Power & Prejudice: Developed by Washington Heights Expeditionary Learning School (WHEELS)

Impact of Systems of Power and Prejudice on Individuals, Groups and Societies

Students in the 10th grade at WHEELS in Washington Heights examined the impact of power and prejudice on human history with the following guiding questions: How could the Holocaust have happened? What is the impact of systems of power and prejudice on individuals, groups and societies? What can be learned from studying the Holocaust? What personal responsibilities do we have to prevent/reduce bigotry and prejudices within ourselves and others?  The expedition launched at the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., and local fieldwork included a series of visits to the Jewish Heritage Museum and the Yeshiva University archives. The students’ reading list included Night by Elie Wiesel and Animal Farm by George Orwell.  For their final product, students worked together to design museum exhibits highlighting themes and events studied during the Expedition and included considerations of government, human rights, history repeating, geography, prejudice, literature and art, resistance, aftermath, truth and reconciliation, punishment, and propaganda.