Section IV: Opposition

PREVIEWING ACTIVITIES:

This section presents information about:
-Opposition to the highways: individuals and communities react
-How government responded to public concern, e.g., Boston's Inner Beltway
-Disbursing public funds: breaking the highway trust
-Civil disobedience

Discussion questions:
-Where did Interstate construction meet roadblocks?
-Why did middle class communities turn against the "highway juggernaut"?
-How did politicians respond to growing opposition?
-How did opponents fight the Interstates?

Suggested Activities:
Assign reading in history text covering the social protest era of the 1960s and early 1970s. Ask students to draw a chart with three columns. Label the columns Issue, e.g., civil rights, feminism: Native Americans Dates Outcome. Complete the chart using information from text reading and timeline. Have students list "Highways" as the final Issue on the chart to be completed while viewing the film.

To help students identify the main arguments of those opposed to the Interstates, have them write two arguments they think could be used to fight highway construction in their community.

Using the map of the Interstates, identify cities and regions that opposed highway construction in the 60s and 70s, e.g., San Francisco, New Orleans, New York, Boston. Why did these cities become centers of opposition?

Review some of the terms covered in this section, e.g., highway trust, highway lobby technocrats. Alert students to the ways in which individuals and communities fought highway construction. What forms of civil disobedience does the video show?

POSTVIEWING ACTIVITIES:
Discuss with students what Major Alioto of San Francisco meant when he said that the highway lobby had "congress in the palm of their hands." Does this analogy apply to current issues? Make a list and discuss how citizens are tackling similar powerful lobbies.

Compare earlier pro-growth attitudes viewed earlier in the film with the attitudes shown in this segment. Why did they change? What types of people
opposed highway construction in their communities?

Discuss Mrs. Bandazian's strategy of civil disobedience. Why is she such an interesting character? What do the students think of her approach to dealing with the field supervisors? Brainstorm other ways in which individuals can "fight city hall." What parallels do students see between the protests against the highways and the protest movements of the sixties?

Expand on the field surveyor's comment, "I understand people's feelings,... But you know, some people have to suffer for progress." Do the students agree? What does this comment say about American values?

ENRICHMENT ACTIVITIES:
Assign different groups of students to research further the highway battles in New Orleans, San Francisco, Philadelphia, and Springfield, Massachusetts. Present findings to the class in the form of an oral report, simulation or mock debate. To illustrate the nature of the proposed highway routes, groups can show projected expressway routes on a map. Have students speculate on how the proposed freeways/expressways would alter the cities studied.

Propose to the class a community growth issue, e.g., building a mall, a bypass. Design a ballot referendum to be held in the community at a specific date. Have individual students represent the field supervisors and community members who favor the plan assign other students to represent opponents of the plan. Suggest students contact local planning boards, the Chamber of Commerce, the school board, and other community members to prepare positions prior to the referendum vote. Using visuals from the sixties protest era, have students devise protest materials, e.g., signs, slogans and songs, and plan strategies for halting planning and/or construction. Hold a mock vote to determine whether construction will proceed.

Have students research existing and planned mass transit for your community or state. How is mass transit funded? What areas does it serve? Would it be beneficial to your community? Students should contact the state Department of Transportation, NARP, or state legislator for information on current spending proposals. Conclude with a debate question on the practicality of mass transit in our automobile- centered society.

Have students research how your state responded to the beautification movement and the role that the First Lady, Mrs. Lady Bird Johnson, played in spearheading the cause in the 60s. Focus on the law and environmental issues that were raised by this initiative.