Part One: King & Gandhi
Instructions
In a brief introduction, tell students that February 2019 marks the 60th anniversary of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s visit to India. Point out that King was interested in visiting India as the homeland of Mohandas K. Gandhi (1869-1948). King admired Gandhi for successfully applying the philosophy of nonviolence in liberating India from the colonial rule of the British Empire. King also considered nonviolence a powerful tool and used it as a guiding ideology in his role as a leader in the Civil Rights Movement. Let students know that the objective of this lesson is to examine the importance of the India trip and the connection between Gandhi and King.
Learning goals:
- to compare the ideas of Gandhi and King
- to learn about the trip and the highlights, and to visualize the route
- to define nonviolence as understood by King
- to see the connections between Gandhi’s struggle for independence and King’s Civil Rights activism
- to gain understanding of King and his work in a global context
1. Opening activity
Review students’ knowledge of Mohandas K. Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. Divide students into two groups.
Group 1: Mohandas K. Gandhi. Working with a partner, ask students to brainstorm about M. Gandhi. Who was he? Where, when did he live/was he active? His work/achievements?
Group 2: Martin Luther King, Jr. Working with a partner, ask students to brainstorm about King. Who was he? Where, when did he live/was he active? His work/achievements?
Once students are done, make a chart for each individual, Gandhi and King, and collect students’ statements. (Depending on students’ level of Gandhi/King knowledge, use Handout A to help with the description.) Point out and discuss similarities and differences of the two individuals.
2. Classroom Activity
View and discuss the India Trip Itinerary (ca. 6 min playtime) India Trip
(https://www.pictramap.com/app/view?p=24d238)
3. Classroom Activity
King’s India Trip: introduce students to the first few paragraphs of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s account of his India tour published in Ebony magazine in July 1959 (Handout B OR go to: My Trip to the Land of Gandhi). Working in small groups or individually, ask students to summarize the excerpt and to highlight the key points. Then, discuss their findings and focus on the reasons why King wanted to travel to India, analyzing King's statement: "While the Montgomery boycott was going on, India’s Gandhi was the guiding light of our technique of non-violent social change."
4. Classroom Activity
Nonviolence played the fundamental role in Martin Luther King, Jr.’s activism. The experience of the India trip reinforced King’s commitment to nonviolence. In this activity use primary sources to analyze King's thoughts on nonviolence. Split the class into two groups. Each group receives one of the two descriptions of nonviolence from Handout C. Ask students in each group to read the description and focus on the question: What is nonviolence? Then in groups of three/ four students ask the groups to come up with a definition of nonviolence.
Follow up with discussion questions:
- what did nonviolence mean to King? how did nonviolence differ from nonresistance?
- when did King first practice nonviolence? Was the use of nonviolent action/protest successful?
- what were the results of the nonviolent protests in India?
- how did the India trip impacted King’s understanding and practice of nonviolence?
- do you think that Gandhi’s struggle for freedom served as a model for King’s activism in the US? How so?
- do you see any similarities or connections between Gandhi’s work in India and King’s activism in the US?
Materials
Handout A: Gandhi/King
Handout B: My Trip To the Land of Gandhi
Handout C: Nonviolence
Resources
India Trip Itinerary (https://www.pictramap.com/app/view?p=24d238)
My Trip to the Land of Gandhi
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Contact us at: King Institute Liberation Curriculum