To feel uncomfortable about this school trip?

[TheHallouminati]

My son who is 14 and in year 10, is going on a history school trip to Whitechapel to learn about Jack the ripper and take a tour of the area.

I get that there is opportunity for learning about the era in which these crimes took place, such as the an exploration into poverty, the newly formed police force etc etc. But something about this doesn't sit well with me.

I'm finding it hard to articulate, but for me, the big business made out of the murder and mutilation of the most vulnerable members of society by a (likely sexually motivated) sadist is really unpleasant. There are so many sordid tours and museums etc which glorify and focus on the "mysterious" figure of Jack the ripper that it just seems to undermine the truth - that vulnerable women were preyed upon because their only choice was to sell their bodies.

Aibu?

How prurient and exploitative. I would never have let my children go on such a trip. In fact I would have made a complaint to the school. My son visited Belsen which affected him greatly and taught him a lot. Jack the Ripper though?

Teacher have you read the GCSE spec that this pertains too - the Whitechapel murders are only a small element of the course and many tours manage to do justice to the spec

I studied Jack the Ripper and went on a tour when I was in year 10. It was fascinating and I'm still interested in the mystery today.

Relax.

So they will learn about Victorian life,social conditions in Whitechapel etc.
What exactly does the inclusion of Jack the Ripper add to this,except for gruesome sensationalism?
What exactly is is about the J t R murders that make them historically important? This is about a serial killer killing and mutilating women - but what makes it informative about the period? There are plenty of men killing women,sadly.So the women were poor,unskilled,problems with substance abuse - were these particular issues different then to now?
Also it plays right into the modern fad that says lets engage teenagers by teaching then via horror and violence because that is what they are interested in...

Yes they will learn about Victorian social and living conditions. You also learn about the growth of the modern police force and policing methods, important developments such as the printing press, how the media sensationalism news topics in order to sell newspapers.

The JtR murders are a turning point in the history of crime and punishment for a number of reasons as I previously posted at the beginning of this thread. (I've been a History teacher and examiner for over 20 years and taught this unit).

Get a grip

Very odd, I thought most state school were ace at teaching History; using social history as a way of helping children understand the people from that era. Jack the Ripper wasn't a great example of a Victorian, just a fucked up guy that killed prostitutes, hardly reflects the general era .

sigh - it is part of the GCSE specification magenta

Isn't the greater reality that even in a society considered the height of civilization, there was a maniac doing inhuman things. If it wasn't hookers it would have been another vulnerable group. This is history/reality and often reality can be disquieting.

Absolutely excellent point alansleftfoot! Even in horror there are lessons to be learned.

It isn't on my DC's spec .Depends which examination board. A very poor example of Victorian history. Should Fred and May West be on the curriculum?

We don't study Jack himself as no one knows who he was and the name itself was concocted by a journalist in the faked 'Dear Boss' letters to sell more newspapers. We don't look at the gory details of the murders either. What we look at are the conditions and circumstances that led to these women being on the streets in the first place. Annie Chapman escaped a violent marriage at a time when divorce was impossible for women like her. Kate Eddowes pawned the boots off her feet to buy a night in a lodging house. No welfare state, no benefits, no means of supporting yourself. Their situations very common at a time when the workhouse was often the only help available.
The way the case was reported and investigated also speaks volumes about victorian attitudes to the working class. The papers and penny dreadfuls sensationalised it and made scapegoats of the Jewish community after graffiti at one of the murder scenes alluded to their involvement.
The case covered 2 police districts and the lack of collusion between forces was a stumbling block. It led to more sharing of information between forces and the very beginnings of forensic techniques. Also sniffer dogs (an idea ridiculed by Victorian society) were first used on the Ripper case.

It seems that kids at this age see things just as bad in video games and YouTube

magenta - hopefully alansleftfoot has given you an insight into this element of Crime and Punishment part of edexcel history

We also look at how the Whitechapel case was one of several things that led to changes in London's east end and for the poor in general. The slum clearances that began in 1890, the beginnings of the welfare state in the early 20th century, more collusion between the police and press to avoid the sensationalist nonsense that had appeared during the Ripper case and the rise of the women's suffrage movement in the late 1890's.

The importance is it's history. It spawned the use of forensic techniques. The sensationalized murders placed a spotlight on a group of humans that were ignored and often blamed for their unfortunate circumstances. JtR actually caused his victims to be seen in a sympathetic light. studying JtR is knowledge and knowledge should never be feared or avoided, especially for up and coming young adults.

The kids are calling it the Jack the Ripper your because they're 14 and that is the part that has gripped their interest. Unsurprisingly.
Sounds interesting and informative, I want to go!

Thank you @alansleftfoot

It takes all of 15 minutes to search for and read the course content for this module online. Perhaps that would be a good starting point for some on this thread.

This sounds sleazy to me and I don't think it's appropriate for a school trip unless it is done with a great deal of care and a lack of sensationalism You should tell the head teacher your thoughts.

If adults want to visit that's fine, but not impressionable adolescents.
I expect the teachers will have their reasons - though common sense is required, rather than intellect - two entirely different things IME.

So you studied the holocaust and found it fascinating but Jack the Ripper doesn’t sit well with you? IMO the holocaust was one of the most awful and sickening events to have ever happened. Far worse than Jack the Ripper. It’s part of the crime and punishment section of the gcse. My older two have both done it. They see worse on the news.

My dd would love a trip like this. It's a fact of life that women are more likely the victims of violent sexual crimes. No point in shying away from it.

The school should take them here instead: eastendwomensmuseum.org/

Where the idea came from
When a proposed women's history museum on Cable Street in East London turned out to be an excuse to cash in on the popularity of a misogynist serial killer, we decided to make the missing museum a reality.

Crass Jack the Ripper tourism is nothing new, but the new museum on Cable Street represents a huge missed opportunity. East London has an incredibly rich social, political, and cultural history and women were part of all of it although their voices are seldom heard. Those are the stories we want to tell; stories that illuminate the lives of East End women, not only their deaths.

Not, not at all unreasonable. Jack the Ripper has almost been 'glorified' (is that the right word?) over the years and is a legendary figure alongside the like of King Arthur, Robin Hood, etc.

Wrongly.

His victims were women who had been through the crucifying mangle of Victorian morality and double standards of the time - so they didn't really matter all that much, so it would seem......

I'd be wary about letting any child of mine have access to a very vicarious thrill over this kind of thing.

Has anyone actually looked up one of these specialist school tours? myrtle and I posted a couple of links. They are not the same as tours offered to the general public. They are tailored to the curriculum, and aren't at all sleazy or sensational.