Have students independently write and reflect on the following question:

• What role do newspapers and journalism play in a society?

After students have written their reflections independently, call on volunteers to share their thoughts. Record these ideas on the board or screen at the front of the class and encourage students to react to what others share.

Next, share with the class a mission statement found in the African American newspaper, Freedom’s Journal, which began publishing in 1827. The editors of Freedom’s Journal presented this statement to readers at the time as an explanation of the need for a Black-owned newspaper:

• “We wish to plead our own cause. Too long have others spoken for us.”

Lead the class in analyzing these two sentences, asking probing questions to facilitate a short classwide discussion:

• What does it mean to plead a cause in a newspaper?
• Why would Black writers in the 1820s feel the need to plead “our own” cause?
• What does it mean to speak for oneself, rather than having others speak on one’s behalf?

After this discussion, explain that Freedom’s Journal was founded in 1827 by two Black editors—Presbyterian minister Samuel E. Cornish and college-educated John B. Russwurm—and that it was the first newspaper in the country authored by Black writers and intended for Black readers. 

Assign students to one of three groups, each receiving short excerpts from the April 6, 1827, edition of Freedom’s Journal. (Note: Groups 1 and 2 have one article each, Group 3 has two short excerpts). Distribute Guiding Questions: Freedom’s Journal, April 6, 1827 to each student and instruct groups to work together to answer the following questions:

• What are the topics addressed in this article?
• Why would these topics be relevant to an African American audience in the United States in 1827?
• What political position does Freedom Journal seem to support, based on this article?
• Why would Freedom’s Journal be valuable for abolitionists seeking to end the practice of slavery?

After students have read their excerpts and discussed the guiding questions in small groups, ask groups to summarize their excerpt and share some of their responses to the questions.