The Sky Is Gray

Use these activities to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity. 

“To Act or To Say?”

Central to Gaines’s commentary on race in this story is the debate between the older preacher and the younger man in the dentist’s office over the relevance of God and the lack of action within the Black community. Though Gaines uses this conflict to signal an emerging era of civil rights activism, the debate about action versus language is universal. You will debate the question: Which is a better vehicle for social change: action or language?

Directions:

• The class will be divided into two groups: One group will advocate for action, the other will argue for language.
• One representative from each group will share the opening statement.
• One representative from each group will share the closing statement.
• All other members will work on notetaking, evidence, and counterpoints throughout the discussion.
• Each group should have a firm stance, as well as evidence from different historical or political moments.
• After the debate, each student will write their own personal response to the debate question, regardless of the side they were required to argue.

Teaching Suggestion: There are a few ways of navigating a debate, so the directions provided above are a guideline or example of how the debate can be conducted. Teachers can also revise the wording of the question as a “Yes or no” question, but however the question is posed, it is important that students are required to take one firm stance. Evidence can be drawn both from Gaines’s story and from other historical or contemporary narratives and events.

Paired Text Extension:

"Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. Debate" – This clip from the iconic debate between Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X helps add nuance to the issue of language versus action.

Black Power Scholar Illustrates How MLK and Malcom X Influenced Each Other – NPR’s Terry Gross interviews a professor about the Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. Debate