‘Different Generation, Same Fight’

On a lark, Professor of History Jim Downs told students in his Intro to American Studies class they would be excused from their final exam if they created a music video exploring the themes of their class. What these students created has already inspired thousands on social media.

Drawing on the course readings from Rachel Carson's "Silent Spring" to Langston Hughes' poem "I Too," students wrote and sang lyrics and choreographed movement to Marvin Gaye's "Mercy Mercy Me." Throughout the video, dubbed "Different Generation, Same Fight," they featured a range of other important social issues, from the #MeToo movement to the detainment of migrant children at the United States-Mexico border.

“I am speechless and weeping. It’s brilliant!” Downs tweeted, noting later that it was “without doubt one of the most thrilling and most moving projects” that has grown out of the course in his 12 years at Connecticut College.

Downs’ post took off on Twitter and even got a mention in Fortune.