Mexico's 'Afrodescendientes': A Multimedia Unit for Intermediate Spanish Learners

This article touches upon the many social, political, and economic issues that negatively and disproportionately impact Afro-Mexicans (Sanders 2020). While reading, students are asked to circle the geographic areas mentioned in the article on a map of Mexico; this not only acquaints them with Mexican geography but also focuses their attention on specific regions that will be referenced in later activities. Following the reading, students complete questions that check for comprehension. To supplement this activity, students watch the video "Somos afromexicanos." Students then complete a chart asking them to identify and sort many of the issues highlighted in the article and the video. This chart is a valuable scaffolding activity for a number of reasons: it promotes active reading and viewing, it requires students to assess the chart's summarized statements and ensures their understanding of key concepts, it focuses students' attention on ideas they may not intuitively recognize as expressions of racism, and it helps students to identify recurring themes that appear in cultural products and practices throughout the unit.