Suggested Activities for Waiting
- Mercer's daughter was very interested in the writings of Mary Ann Shadd Cary, an African American human rights activist, who was born in 1823. After the passage of the Fugitive Slave Act, Mary and her family moved to Canada. Students may wish to learn more about the quality of life for both free African Americans and African Americans who escaped from slavery in 1850's Canada. One helpful article is located online at http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/canadian_tourism/61613
- Encouraged by Harriet, Etta maintained a scrapbook of favorite articles and information about her own life. Ask your students to select and collect poems and articles on a self-selected theme or issue. Have them write a personal reflection on each piece that they selected and then design a scrapbook to display their selections and responses.
- The caricatures created by Edward Clay are commented on by several characters in this chapter. Although caricatures are meant to be comic or a means of showing an alternative political or philosophical point of view, these caricatures appear to be both mean spirited and derogatory. Have students examine the use of humor in the contents of the comic pages of a daily newspaper. Who might be entertained and who might be offended? Can humor be universal?
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