Encouraging Empathy in Post-9/11 America
by Eric Hartman

Politicians, pundits and plenty of others are preparing to offer schools all sorts of recommended strategies, perspectives and curricula to address the first anniversary of 9/11. Secondary teachers will find two common strands in well-developed approaches: encourage empathy and utilize open-ended questions. 

Empathy is identification with and understanding of another’s situation, feelings and motives. It is an esteemed character trait that has broad application, but it is particularly pertinent in the advent of 9/11, when American tolerance has been challenged by xenophobia and Anglo-centric notions of patriotism. As even-handed editorialists have often pointed out, an ideal America is tolerant, understanding and empathetic.

Living up to our ideals often requires deep thought, strong commitment and careful action. Empathy is sometimes difficult for students to grasp, and often even more troublesome to teach. Some simple exercises, however, can draw out students’ own experiences of group dynamics. 

First, ask students to write an essay about any time they felt like a larger group treated them poorly or made them uncomfortable. Ask them to consider how the power that a group can have over one or only a few people made them feel. Emphasize the importance of recalling their feelings when they were singled out. Use a few examples to spark their brainstorming.      

Were they ever singled out and forced to do things because they were the youngest? Did they have to do certain things because they were the only boy or only girl involved? Did they ever enter a public place and realize they were a minority? Their essays can be about more serious issues, such as racial discrimination, to the seemingly trivial, such as being singled out for wearing different clothes. The purpose of the exercise is to spark their thinking about difference. 

After collecting their first essay, wait a day and then ask them to write again. The second essay must be about a time when they were part of a larger group that made someone else feel uncomfortable or unwelcome. Make it clear that you will not punish the students for their past actions. Let them know that acknowledging their feelings and actions on either side of a negative group dynamic is the first step to dealing with stereotypes and being smarter than the crowd. Students with whom I have done this exercise usually have no difficulty finding an example, although their memories range from poking fun at another’s dress to considerably more troublesome examples of outright racial discrimination.

Discuss their essays with them. Ask them how they feel about their own actions in the context of how they felt when others picked on them. Ask them if anyone is immune from being singled out for abuse. Emphasize that while we have all experienced bias, some of us are much more likely to be singled out than others. Have them imagine feeling constantly singled out and encourage them to think about how they would like to be treated. Finally, ask them to commit to acting as their ideal selves. To test whether students are acting as their ideal selves, have them consider whether they would be comfortable with everyone acting that same way, all the time. Their empathy will grow as they are forced to deal with their contradictory roles in past group experiences. 

Throughout discussions on character, understanding, empathy and 9/11, use open-ended questions. They are provocative and force students to think analytically. To challenge students, a truly open-ended question is: How would you design a society if you could not predict what race, class, gender, or sexual orientation you would be born? Other open-ended questions include: What is justice? What causes hate? What makes people do evil things? Be sure to end constructively: What will you do to encourage more tolerance? How will you work to end hate? What can you do to make the world a better place than you found it? 

Some excellent additional questions are included in a curriculum packet compiled by The Justice Project and the Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation. The free curriculum, “Beyond Blame: Reacting to the Terrorist Attack,” can be found at http://www.edc.org/spotlight/schools/beyondblame.htm. It is one of many excellent resources and books compiled by Teaching Tolerance, which can be found at http://www.teachingtolerance.org/.