Know-Nothing Survey - Pioneer Institute

Thank you for visiting our Know-Nothing film project crowdsourcing contest page. Please fill out the form below or submit your responses as a word document. If you have any questions, contact us at pioneer@pioneerinstitute.org.

Know Nothing SPN Survey

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1. What events demonstrating bigotry and/or incidents of violence were important in the adoption of Know-Nothing law or constitutional amendment in your state? Do the events have a name? When did they occur? What happened and what were the outcomes of these events?
2. Is there reference documentation for these events, whether in history books, newspapers, photographs, popular songs, etc., that you could make available to us (or point us to)? Would you be willing to help scriptwriters to gather photos, music, and other “contextual” material for the film?
3. What was (were) the precise location(s) of the important events and the political events (rallies, etc.) that led to the adoption of Know-Nothing legislation? What stands in that exact location today?
4. Who were the political leaders at the time when the law or constitutional amendment was passed? What led them to support Know-Nothing stances? What interesting facts can you share about these individuals or their political legacies? Do you have references to relevant political speeches (especially from those leaders) or can you point us to where we can find them?
5. Which institutions (schools, churches, parochial schools, colleges, etc.) were most affected by the passage of the Know-Nothing law or constitutional amendment in your state? What happened to school choice in the aftermath of these events?
6. Can you provide information on the passage of the Know-Nothing law or constitutional amendment in your state? For example, can you provide the actual statute, authoritative interpretations, any changes to the statute over time, the name of the original bill sponsor, and a narrative of how the debate unfolded?
7. Since the passage of the Know-Nothing law or constitutional amendment in your state, have there been attempts to repeal the legislation? What has been the outcome of these repeal efforts?
8. If the laws were in fact overturned in court or through legislation, please share details. Specifically, what were the most effective arguments leading up to the change?
9. How does the event affect schools and parents now? Which schools are affected?
10. Is the general public in your state – especially parents of private school students – aware of the Know-Nothing legislation?
11. Are there spokespeople – whether activists, associations, parents, children – that our scriptwriters should speak with? Also, would you or someone you know be willing to be filmed discussing Know-Nothing legislation in your state? Do you know any parents (along with their children) who would be willing to talk on film about how lack of school choice impacted them?
12. Who is arguing in favor of maintaining the Know-Nothing law or constitutional amendment? Who are the spokespeople for the opposition to school choice?