What themes have students chosen to present in their plays?
The plays developed by eighth-graders from three very different school environments demonstrate how all students connect deeply with the Code of the West and the Code of the Street. With a wide spectrum of historical and contemporary situations, their plays explored subjects ranging from one-on-one violence and lawless behavior, to societal perceptions of gang activity and public policy—both in the Old West and in their own lives. Vividly enacted scenes in multiple settings ranged from classroom conflicts to gunfighter showdowns, from family strife and adolescent rebellion to intra-tribal struggles resulting from the American government policy to relocate and control Indian nations. They interpreted the actions of the Conquistadores and the political machinations inherent in the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. They examined contemporary California’s right of eminent domain in their school’s neighborhood, and compared African American Mary Ellen Pleasant’s courtroom struggles for the right
