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Hum Tum

This scene from Hum Tum is a great way to introduce the Dynamic Conflict style (indirect communication and highly expressive in the lower right quadrant) of the Intercultural Conflict Style Inventory (ICS). The Intercultural Conflict Styles Activity + Role Play in the HubICL (link provided in post) presents an example of how you might use this film clip in an activity. 

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Red Pill, The (documentary)

This documentary, directed by Cassie Jaye, focuses on the men's rights movement. Watching this film will enable participants to listen to perspectives on this movement and issues facing men and boys, as well as discuss issues related to gender, power, and privilege. 

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Man on Fire: A Texas Town and Its Racist Roots

Trigger warning: This film is highly emotional and discusses an actual case of suicide, specifically self-immolation as sociopolitical protest. Man on Fire tells the story of a white minister, Charles Moore, who set himself on fire in 2014 to protest the racism in his small town of Grand Saline, TX.

By viewing this film, participants will be able to explore what small town racism looks like in contemporary America and question the efficacy of Charles Moore's death by protest in changing the situation. 

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Language, Culture, and Perception: The Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis

This activity asks participants to consider the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis and how language may shape their thoughts and perceptions. Participants will be shown a fictional example of the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis and then asked to discuss real examples related to how language may affect how they think/perceive.

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What It Means to be a Global Citizen

Watching this video enables participants to explain the meaning of the terms: global citizenship, cosmopolitan and difference and discuss how difference matters in today's society and in their own lives. 

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From “Oh no” to “Ok”: Communicating with your international teaching assistant

This film, created by the Michigan State University Student Affairs Office, will allow participants to improve their intercultural communication skills, develop their ability to bridge difference, and increase their cultural competency.

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Empathy Not Sympathy

Watching this video will enable participants to recognize the difference between empathy and sympathy. 

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Hidden America: An Intersectional Perspective

In 2009 and 2011, ABC aired two special episodes of 20/20 that told the stories of children and young adults living in poverty in two different parts of the United States. Children of the Mountains (2009) follows youth in Central Appalachia, while Children of the Plains (2011) follows youth that live on the South Dakota Pine Ridge Reservation. Although both groups face immense obstacles to overcome poverty, the children living on the Pine Ridge Reservation may have a particularly difficult time improving their situation because of several overlapping social identity markers that cause them to face discrimination.

Therefore, this activity asks participants to analyze these two specials using Sisneros et al.’s (2008) web of oppression and the concept of intersectionality and consider how identity contributes to discrimination and disadvantage.

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Civil Discourse — Smarter Everyday

This activity uses a video clip from the Smarter Everyday YouTube series to enable participants to identify elements of civil discourse, reflect on the meaning and importance of civil discourse, reflect critically on their own ability to conduct civil discourse, and imagine future scenarios engaging in civil discourse.

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American Textures

Watching this film enables participants to listen openly to life experiences that differ from their own; reflect deeply about their own value systems, prejudices, and positionality with regard to people who are culturally different; and articulate in respectful ways differences of opinions with others.

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American Denial (Film)

Watching this film enables participants to interrogate the cognitive dissonance between stated American values and beliefs and the systemic racism that exists within the country. 

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Check Your Bias Blind Spot

The bias blind spot, a term first coined by Emily Pronin, Daniel Lin, and Lee Ross (2002) at Stanford University, is when an individual fails to recognize their own biases and how they impact their perceptions and judgments. This activity engages with this concept by first asking participants to perform a selective attention test to see if they notice a gorilla that appears on the screen as they are focusing on one aspect of a video. Then, they will watch a clip that describes a social experiment facilitated by CBS This Morning co-host Tony Dokoupil, where he showed Republicans and Democrats the exact same clip of a confrontation between police and protestors and asked them who they believed was the aggressor. Participants will discuss this clip, along with the selective attention test, using the concept of the bias blind spot and reflect on how they might check their own bias blind spots in the future.

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Becoming Self-Aware of American Culture Thru Hamilton

The purpose of this assignment is to help participants understand their own cultural rules and biases, as well as conduct research and critically analyze media that will help shape their responses to cultural biases. Participants will engage with the musical Hamilton. The show details the life of Alexander Hamilton but also provides an avenue for viewers to critically self-reflect on current American cultural practices. This activity will challenge students to critically analyze a piece of popular culture, conduct research, and understand new aspects of American culture.

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Understanding Empathy Through Jojo Rabbit

This tool provides several activities for facilitators to use for either an entire unit on understanding empathy through the film JoJo Rabbit, or for one activity after viewing the film. With these activities, students will engage with a variety of topics surrounding Jojo Rabbit. These activities will challenge students to work outside of their comfort zone, understand new perspectives, and to support one another.

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Tradition and Identity in Whale Rider

Whale Rider is a 2002 movie that follows Paikea “Pai” Apirana, a 12-year old Māori girl in New Zealand who aspires to become the chief of her tribe. However, her grandfather (Koro) is very traditional and believes that this role can only be held by a man. Pai’s twin brother, who died at birth, was supposed to fill that role. Koro at first rejects his granddaughter because of the loss of his grandson, but they eventually develop a close, but strained, bond. The movie primarily focuses on the relationship between Pai and Koro and the conflict that arises between them as Pai attempts to learn skills that are traditionally reserved for boys in their village.

The discussion guide in this tool provides questions that highlight the relationship between tradition, values and identity portrayed in Whale Rider. After viewing the movie, participants will discuss these questions and reflect on how they see some of the themes play out in their own lives.

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Where Are You From?

The video, "Where are you from?" depicts a fictionalized microaggression. After watching this video, participants can identify the loaded implications behind the questions "where are you from?", as well as discuss the harmfulness of stereotypes and microaggressions and develop empathy for individuals who are the targets of microaggressions. 

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HSBC Cultural Differences Commercials

This activity uses HSBC Bank commercials to get participants to reflect on cultural differences in various countries, as well as discuss how media creates or perpetuates stereotypes. 

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Farewell, The: Family & Cultural Difference

The Farewell is a 2019 movie created by Chinese-American director/writer/producer Lulu Wang. It is based on a true “good lie” that Wang’s family told her grandmother (who lives in China) after they learned she was diagnosed with cancer. In China, it’s common for doctors to first inform family members about a medical diagnosis, and the family members often decide to not tell their loved one if the prognosis is grim. The Farewell essentially chronicles the conflicted emotions that Wang felt about her family’s decision to hide her grandmother’s (Nai Nai) diagnosis, as she spent most of her life in the United States, where the individual—not the family—is the basic unit of society.

In this activity, participants will either watch The Farewell or listen to the This American Life episode where Wang describes this experience with her family. Then, the facilitator will lead a discussion about the internal and interpersonal conflicts that Lulu (Billi in the movie) faces as a result of the cultural differences within the family. Then, they will ask participants to reflect on the cultural dynamics within their own families.

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Dialogue, The

Watching this film will enable participants to acknowledge the pressing need for intercultural understanding in an increasingly interconnected world, find an interest in developing intercultural competencies, develop counterbalances to stereotypes and sensationalism in the media, and reflect on their own and others' preconceptions of the "other."

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Danger of a Single Story

"Danger of a Single Story" is a TED Talk given by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. In this activity, participants will watch her TED Talk and discuss the concept of stories and how they impact how we view others.

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Crossing Borders

Watching this film will enable participants to acknowledge the pressing need for intercultural understanding in an increasingly interconnected world, find an interest in developing intercultural competencies, develop counterbalances to stereotypes and sensationalism in the media, and reflect on their own and others' preconceptions of the "other."

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Things People Say (Common Stereotypes)

The video in this tool is a part of the Boiler Inclusion Project, which was created by the Division of Diversity and Inclusion at Purdue University. This tool challenges participants to develop empathy for individuals who are often the target of stereotypes. They will first watch a video that presents common stereotypes that are directed at individuals because of various facets of their social identities. Then, they will discuss that video using talking points linked on the following page.  

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Incremental Process

The video in this tool is a part of the Boiler Inclusion Project, which was created by the Division of Diversity and Inclusion at Purdue University. This tool challenges participants to understand that learning how to interact with individuals who are different from them is a skill that is developed gradually over time. They will first watch a video that depicts an individual who “puts her foot in her mouth” and says something offensive to her friends. Then, they will discuss that video using talking points linked on the following page.

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Implicit Bias and Self-Regulation

The video in this tool is a part of the Boiler Inclusion Project, which was created by the Division of Diversity and Inclusion at Purdue University. This tool challenges participants to interrogate their own implicit biases and develop skills for challenging those biases in interactions with others. They will first watch a video that depicts two individuals discussing their biases and stereotypes. Then, they will discuss that video using talking points linked on the following page.

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First Impressions Video

The video in this tool is a part of the Boiler Inclusion Project, which was created by the Division of Diversity and Inclusion at Purdue University. This tool challenges participants to interrogate their own preconceived notions and the stereotypes they may associate with individuals when they first meet them. They will first watch a video that depicts a scenario where stereotyping occurs. Then, they will discuss that video using discussion questions and talking points linked on the following page.

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Confrontation and Dialoguing

The video in this tool is a part of the Boiler Inclusion Project, which was created by the Division of Diversity and Inclusion at Purdue University. The tool challenges participants to develop skills that enable them to confront individuals who use offensive language, as well as dialogue with people they disagree with in order to come to mutual understandings. They will first watch a video that depicts a scenario where someone uses offensive language. Then, they will discuss that video using discussion questions and talking points linked on the following page.

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Eye of the Storm, The & A Class Divided

The Eye of the Storm and A Class Divided are documentaries on Jane Elliott's groundbreaking discrimination lesson, in which participants are divided into blue-eyed and brown-eyed groups and one group is privileged over the other. Elliott first performed the lesson in 1968 with her entirely white third grade class in Riceville, Iowa. The lesson was a response to the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr.

The Eye of the Storm shows Elliott leading the lesson with her 1970 third grade class, and A Class Divided is a follow-up 15 years later. 

The PBS, Facing History and Ourselves, and Concord Media links in the tool are three options to consider for debriefing after watching the video(s).

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Say My Name

Say My Name is a video created by Chinese international students at Columbia University in response to a xenophobic prank where name tags displaying Chinese names were ripped off of residence hall doors. The targeted students created the video to share the significance and meaning behind their names. In this activity, participants will watch the Say My Name video, along with a video interviewing the students involved, and discuss the personal and cultural importance behind names as well as the importance of respecting names and pronouncing them correctly. Furthermore, they interrogate how racism and stereotypes can affect how individuals perceive themselves and aspects of their identity (such as their name).

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