In the recent week, young people and community members in Baltimore have taken to the streets to protest the death of Freddie Gray who died in police custody on April 19th, 2015.

The organizing and political demonstrations in Baltimore are examples of the growing movement for racial justice and police accountability. As events develop on the ground in Baltimore, researchers, journalists and everyday people who study why and how movements begin have started to analyze what is going on in Baltimore. A number of these researchers, journalists and people have argued that the protests in Baltimore are part of a broader pattern in U.S. history of communities contesting police violence and racism practiced by government-sanctioned police and military officers.

Since you have been studying other past and present movements where people decided to take action to address a social problem, you have a lot to offer in terms of explaining and contextualizing what is going on in Baltimore.

This optional Extra Credit assignment is an opportunity to put your growing expertise on social movements to work and explain why your research is not just relevant to scholars but important for everyday New Yorkers to understand as they read about Baltimore and the growing #BlackLivesMatter movement.

To complete the Extra Credit assignment:

1.Read one of the articles about Baltimore attached to this Assignment.
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2.Write a 2 page, double-spaced paper where you explain why your research about a different social movement can help us understand the events in Baltimore that are developing right now. Give specific examples of what you are studying in your research and how these specific examples relate to specific examples of the uprising in Baltimore right now. SAMPLE OUTLINE: Introduction that includes a thesis that answers this question: 1.What is the MOST IMPORTANT thing that your research about a different social movement helps us understand the events in Baltimore that are developing right now?.
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Body Paragraph 1 1.What is the first aspect of have you learned from your research that is relevant to understanding Baltimore?.
2.Describe an example from your research and why it helps you understand one specific event, tactic or interview that has happened in Baltimore..
3.Link your paragraph to your overall thesis/argument..
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Body Paragraph 2 1.What is the second aspect of have you learned from your research that is relevant to understanding Baltimore?.
2.Describe an example from your research and why it helps you understand one specific event, tactic or interview that has happened in Baltimore..
3.Link your paragraph to your overall thesis/argument..
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Conclusion 1.Why is it important to draw connections or understand the differences between past or other social movements and what is going on in Baltimore?.