Theme: Poverty
Supplementary Lesson Plan for 2016-17 Campus Read “Just Mercy,” by Bryan Stevenson
Poverty
“Poverty is not a destiny, it is a condition. Poverty is not a misfortune, it is injustice.” Gustavo Gutierrez
“Overcoming poverty is not a task of charity, it is an act of justice. Like Slavery and Apartheid, poverty is
not natural. It is man-made and it can be overcome and eradicated by the actions of human beings.
Sometimes it falls on a generation to be great. YOU can be that great generation. Let your greatness
blossom.” Nelson Mandela
“The opposite of Poverty is not wealth, the opposite of poverty is justice” Bryan Stevenson, Just Mercy
Lesson Objectives
By the end of this lesson/discussion/panel participants and/or students should be able to
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Explore and appreciate their own and other peoples cultural identities
Identify and apply for (where necessary) appropriate internal or external scholarships
Examine the criminal justice biases in application of justice to the poor and people of color.
justice
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Required Materials: Projector/Screen
Beginning the Lesson
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Engage students or participants in an icebreaker activity of your choice
Introduce your lesson by explaining to the students/attendees the objectives of lesson/discussion
Body of the Lesson/Discussion
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Provide an overview of poverty in United States and its effect on communities (see Appendix A
below)
Direct participants to read pp. 97-98 of the text (see the excerpts below) and an excerpt from p. 13
of the text.
“I followed their directions down a long, winding dirt road full of impossible turns through a heavily
wooded area. As darkness fell around us, the road twisted through dense forest for several miles until it
came to a short, narrow bridge with a room for only one car to pass. It looked shaky and unstable, so I
slowed the car to a stop.
“It is okay. It hasn’t rained that much, and that’s the only time when it’s really a problem,” Minnie said.
“What kind of problem?” I didn’t want to sound scared, but we are in the middle of nowhere and in the
pitch-black night I couldn’t tell whether it was a swamp, a creek, or a small river under the bridge.
“It will be all right. People drive through there every day,” Jackie chimed in.
It would have been too embarrassing to turn around, so I drove slowly across the bridge and was relieved
when we had made it to the other side. I continued for another mile until the forest began to give way to
the trailers, a few small homes, and finally, an entire community hidden away in the woods.
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We pulled up a hill until we reached a trailer that was glowing in the darkness, lit by a fire burning in a
barrel out front. Six or seven small children were playing outside; they dashed into the trailer when they
saw a car pull up…” pp. 97-98.
“African Americans lived in racially segregated ghettos isolated by railroad tracks within small towns or
in colored sections in the country. I grew up in a country settlement where some people lived in tiny
shacks; families without indoor plumbing had to use outhouses. We shared our outdoor play space with
chickens and pigs.” (p. 13)
Discussion
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What images does this excerpt evoke?
Distribute a handout with a news article related to Ethan Couch
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2016/02/22/for-victim-of-affluenzateen-ethan-couch-a-life-of-paralysis/
o Share the quotes by Bryan Stevenson, “Capital punishment means, them without the
capital get the punishment” (p.6). Also, “Walter made me understand why we have to
reform a system of criminal justice that continues to treat better if they are rich and guilty
than if they are poor and innocent. A system that denies the poor the legal help they need,
that makes wealth and status more important than culpability, must be changed. Walter’s
case taught me that fear and anger are a threat to justice; they can infect a community, a
state, or a nation and make us blind, irrational, and dangerous” (p.313).
o Have students identify examples in Just Mercy where poor people have been sentenced to
life imprisonment or death due to their inability to hire lawyers who can properly
represent them in court.
o Have students discuss the contrast between court sentences in Just Mercy and that of
Ethan Couch
Small group activity
Ask students to:
o Complete the I Am From activity attached as Appendix B to this lesson
o Share your I Am From poem in their small groups
o Discuss commonalities and differences in their cultural identities
Discuss the various college resources that students can utilize to alleviate any financial hardships
o Financial Aid
o Scholarships
o Work-study
Discuss with students the benefits of acquiring a college degree
o Research shows that individuals with college degrees earn almost $1 million more than
those without degrees1.
Source: NCES https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=77
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Appendix A
Poverty Snapshot
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According the 2014 Census Bureau data, the overall poverty rate in 2013 was 14.5 percent. This
means that in 2013 about 45.3 million people were living in poverty. Persons are considered poor
if they have family incomes below the poverty threshold. The poverty threshold for a family of
four was $23,834 in 20132.
The total number of children in poverty in 2013 was 14.7 million
In 2013, 6.3 percent of all people or 19.9 million people in the United States lived in deep poverty
“In January 2015, 564,708 people were homeless at any given night. About 69 percent of these
people were staying in residential programs while 31 percent were found in unsheltered
locations”3
An estimated 332,347 West Virginians lived in poverty in 2013, for a total poverty rate of 18.3
percent. Poverty was much higher amongst African-Americans by being at 31.3 percent in 2013.
West Virginia has the 10th highest poverty rate among the 50 states4. The median household
income in WV between 2010 and 2014 was $41, 576
One in three children under the age of five in West Virginia lived in poverty in 2013
Effects of Poverty on Children5
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Physical problems, such as low birth weight, poor nutrition, poor motor skills, and susceptibility
to injuries and accidents
Cognitive difficulties, such as poor academic performance, especially among younger children,
and higher drop-out rates in high school
Social and emotional problems, such as anxiety, difficulty getting along with peers and adults,
and low self-esteem
Behavioral problems, such as engagement in high-risk activities like smoking, alcohol and drug
abuse, and early sexual activity, leading to higher rates of teen pregnancies
Challenges in adulthood, such as poor health, lower earnings, higher poverty rates and more
criminal behavior
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Source: U.S Department of Health and Human Services. https://aspe.hhs.gov/report/information-poverty-andincome-statistics-summary-2014-current-population-survey-data
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Source: The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (2015). Point-in-time estimate of homelessness:
The 2015 annual homeless assessment report AHAR) to congress.
https://www.hudexchange.info/resources/documents/2015-AHAR-Part-1.pdf (p.5)
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Source: West Virginia Center on Budget & Policy: http://www.wvpolicy.org/number-of-poor-west-virginiansremains-high-increase-in-children-living-in-poverty
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See: West Virginia Center on Budget & Policy:
http://www.legis.state.wv.us/senate1/majority/poverty/WV%20Child%20Poverty%20Report%20February%2019%
202013%20WVCBP%20-%20Ted%20Boettner.pdf
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Appendix B: I Am From
Your Name ______________________________________________
I am from (a specific item from your childhood home) ______________________________
From (two products or objects from your past)_____________________________________
I am from (a phrase describing your childhood home) _______________________________
I am from (a plant, tree or natural object from your past)______________________________
Whose (personify that natural object) ____________________________________________
I am from (two objects from your past) ___________________________________________
And from (two family traits or tendencies)_________________________________________
I am from (a religious memory or family tradition)__________________________________
From (two foods from your family history)________________________________________
From (a specific event in life of an ancestor)_______________________________________
And from (another detail from the life of an ancestor)________________________________
I am from moment ___________________________________________________________
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