Politics and Social Change Commons^™

From The Editor In Chief, Antulio J. Echevarria Ii

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

Welcome to the Summer 2024 issue of Parameters. We open this issue with a special “In Memoriam” by General Charles A. Flynn, Commander US Army Pacific, honoring the life and legacies of our director and consummate colleague, Carol V. Evans. We dedicate this issue to her. General Flynn’s memoriam is followed by an In Focus commentary on China’s Belt and Road Initiative. We then feature three forums covering the Russia-Ukraine War, the Middle East, and Professional Development. This issue also contains special essays on the role of professional writing, the US Army War College’s Civil-Military Relations Center, …

Review Of Playing God: American Catholic Bishops And The Far Right, Daniel R. Dileo

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

Historical Trauma: Literary And Testimonial Responses To Hiroshima, Mariam Ghonim

Theses and Dissertations

The concept of trauma is controversial in literature. While one may be able to come up with ways to describe trauma in fiction, representing historical trauma is a hard task for writers. Some argue that trauma can not be described through those who did not experience it, while others claim that, provided some elements are added, one can represent trauma to the reader. This thesis focuses on twentieth-century historical traumas related to a nuclear catastrophe and explores the different literary and testimonial responses to the catastrophic man-made event of Hiroshima (1945). In this thesis, Kathleen Burkinshaw’s historical fiction The Last …

The Journeys Of Women In Local Elected Office: From Community Engagement To Making Meaningful Contributions, Andrea Marr

Dissertations

Women remain underrepresented across every level of elected office in the United States. More than 30 years after the supposed “Year of the Woman,” women hold less than 30% of the elected positions in local, state, and federal office. In the past, researchers attributed the paucity of women in office to structural barriers, including sexism in the electorate, fundraising difficulties, and discrimination by party gate keepers. A growing body of research, however, attributes the dearth of female politicians to a lack of political ambition among women and to gender socialization that prevents women from seeing themselves as political leaders.

The …

Mill's Harm Principle: A Study In The Application Of 'On Liberty', Sandra J. Peart

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

English philosopher and political economist John Stuart Mill argued that people learn by choosing: this is how they become creative and productive individuals. For this reason, and because he felt that individuals are typically the most capable people to make their own choices, Mill was highly skeptical of restrictions on choice placed by a third party, such as the state.

Mill famously separated actions into two categories: (1) self-regarding actions that do not affect others; and (2) other-regarding actions that do affect, and may harm, others. In the former category he placed thought and discussion, tastes and pursuits, and association, …

Political Compromise In America: Why Are Americans So Politically Divided And What Can Be Done To Prevent A Fractured Nation, Zachary Cary

Helm's School of Government Conference - American Revival: Citizenship & Virtue

Ask anyone who is politically active what they believe to be the biggest problem in politics today. More often than not, Americans tend to blame the failing parts of society on the stubbornness of the opposing political party. This generally opens up the floor to asking questions about whether individuals are willing to listen to members of the opposing party discuss their points of view, and unfortunately, many will choose not to listen at all, having already decided that they are wrong and there is no possibility of coming to a middle ground between the two points of view. People …

The Age-Less Citizen: Cultivating A Civically Engaged K-12 Community Through The Use Of Service Learning, Chelsia I. Douglas Mpa

National Youth Advocacy and Resilience Conference

The Age-less Citizen will analyze evidence-based civic education studies and explore proactive student engagement strategies to build an individualized nonpartisan action plan for each school represented. From sending election reminders home by a kindergartener, to including local school board meetings on school newsletter and calendars, attendees will take away practical tips and tools to restore faith in the younger generation's ability to improve our democracy.

Building On Ruins: Impacts Of Mass Violence And State-Led Repression In Indonesia, Geraldine Santoso

International Affairs Senior Theses

How does mass violence affect perceptions of citizenship? What are the impacts of mass violence and state-led repression on post-colonial political economies? This thesis focuses on the impact of mass violence on the perceptions of citizenship and the political economy of Indonesia. After the Indonesian 1965-1966 mass murders and subsequent state-led repression under General Suharto, perceptions of political and civic identity and political participation were fundamentally changed– where Chinese Indonesians, despite their economic power, are politically disenfranchised and PKI/PKI affiliated pribumi (native) Indonesians are neither politically nor economically empowered.

Capitalist expansion also serves as a critical motive for mass atrocity …

Does Fear Of Government Corruption Affect Voter Turnout?, Ryan Nahmias

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

According to the Survey of American Fears (2020-2021) fear of corrupt government officials is the number one thing Americans fear: 79.6 % of them in fact. In addition, voter turnout is one of the quintessential pillars that allows a democracy to function properly. In this paper I will examine the extent to which fear of government officials’ corruption affects voter turnout. Using the data from the Chapman Survey of American Fears and variables from the American National Election Study between 2020 and 2021, I expect to find a moderately strong relationship between fear of government corruption and voter turnout. Moreover, …

The Political Imagination: Introduction To American Government, Peter Kolozi, James E. Freeman

Open Educational Resources

The Political Imagination: Introduction to American Government provides realistic, critical analysis as well as a hopeful, engagement-oriented narrative that encourages students to understand the important role they can play in the political system and in crafting a society in which they want to live. The Political Imagination draws on social and political theory and history offering an analytical as well as normative framework to think about the substance of politics, the procedures and institutions of government, and a dynamic, socially contingent definition of political power.

The Relationship Between Lgbtq+ Representation On The Political And Theatrical Stages, Brett V. Ries

Honors Thesis

This thesis examines the relationship between LGBTQ+ representation on the political and theatrical stages. During some decades, LGBTQ+ theatre was dictated by the politics of the time period. During other times, theatre educated and filled the silence when the government and society turned the other way. By examining LGBTQ+ plays, musicals, and political events over the past century, there are clear themes that emerge. In both the theatrical and political arenas, LGBTQ+ representation has been limited by a concept called “repressive tolerance.” Every step of progress has been met with another restriction, ranging from stereotypical caricatures to legal discrimination. In …

Chambers Of Reflection: Rousseau, Tocqueville, And Self-Government In The Digital Age, John Sweeney

Honors Projects

Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Alexis de Tocqueville each warn that the dominant cultures of their days may hinder the project of self-government. Against the backdrop of advancing Enlightenment philosophy, Rousseau writes that as social visibility increases relative to intimate connection, the drive for recognition corrupts self-love. Following the American and French revolutions, Tocqueville explores the democratic erosion of social hierarchies. He writes that a rise in individualism may obscure “self-interest well-understood”—the perspective gained through collaboration with others, thoughtful reflection, and reverence for truths that lie beyond the dictates of cursory instincts.

In this project, I apply these political theories to the …

Living In Gang-Controlled Neighborhoods: Impacts On Electoral And Nonelectoral Participation In El Salvador, Abby Córdova

Political Science Faculty Publications

Gangs’ territorial control affects the lives of residents in thousands of neighborhoods across Latin America, particularly in northern Central American countries. I argue that gang dominance constrains the ability of neighborhood residents to mobilize politically and consequently resist gang violence through institutionalized channels. Living in gang-controlled neighborhoods results in fewer incentives and opportunities to make political elites accountable for one’s personal safety. Even residents who have already experienced crime firsthand are discouraged from turning to politics as a strategy to change the status quo. My theoretical insights identify mechanisms through which gangs’ neighborhood control affects nonelectoral and electoral participation. To …

Islam & Interfaith Dialogue: Innovative Diplomacy Between The United States And Islamic Republic Of Iran, Kristyn Rohrer

Honors Student Research

This meta-communicative study provides an analysis of global interfaith dialogue as it pertains to peace and conflict, with a primary focus on Islam. The Islamic Republic of Iran and United States have a complicated history. Their diplomatic relationship is rife with manipulation, radicalism, and a disregard for human dignity. Currently, the US is imposing hundreds of sanctions and restrictions on Iran, from nuclear energy to medicine, as a result of President Trump’s decision to back out of the Iran Deal. However, other forms of dialogue are affecting positive relations between the two countries. Interfaith dialogue between North American Mennonites and …

Thoughts And Prayers, Chloe Kardasopoulos

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Examining the symbolic Gun against its tangible counterpart illuminates abstract attachments of power and superiority this nation associates with the weapon. These elements loaded in the Gun transform the weapon into an object representative of American identity. Analyzing ideological commitments within the Gun guides a critical response to examine disproportionately increasing national gun violence against stagnant federal gun control. The ongoing gun debate must be analyzed in its entirety, beginning at its source - the Second Amendment. Scholars such as Gary Wills dissect the Second Amendment to extract its contextualized intent from modern writers’ manipulated interpretations. It is not the …

Maga, Memes And Magnificent Hair: How White Nationalism Become Rooted In American History, Gabriel A. Tucker

Celebration of Learning

This work seeks to analyze the history of white nationalist ideologies in American political history and compare them to the current political environment today. The primary analysis rests on the rhetoric used, clothing chosen and cultural artifacts that have been appropriated by white nationalists in attempts to further their cause.

Flyer: Save The Date Nwpc Convention "Politics, Power & Parity" May 2-6, 2001

Saffy Collection - All Textual Materials

Flyer for National Women's Political Caucus Convention held at Hyatt Capitol Hill in Washington, DC.

50 Takes On Trump – Rhode Island, Richard Holtzman

History and Social Sciences Faculty Journal Articles

No abstract provided.

Running Comes Before Winning: Explaining The Gender Differential In State Legislatures, Marissa Piccolo

University Scholar Projects

What factors influence the likelihood that a woman runs for, wins, and holds political office across the country? Is it easier to explain why a woman runs in, than that she ultimately represents, a certain district? I compare a series of state-level and district-level independent variables and relate them to two different dependent variables: that a woman ran for a district seat, and that a woman represents a district. I explore what, and how much, political geography and contextual factors can explain. My preliminary findings show that it is easier to explain the probability that a woman runs, than that …

Where Do Women Stand?: Attitudes Towards Female Political Participation In India And The Us, Grace A. Carlson

Celebration of Learning

This project aimed to study attitudes towards gender inequalities in politics, both in the United States and India. Using original survey research and World Values Survey data, American and Indian attitudes towards women in politics were analyzed and compared. Ultimately, the project found that respondents in both countries still hold distinctly unequal views on women in the political sphere.

The Woman Card: Hillary Clinton's 2016 Presidential Campaign As A Case Study On America's Gendered Politics And Their Impact On Female Presidential Campaign Efficacy, Skylar Mcclain

Senior Theses

I posit that the gendered American cultural expectations for women, although they are not as rigid as they once were, inhibited the efficacy of Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign and impacted voter behavior. By assessing the indicators most commonly used in gender stereotypes; personality traits, domestic behaviors, occupations, and physical appearance, it is possible to construct a realistic portrait of Clinton’s public gender persona and the resulting electoral response.

Subject Formation, Fundamentalism And Instrumentalist Nationalism In Zimbabwean Politics, Joram Tarusarira Dr.

Peace and Conflict Studies

This article argues that despite presiding over a failed economy, the Zimbabwe African Union Patriotic Front (ZANU PF) led by Robert Mugabe, has willing and enthusiastic supporters. There are claims that the large crowds witnessed singing and dancing at ZANU PF rallies are mobilized by force because the attendees do not benefit anything from supporting the regime. In a divergence from the consensus of the literature, this article surfaces other explanations than coercion for the huge turnout at rallies, rented crowds, handouts, and well-articulated election manifestos. The psychological dimension, especially the fundamentalist mindset created by instrumentalist nationalism, is one such …

Anti-Trump Poster, Risd Archives

Politics

Student poster protesting Trump election/Inauguration. Southwest corner of RISD Auditorium Building. Depicts unholy trinity of Trump, Columbus, and Hooded Klansman. photos A. Martinez

La Beauté Est Dans La Rue | Beauty Is In The Street, Risd Archives

Politics

Situationist International poster reprised from Spring 1968 Paris Student protest, advocated uprisings in the streets

Shame: Trump, We Will Never Be Quiet, United Against Trump, Risd Archives

Politics

Political protest poster. Anti-Trump poster caricature of Trump as excrement.

The Reinforcement Of Hegemonic Masculinity Through Gender Frames During The 2016 Election, Kevin Gordon, Ryanne E. Gordon, Anthony Nabor

Global Tides

Gender and its perception by the media played a big role in the election of 2016. The media simplifies the roles of women candidates and redistributes information to the public using gender frames. Though framing based on gender had varying effects on the election, it is still prominent among the media and usually negatively affects women in the public sphere.

What Happened To Sanders? Millennials Analyses Of The 2016 Election Post-Primaries, Jacquelyn R. Fernandez

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The Millennial generation is now the largest living generation. This generation has absorbed many labels, including the one of not being civically engaged. Many news sources focused on their lack of engagement throughout the 2016 election, stating that they were the key to a win in the election. Since Bernie Sanders was the first candidate to capture the attention of such a large amount of the Millennial generation, this research is designed to understand why and provide an in-depth analysis of the thoughts about Sanders from the largest living generation. The data was collected by conducting 15 in-depth interviews with …

Resistance., Empire Resistance, Risd Archives

Politics

Advertisement for strategic planning session for 2016 post-election resistance.

Post Campaign Artists And Designers In Action, Risd Research, Risd Archives

Politics

Advertisement for a RISD Community meeting to contemplate the meaning of the 2016 Presidential Election and next steps for political and cultural engagement.

This Isn't Us, Nick Unknown, Risd Archives

Politics

Political protest poster. Anti-Trump poster post 2016 presidential election.