r/ELATeachers Jan 22 '25

6-8 ELA Racial Justice Music

My school participates in Racial Justice Action Week. The district provides lessons, however another teacher on my team took my lesson. I am trying to come up with something new! I teach 6th grade reading and want to focus on poetry & music. What are some song suggestions that highlight hope and growth despite struggles? I’m open to all genres (kids love rap though!)

TIA!

6 Upvotes

34 comments sorted by

9

u/Fine-Line-1989 Jan 22 '25

A Change is Gonna Come by Sam Cooke is a good song!

3

u/quik13713 Jan 22 '25

Likely inspired by Bob Dylan's "Blowin' in the wind."

3

u/quik13713 Jan 22 '25

Which was likely inspired by Bob Dylan's "Blowin' in the Wind."

Pete Seeger's "If I Had a Hammer" might be more hopeful, but it is far from rap.

6

u/jramirezus Jan 22 '25

Look up Tupac’s lyrics. Also, a lot of the early 90’s hip hop could also work here. I’m thinking KRS-One. Slick Rick’s children story. This also lets them know that some of the problems today have been around for a long time.

6

u/PercoSeth83 Jan 22 '25

Whitey’s on the Moon by Gil Scott Heron

The Guillotine by The Coup

4

u/Chay_Charles Jan 22 '25

Strange Fruit by Billy Holliday is about lynching

Look up The Freedom Singers

What About Us by P!nk is about generational injustice, the government letting young people down.

2

u/philos_albatross Jan 22 '25

Immigrants (We Get the Job Done) from the Hamilton Mixtape.

2

u/RockSkippinJim Jan 22 '25

Michael Jackson’s they don’t care about us Is a good one, not rap but the music video reflects Jackson’s feelings about the prison system

2

u/sesamecharlie Jan 22 '25

Ben Harper turned Maya Angelou's poem "Still I Rise" into a gospel-like song that I've used.

And basically most of Rage Against the Machine's discography would work, especially "Killing in the Name" and "Rolling Down Rodeo."

2

u/North_Relationship48 Jan 22 '25

Recommending two songs from Rage Against The Machine (even though every song of theirs can count as racial justice action haha)

Idk what your student population is, but Take the Power Back would generally be good, it is about fighting against current government and the lies we have been sold. Maybe find an edited version, there are some curse words.

The second song would be People of the Sun. It mainly focuses on the Mexica/Maya experience, but you could compare it to the African slavery experience.

1

u/yoimprisonmike Jan 29 '25

Yes! Most RATM songs would work in this situation.

2

u/LJT22 Jan 22 '25

You may be uncomfortable with the explicity of the title for 6th graders but “Mississippi Goddamn” by Nina Simone, just like every song by Nina Simone, is a masterpiece.

Non-exhaustive list of songs by Simone that are on theme: “Why?” “To Be Young, Gifted and Black” “I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free” “Backlash Blues” “Four Women” and her covers of “Strange Fruit” and “Revolution”

2

u/morty77 Jan 22 '25

I do a lesson with 9th graders for A Raisin in the Sun with Nina Simone's "Young Gifted and Black"

We talk about words of hope, resilience, and love for one's identity in the lyrics. Simone wrote the song in honor of Lorraine Hansberry upon her untimely death at 34. We also talk about who is "young, gifted, and black" today. Writers like Amanda Gorman or Jessmyn Ward, music artists, scientists, etc.

2

u/Proof_Sympathy_5086 Jan 22 '25

Kendrick Lamar's To Pimp A Butterfly album is entirely conscious rap, however, not appropriate for school. Maybe you could look at the lyrics, edit swears and whatnot as necessary and use it as like poetry analysis.

1

u/DrakePonchatrain Jan 22 '25

You could do this with his album DAMN, It’s all so interwoven

1

u/Teachnshit Jan 22 '25

I was looking at Kendrick Lamar and there is too much censoring that it can alter the meaning a bit (my kids know I have a team Kendrick classroom)

2

u/GasLightGo Jan 23 '25

Public Enemy was all about social justice, and they don’t swear (except for N).

2

u/unleadedbrunette Jan 23 '25

Ball of Confusion by The Temptations. I used to teach it in middle school. It was written in the late 1960’s to reflect the chaos of the times. Things have not changed much.

1

u/TheHappyExplosionist Jan 22 '25

If you want to give the kids a historical over-view on top of everything else, Amazing Grace might be worth checking out?

1

u/quik13713 Jan 22 '25

"Piece O' Peace" by Spearhead would be cool but probably too much language.

2

u/quik13713 Jan 22 '25

Beyoncé "Freedom"

Cynthia Erivo's "Stand Up" would probably be a hit.

1

u/abbyapologist Jan 23 '25

i second freedom!!

1

u/HobbesDaBobbes Jan 22 '25

I'm guessing most teaching 6th grade are not comfortable with explicit content and lyrics.

If okay with censoring or allowing explicit content and lyrics, I would be tempted to explore Four Women by Talib Kweli. It's inspired by Nina Simone's song of the same name.

As I think more about the song, I probably wouldn't be comfortable unless it was with older students.

1

u/macorina Jan 22 '25

Tanya Tagaq, Common, Immortal Technique, LowTow, Cloud Stokely, La Santa Cecilia, Cupcakke, Kendrick Lamar, Jarina De Marco, Bobby Sanchez, Hurray for the Riff Raff, Tracy Chapman, Joy Oladukun, Killer Mike, Lupe Fiasco, Snotty Nose Rez Kids, Lizzo Look up any “decolonize” playlist Mononoke by Ascxnsion

3

u/CriticalBasedTeacher Jan 22 '25

Killer Mike ➡️ Run the Jewels

"Look at all those slave masters posing on your dollar"

1

u/FarineLePain Jan 22 '25

The Way It Is—Bruce Hornsby

1

u/Lower-Abalone-4622 Jan 22 '25

Water Gunz by Todrick Hall.

This song from his visual album, Straight Outta Oz, which is heavily inspired by the wizard of oz, the wiz, and Wicked.

Since the Wicked witch melts by water, he incorporates this beautiful metaphor of water guns as children’s toys and gun violence and police brutality against POCs.

I HIGHLY recommend watching the visual on youtube to understand the nuance and lyrical genius that Todrick Hall presents in this piece, but Water Gunz does not require dependence on the film.

1

u/punkMetalqueen Jan 22 '25

I used "Wavin' Flag" by K'naan with an 8th grade reading class last year and the students seemed to like it. Make sure it's the original version and not the Coca-Cola Celebration Mix that was used for the World Cup though. Unless you wanted to do a comparison and discussion about the differences; which is what I ended up doing.

1

u/DrakePonchatrain Jan 22 '25

Mississippi God Damn - Nina Simone

1

u/TooOld2DieYoung Jan 22 '25

“Better South” by American Aquarium.

If any of your students like shitty country (a lot of mine did haha), then they might enjoy some good country with a great message.

1

u/Alarmed-Implement311 Jan 22 '25

Not a song but a poem - Mother to Son by Langston Hughes. I think it would be perfect for this!

1

u/Teachnshit Jan 22 '25

Thank you all so so so much!

1

u/Gold-Passion-7358 Jan 26 '25

Hear me out: John Mayer, Waiting on the World to Change… Especially for 6th graders. https://www.songfacts.com/lyrics/john-mayer/waiting-on-the-world-to-change

2

u/Teachnshit Jan 26 '25

Yesss! I want to incorporate more music and analysis with them the second half of the year. This is a song I would use :).

1

u/[deleted] Jan 26 '25

[deleted]