A class divided

On the day after the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. was murdered in April 1968, Jane Elliott discussed the tragedy with her third-grade class in the small town of Riceville, Iowa.

Elliott asked her class what they knew about African Americans.  (population at the time 898)

The students' disparaging responses reflected common stereotypes about them. Then Elliott asked her students to define "prejudice," "discrimination," "race," and "inferior." The class agreed that prejudice and discrimination were unfair. When Elliott asked them if they could imagine what it felt like to be black, initially the students said yes.

THE EXPERIMENT:

Elliott divided her class by eye color -- those with blue eyes and those with brown. On the first day, the blue-eyed children were told they were smarter, nicer, neater, and better than those with brown eyes. Throughout the day, Elliott praised them and allowed them privileges such as taking a longer recess and being first in the lunch line. In contrast, the brown-eyed children had to wear cloth collars around their necks and their behavior and performance were criticized and ridiculed by Elliott. On the second day, the roles were reversed and the blue-eyed children were made to feel inferior while the brown eyes were designated the dominant group.