When is a lifeboat exercise not a good lifeboat exercise?

So … weird. I'm not sure it can be so easily labeled as "racist" except insofar as it mentions races.

Lifeboat exercises have a long history (they used to be "bomb shelter exercises" back in my youth), and can be interesting for discussing the rationale / utilitarian reasons for picking an individual. (E.g., if "a Navy SEAL" were on the list, they would be a good pick because of their survival skills and training helping everyone survive).

When those reasons are stripped away to a relatively random list … well, maybe that's interesting, too, depending on what's done in the conversation. Why do you want to choose Obama over Trump (or vice versa). Does the "black guy" get picked more than the "white guy" — and, if so, what is the reasoning? Is "women and children first" still a thing? The exercise emphasizes explaining the rationale used, which is the important thing and could lead to some good discussions about racism, religious prejudice, etc.

It can even lead to discussions that sometimes not everyone can be saved / helped, so how do you make that decision (with the real life applicability of not being able to give to every worthy cause, so on what basis do you choose which ones to give to).

In terms of force-ranking "importance," again, that could be an opportunity to see why people are placed as they are, and how far students will push back on that very concept. Importance, for example, in what terms? Wealth? Prestige? Survival needs? Leadership? Friendship? Celebrity? Are those important signifiers of importance when it's a matter of life and death?

That said, there are a lot of ways this could go badly, badly wrong. And middle school seems a bit young for that kind of discussion, regardless.

So is it a "racist" test? I'm not convinced. But I can see it as a test that would get a social studies teacher in a lot of trouble.

Originally shared by +David Badash:

Students told to "list the people in order of importance."

http://www.thenewcivilrightsmovement.com/rachelwitkin/florida_sixth_graders_subjected_to_racist_quiz

Watch: Florida Middle School Students Forced To Take Racist ‘Lifeboat’ Quiz
Florida public middle school students were subjected to a hypothetical disaster situation that asked them to choose between killing off “the black guy” or “the Hispanic woman.”

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