Teacher-led discussion: Why redistricting impacts your life
This activity is designed to get students to understand how this issue impacts their lives. It builds off the opening question asked in the first lesson, "What is gerrymandering?"
First, ask students about what political issues do they care about. If students did this in the previous lesson, you can take those responses as your starting point.
Write the responses on the board. After you’ve received 5 or 6 responses, pick one of these issues as a class. Ask students what they would like to change about the status quo on this issue.
Then help walk them through how legislation to implement the solution might have a chance of passing, except gerrymandering prevents any progress.
The examples below are the two of the most common issues we’ve heard in classrooms:
Climate change
Question for students: What kind of policy could be enacted to help stop climate change?
- Sample answer: Increasing fuel efficiency for cars
Question: How would you get this policy passed?
- Answer: Congress would pass a law raising the minimum standard.
Question to ask the full class: Raise your hands if you think cars should be required to get better gas mileage.
- Survey the class, see if there is a majority for either opinion.
If there is a majority, students could infer that there is popular support for this bill. Indeed, one poll found that 79% of Americans polled favor stronger fuel efficiency standards. So, that kind of bill should easily pass Congress, right? Not so fast.
If that bill were to be introduced in Congress, who would oppose it?
- Answer: The fossil fuel industry
A moderate Republican may think about favoring such a bill. In a district that is not gerrymandered, they would be responsive to all voters, Republicans, Democrats, and independents, in their district. They are more likely to vote for this bill if it has popular support and it could pass.
However, in a gerrymandered district, the moderate Republican may be challenged by a more ideologically conservative Republican who (1) opposes all government regulation, and/or (2) supports the fossil fuel industry. They may threaten to challenge the moderate in the primary election. The moderate is far less likely to vote for the fuel efficiency bill, and it will probably fail.
The inverse could be true for the Green New Deal, where a moderate Democrat who supports some climate change legislation but not to that extent. In a gerrymandered district, they could be challenged by somebody from the left-flank of the party, causing them to move towards the more extreme viewpoint of their party, minimizing the chance for compromise and consensus with the other party.
Guns
Question for students: What kind of policy could be enacted to help prevent gun deaths?
- Sample answer: Universal background checks
Question: How would you get this policy passed?
- Answer: Congress would pass a law
Question to ask the full class: Raise your hands if you think all gun purchasers should be required to submit to a background check.
- Survey the class, see if there is a majority for either opinion.
If there is a majority, students could infer that there is popular support for this bill. Indeed, one poll found that 92% of Americans polled favor universal background checks. So, that kind of bill should easily pass Congress, right? Not so fast.
If that bill were to be introduced in Congress, who would oppose it?
- Answer: The National Rifle Association
Play out the same scenario as above.
To demonstrate that gerrymandering impacts both parties, look at an alternative proposal that would be susceptible to gerrymandering among Democrats. A moderate most likely would not support banning the sale of all handguns, which 71% of those polled oppose (same poll). But if pulled to the far left, they may have to support such a position in a very Democratic district.
For a class discussion: do they understand how gerrymandering can create conditions where politicians are more worried about the ideological extremes of their party, and not consensus legislation that the majority of Americans would support?