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Analysis of a Current Movement: Free Palestine Protests

Updated: Dec 17

Grade Level: 9-10
Duration of video 1: 5 minutes
Themes: Methods vs. slogans, Non-violence & human dignity, Media literacy & misinformation, Inclusion & democratic participation, civil rights and dignity for all people




Protesters hold "Free Palestine" signs and flags in a crowd. A magnifying glass highlights a woman in focus.

Description:


This lesson invites students to evaluate the Free Palestine Movement’s protests through 10 Criteria to analyze a Social Justice Movement. Students will examine activist messaging that uses social justice language. By applying the 10 Criteria Framework, students will use these critical thinking tools to analyze this movement and other historical movements.



Lesson Plan:


🎯 OBJECTIVES (SWBAT):

  • Students will discuss why it is important to analyze social justice movements.

  • Students will read and discuss 10 criteria to analyze social justice movements.

  • Students will watch videos about the Free Palestine protests and compare what they observe in the videos to the 10 criteria.


🧰 MATERIALS:


📌 Anchor Chart: 10 Criteria to Analyze a Movement

  1. Goals vs. Actions — Do actions match stated goals?

  2. Inclusion & Dignity for All — No scapegoating/erasing a people; no destruction of property

  3. Non-violence — No intimidation/targeting civilians

  4. Debate Allowed — No purity tests or silencing

  5. Facts Over Manipulation — No miscaptioning/conspiracy

  6. Who Benefits? — Everyone vs. a few power-holders

  7. Complexity — Not “good vs. evil” simplifications, which can lead to dehumanization.

  8. Democratic Participation — Not bullying/top-down control

  9. Transparency — Methods, leaders, funding are clear

  10. End-State — More freedom & dignity for all, not fear/control



🧠 PART 1: Introduction & Modeling (Whole Class)


  1. Write on board:

"Real Justice vs. Hidden Agendas: How Can We Tell?"


  1. Discussion Prompts:

    • What makes a movement feel “just”?

    • How do you tell passion from intimidation?

    • How would you fact-check a protest claim?

    • What builds or destroys public trust?


  1. Tell Students:

    • No matter what a social justice movement tells us about itself, we need to learn to think independently and analyze it against 10 essential criteria.


  2. Hand out:

  3. Ask:

    • How can these criteria help us analyze a social justice movement - or any movement?

  4. Teacher says:

    • “Today we’re not debating politics - we’re practicing analysis.”

      “It’s easy to analyze social justice movements from the past. We have hindsight, more distance, and less emotion. But it’s harder to analyze a social justice movement that is happening right now. That’s what we’re going to do today.”

      “We are NOT here to debate which side you’re on, or which side you think is right. We are here to analyze public protest videos using 10 Criteria for evaluating a movement’s behavior, goals, and impact.”

      “Your job is to find specific evidence - words, actions, signage, and visuals - to determine whether what you see aligns with social justice principles, shows red flags, or both.”

      “It’s important that we follow our classroom norms so everyone feels safe and respected. We will focus only on the content in the clips. We will critique observable signage and behaviors in the clips - not people - and stay grounded in what we can directly observe.”



🎬 PART 2: Video Clip Activities - Watch + Buddy Work


  1. Teacher says:


  2. Teacher continues to say:

    • “After each video, you’ll work with a buddy to write down what stood out to you - the key actions, words, and behaviors - and match them to any criteria you think apply. You don’t need to write everything - just focus on what really stood out for you.”

  3. Video 1: UCLA Protestors and Counter Protestors

  4. Video 2:  UT Dallas Encampment


  5. Video 3: Nova Exhibit Protest

  6. Video 4:  Campus Chant Clip


  7. Video 5: Anniversary Vigil

  8. Compare Two Protests in Different Spaces - Video 6: Vigils Planned for Anniversary 



💬 PART 3: Whole-Class Discussion


After all videos are complete, bring the class together to debrief.


Discussion Prompts:

  • What are the most important criteria you saw being met - or violated - in the videos?

  • Which protest felt most aligned with social justice principles? Why?

  • Which two criteria will you look for first when evaluating any protest in the future?

  • Write one suggestion for how organizers could improve or better align a protest with the 10 Criteria.

  • Choose one protest from the lesson:

    • If something didn’t align with the 10 Criteria, what would you suggest changing?

    • How would that change affect the message or outcome?



✅ PART 4: Assessment - Exit Ticket


On an index card, students respond to the following:

“What should a protest that respects human rights for all humanity look like, sound like, and feel like?”



🔚 PART 5:  Closing Message (Teacher Says)


Strong analysis means we don’t just react—we ask questions. We check:


  • What are the goals?

  • Is the message truthful?

  • How are all people being treated?

  • What will the long-term impact be?


Teacher continues: 

“That’s how we tell the difference between a real movement for justice - and something else that risks dividing, rather than unifying, society.”



PART 6: Further Study: Analyzing Other Historical Movements


Teach the following lessons about other historical movements, where students will analyze each movement using the 10 criteria:






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All materials on this website are available for educational use under Creative Commons License CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. Educators may download and share the content with attribution, for non-commercial use and instructional purposes, and without modification. Embedding any materials within any website-whether educational, institutional, public, or private-is prohibited without prior written consent of Balanced Learning Resources. Unauthorized embedding or redistribution may violate copyright and licensing terms.


©  2025-2026
All materials on this website are available for educational use under Creative Commons License CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. Educators may download and share the content with attribution, for non-commercial use and instructional purposes, and without modification. Embedding any materials within any website-whether educational, institutional, public, or private-is prohibited without prior written consent of Balanced Learning Resources. Unauthorized embedding or redistribution may violate copyright and licensing terms.

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