George Mason University English Assignment Compared Slavery to Black Lives Matter Rhetoric of Police Brutality

An English assignment at George Mason University irked a conservative student, who then told The College Fix of why the essay was objectionable:

Earlier this semester, students were instructed to take an image from a graphic novel about a slave rebellion leader “that connects to a key issue in today’s culture where African Americans still face discrimination, inequality, prejudice, and worse: police brutality and death” and write an essay about it.

“Do you see a connection between what happens in the novel to today’s Black Lives Matter movement,” asked the essay prompt, assigned in English 302: Advanced Composition for Social Sciences.

The assignment angered one conservative student, who provided a copy of it to The College Fix, and said it would make her write an essay that goes against her political views. She said the thesis paints America in a negative context and prompts students to write papers arguing that the America of today continues to grapple with struggles common in pre-Civil War times.

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