salvador -- when 75,000 people were disappeared or killed -- four American churchwomen were abducted, raped, and murdered. Many Salvadorans were tortured, and some lived to tell their tales. Who was responsible for such atrocities?
A Force More Powerful
http://www.aforcemorepowerful.org/
Explore the history of nonviolent resistance movements around the world in the 20th century.
Speak Truth to Power
http://www.pbs.org/speaktruthtopower/
Inspired by a book of interviews by Kerry Kennedy Cuomo, with photographs by Eddie Adams, The Kennedy Center Presents: Speak Truth to Power celebrates the work and struggle of human rights activists around the world.
Civil Rights in America:
American Experience: Emmet Till
http://www.pbs.org/amex/till
Learn more about the 1955 incident that inflamed a nation.
P.O.V.: Two Towns of Jasper
http://www.pbs.org/pov/twotownsofjasper
In 1998 in Jasper, Texas,
a black man named James Byrd Jr. was chained to a pick-up truck and dragged to his death by three white men. Learn more about the event and its aftermath.
Frontline: LAPD Blues
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/lapd/bare.html
Explore the corruption scandal that has shaken the once-great LAPD.
NOW with Bill Moyers: Civil Liberties and National Security
http://www.pbs.org/now/politics/timeline.html
Access primary source documents and historical background on civil liberties in America.
Conscience and the Constitution
http://www.pbs.org/itvs/conscience/
In World War II, a handful of young Americans refused to be drafted from an American concentration camp.
They were ready to fight for their country, but not before the government restored their rights as U.S. citizens and released their families from camp.
The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/
Jim Crow was not a person, yet affected the lives of millions of people. Named after a popular 19th-century minstrel song that stereotyped African Americans, "Jim Crow" came to personify the system of government-sanctioned racial oppression and segregation in the United States.
recommended web sites
Notable American Unitarians
http://www.harvardsquarelibrary.org/unitarians/
Many notable American artists, authors, and musicians were Unitarians and
there are biographical sketches found at this site. Personalities include
singers Pete Seeger and Malvina Reynolds, poets e.e. cummings, May Sarton,
and Conrad Aiken, and composers Bela Bartok and Mary Carr Moore. Students
may not be as familiar with names such as journalist for social justice
Ben Bagdikian whose profile discusses his writing about prisoners, civil
rights and poverty in the south. Most profiles have photographs,
selections of writings, and recommended readings.
Subject: Social Studies; Reading & Language Arts; The Arts
More Recommended Social Studies Links
More Recommended Reading & Language Arts Links
More Recommended Arts Links
Picturing Justice: The Online Journal of Law & Popular Culture
http://www.usfca.edu/pj/
The University of San Francisco School of Law archives articles written
about how law is portrayed on the large and small screen. You'll find
essays on movies directly related to law such as "Erin Brockovich" and
"Twelve Angry Men" but also unlikely films such as "Babe". Television
shows including "West Wing" and "The Practice" are critiqued on how the
legal profession plays a part in each. These essays would be a good
discussion starter to high school classes studying law.
Subjects: The Arts
More Recommended Arts Links
Indicators of School Crime and Safety, 2002
http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2003/schoolcrime/
The NCES 2002 report indicates that in 2000, students aged 12 through 18
were victims of about 1.9 million total crimes of violence or theft at
school. In 2001, 8 percent of students reported that they had been bullied
at school in the last 6 months, up from 5 percent in 1999. Most tables and
figures can be downloaded in PDF or a zipped Excel format. Previous
statistics related to school crime and safety are found at the National
Center for Education Statistics site:
http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/ssocs/.
Subject: Math; Social Studies
More Recommended Math Links
More Recommended Social Studies Links
Criminal Justice Statistics Center
http://caag.state.ca.us/cjsc/index.htm
The California Attorney General collects, analyzes, and reports
statistical data related to crime. Key facts on crime can be viewed in
chart format, PDF format, or data sets. The Statistics section has many
details of types of crime, demographics, law enforcement and corrections
although most of these are in PDF format rather than downloadable data
sets. The Crime Clock shows how often a variety of crimes are committed on
average in California. There are detailed graphics for the criminal
justice timeline 1822-2000 and a flowchart of criminal justice from the
initial crime to release from corrections.
Subject: Math; Social Studies
More Recommended Math Links
More Recommended Social Studies Links
The Promise of Justice
http://www.americanradioworks.org/features/kosovo/index.html
A collection of documentaries on war crimes and the struggle for justice
presents information about the effectiveness of international justice. War
crimes from the Nazi era, former Yugoslavia, and Rwanda are presented with
major focus on Kosovo. Transcripts, documents and videos from trials at
The Hague can be accessed. A glossary of key terms provides useful
background on the subject. Be warned that many images and descriptions are
disturbing. This site is not for students younger than high school.
Subject: Social Studies
More Recommended Social Studies Links
Justice Learning
http://www.justicelearning.org/
The Justice Learning site is an issue-based resource for students and
teachers communicating how the United States Constitution and institutions
of democracy shape everyday lives. Current topics include affirmative
action, civil liberties, death penalty, free speech, gun control, juvenile
justice, Web censorship, and zero tolerance.
The site is sponsored by the New York Times Learning Network and Justice
Talking from the National Public Radio. This site for high school students
includes articles, editorials, and oral debate from journalists and
experts.
Subject: Social Studies
More Recommended Social Studies Links
International Court of Justice
http://www.lawschool.cornell.edu/library/cijwww/
The Court is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, situated
in the Peace Palace in The Hague (Netherlands). The Court settles cases of
international law and gives opinions on legal questions for Member Nations
of the United Nations. Recent cases include many related to former
Yugoslavia and charges of genocide, oil platforms in Iran, and the 1988
airplane crash over Lockerbie, Scotland. In addition to current court
cases, there is a booklet covering the history and jurisdiction of the
Court as well as a current composition of members of the court with short
biographies.
Subject: Social Studies
More Recommended Social Studies Links
Mapping Crime: Principle and Practice
http://www.ncjrs.org/html/nij/mapping/pdf.html
Crime mapping technology is where GIS technology and cartography meet to
create geocoding. It is used to provide a visualization of crime data
through maps by showing patterns of crimes in a graphical presentation,
aiding the criminal justice professionals in their investigations. This
site from the National Criminal Justice Reference Service provides
information about how GIS (Geographic Information System) can benefit the
criminal justice system. The entire publication is in PDF format and files
are very large if downloaded.
Subject: Science & Technology; Social Studies
More Recommended Science & Technology Links
More Recommended Social Studies Links
Tolerance.org
http://www.tolerance.org/
Tolerance.org is a Web project of the Southern Poverty Law Center, a
national non-profit civil rights organization that promotes tolerance and
diversity and combats hate and discrimination through education,
investigation and litigation. The section for kids provides a Civil Rights
Memorial timeline and stories. The teacher and parent sections include
information about hate groups (not intended for children), teaching
tolerance, and lesson plans. Flash is required part of the site.
Subject: Social Studies; Health & Fitness
More Recommended Social Studies Links
More Recommended Health & Fitness Links
Freedom House
http://www.freedomhouse.org/
Freedom House is a nonpartisan organization that monitors freedom
throughout the world, reporting on political, religious, press,
conscience, and economic freedom. Other topics of reports are civil
liberties and universal human rights. By selecting specific countries,
find how they rate in political rights and civil liberties. A special
report, Nations in Transit, discusses 28 former Communist countries.
Subject: Social Studies
More Recommended Social Studies Links
Justice for Kids & Youth
http://www.usdoj.gov/kidspage/
The US Department of Justice has a kids' site that is divided into
sections for elementary and secondary students. Topics common to both age
groups are safety on the Internet and drug abuse. The elementary section
includes The Working Dogs pages about chemical, explosive, and narcotics
detection and search and rescue dogs. The secondary section houses
information about crime detection including DNA testing, fingerprinting,
and polygraph testing.
Subject: Social Studies
More Recommended Social Studies Links
Bureau of Justice Statistics
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/welcome.html
The Bureau of Justice provides statistics about crime, victims, law
enforcement, the court system and corrections. Special topics include
drugs and crime, homicide trends, firearms and crime, and international
statistics. Key facts at a glance supplies charts for crime and justice
facts. For high school students doing debates on any topic related to
crime, there should be useful statistics to support position statements.
Many spreadsheets with data are available in .zip files for social science
and mathematics classes to analyze.
Subject: Social Studies; Math
More Recommended Social Studies Links
More Recommended Math Links
recommended books
Madness: A Brief History
By Roy Porter
Published April 2002
Grades: 9-12; Professional Development
Subjects: Health & Fitness; Social Studies
How we treat the insane is determined by how we define insanity. Demonic
possession, divine punishment, humoral imbalance, nature, and nurture have
all had their day. This illustrated overview examines our changing
perceptions of the origins of madness and our adapting treatment of its
sufferers from 5000 BC to the present. An appendix lists books for further
study.
More Recommended Health & Fitness Books
More Recommended Social Studies Books
Peaceful Protest: The Life of Nelson Mandela
By Yona Zeldis McDonough and Malcah Zeldis
Published October 2002
Grades: PreK-2; 3-5
Subjects: Social Studies
Son of a tribal chief, Mandela became committed to the struggle for civil
rights in South Africa when he saw the injustice of apartheid in
Johannesburg. Mandela practiced nonviolence even after being imprisoned
unjustly for twenty-seven years. The book includes a timeline,
bibliography, and pronunciation guide.
More Recommended Social Studies Books
Auschwitz: Story of a Nazi Death Camp
By Clive A. Lawton
Published August 2002
Grades: 3-5; 6-8
Subjects: Social Studies
More than a million and a half people died in Auschwitz during World War
II. This brief history uses first-person accounts, research, and archival
photographs to describe the daily routine in one Nazi death camp. Final
chapters address evidence, Holocaust denial, and the rise of Neo-Nazi
movements.
More Recommended Social Studies Books
Holes
By Louis Sachar
Published September 1998
Grades: 3-5
Subjects: Reading & Language Arts
Winner of the 1999 Newbery Medal for Children's Literature and the 1998
National Book Award for young people's literature, Sachar tells the
humorous, yet moving story about Stanley Yelnats who is wrongfully accused
of a crime he did not commit. Stanley is then sent to a juvenile detention
center where his daily job of digging holes in the ground helps him to
uncover his family history with each hole he digs.
More Recommended Reading & Language Arts Books
Flash! The Associated Press Covers the World
By Vincent Alabiso, Kelly Smith Tunney, Chuck Zoeller, and Peter Arnett
Published May 1998
Grades: 9-12
Subjects: The Arts; Social Studies
Journalism and history students will be interested in this account of news
photography in the 20th century. More than 150 AP photographers covering
everything from world wars to heavyweight championships are included in
this volume.
More Recommended Arts Books
More Recommended Social Studies Books
Cow of No Color: Riddle Stories and Justice Tales from Around the World, The
By Nina Jaffe and Steve Zeitlin
Published September 1998
Grades: 3-5; 6-8
Subjects: Social Studies
This book is sure to provoke plenty of creative discussion in classes and
homes for students in many age groups. The riddles and anecdotes from
Asia, Africa, Europe, Mexico, and America all contain the subtext of
justice issues and stimulate young people to address questions of
fairness, truthfulness, and integrity in a variety of problem-solving
situations.
More Recommended Social Studies Books
Kids' Guide to America's Bill of Rights: Curfews, Censorship, and the
100-Pound Giant, A
By Kathleen Krull and Anna Divito
Published October 1999
Grades: 6-8
Subjects: Social Studies
This readable discussion of James Madison and the first ten amendments to
the Constitution is perfect for students 9-12. Each amendment is
introduced and discussed in terms of current social issues and concerns.
The final chapter, entitled "When the Bill of Rights Goes Wrong,"
describes changing social needs and the amendment process. Additional
resources for young readers are specifically identified in the
bibliography.
More Recommended Social Studies Books