Wide Angle. Printable Pages

Lesson Plans - religion & culture - preparation

Resources

Case-Specific Resources:

"Hindu-Muslim Violence Imperils India," TIME.com
http://www.time.com/time/world/ article/0,8599,213670,00.html
A good description of the historical significance of the holy site in Ayodhya, and how extreme violence has been justified by both Hindus and Muslims in the name of preserving holy sites for their people.

"Religious Tension Hangs Heavy in Sacred Hindu City," Christian Science Monitor
http://csmonitor.com/2002/0522/p07s01-wosc.html
An excellent article about the fear among Indians in Mathura, a town with its own disputed holy site.

"Analysis: Why Is Gujarat So Violent?" BBC News
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/ south_asia/newsid_1856000/1856049.stm
A brief overview of the history of violence in the state of Gujarat. Also addresses the rise of Hindu nationalism in the past 20 years.

Map: Gujarat
http://www.mapsofindia.com/maps/gujarat/h3s1101.htm
A good regional map from India.com.

BBC: India Facts
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/south_asia/ country_profiles/newsid_1154000/1154019.stm#facts
A concise "fact box" that includes information on India's population, religions, languages, etc.

Human Rights Watch Report: Gujarat
http://hrw.org/press/2002/04/gujarat.htm
A press release about the powerful Human Rights report (see below) that was released in April 2002, which highlights the role of state officials and police in the death of hundreds in Gujarat.

Human Rights Watch Report: State Participation in Gujarat Violence
http://hrw.org/reports/2002/india/
A very thorough report about the history of Muslim-Hindu violence in Gujarat. Select excerpts to use with students, or allow them to explore the linkable subsections of the report themselves. Students can visit the Gujarat riots photo gallery at: http://www.hrw.org/photos/2002/india/.

General Background Resources:

Protecting Religious Freedom and Holy Sites
http://www.bc.edu/bc_org/research/cjl/articles/holysites.htm
A discussion by the International Catholic-Jewish Liaison Committee of how holy places are often targets of violence or vengeance instead of veneration and reverence.

BBC: Jerusalem's Holy Sites
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/ in_depth/middle_east/2000/holy_places/
A concise summary of the conflict over Jerusalem and its holy sites.

Frontline: Muslims
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/muslims/
A two-hour documentary (2002) about the diversity of Islam around the world. "MUSLIMS," according to the producers, "provides an intimate look at the lives of Muslims in various cultures around the world. Through detailed portraits of people in their daily lives, viewers will experience what it means to be Muslim in places as dissimilar as Nigeria, Iran, Egypt, Turkey, Malaysia and the United States."

UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights
http://www.un.org/Overview/rights.html
For the purposes of this lesson, draw students' attention to Article 18 regarding freedom of religion.

Materials

Teachers will need the following to prepare and implement this lesson: Internet access; a world map in the classroom; an understanding of the Academic Controversy process; copies of Student Handouts. If students do not have Internet access in the classroom, teachers will need to photocopy and prepare Resource Packets for students using materials from the Resources above. Teachers should select materials that are most appropriate for their students' reading level, and the packets should include a variety of different resources - for example, articles and essays, maps, graphs and other visuals, and primary documents. For the Resource Packets, teachers will want to include a number of selections from the "Case-Specific" and "General Background" sections of the Resources.

Students will need the following to complete this lesson: Resource packets provided by their teachers; paper and pens; an understanding of the Academic Controversy process; copies of Student Handouts. Internet access in the classroom is a helpful resource, and if it's available, the teacher can assign more investigative research tasks.