Sociology Commons^™

“Los Esfuerzos Escolares En España Y El Papel De La Escuelita” - The Scholar Challenges In Spain And The Role Of “La Escuelita”, Adriana Barriga

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

I began volunteering in La Escuelita in March, and during my time there, I helped a class of children from La Paz with their homework and also played with them at the end of the day. After a few weeks, I developed an interest in the educational system in Spain, specifically related to children in primary education. I wanted to know more about some of the problems with the education in poor neighborhoods and how La Escuelita functions to help the children who are at a socioeconomic disadvantage to equalize their opportunity for educational success. In this paper, I address …

Building Houses, Making Homes: The Experiencing Of Returning To Post-War Sanski Most, Claire Griffith

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Over half of Bosnia’s population was displaced by the war from 1992-1995. One of the political objectives of the war was the separating of Bosnia’s ethnically intermixed population into homogenous spaces. This was achieved through ethnic cleansing of communities. Broadening the discussion of ethnic cleansing, authors, such as Gearoid O Tuathail and Carl Cahlman, have analyzed ethnic cleansing, as it occurred in Bosnia, within the framework of ‘domicide,’ or the ““he intentional exercise of violence to destroy a particular type of spatiality: homes. It is ‘the deliberate killing of home’” (O Tuathail and Dahlman, 244). Assuming ‘domicide’ rather than just …

A Long Road Home: Housing Rights In South Africa’S Informal Settlement, Joe Slovo, Kaitlyn Bowles

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Most countries legally consider housing to be a necessary human right. But for
millions of individuals in this world, adequate housing is out of reach. Homelessness is evident in different manors throughout the world, but in South Africa, the problem of insufficient housing develops itself in the form of informal settlements. One such settlement, Joe Slovo1, is situated just outside of Cape Town, and is the primary focus of this paper. Recently, Joe Slovo has been a prominent feature in the local news because of its involvement in a Constitutional Court case. On March 30, 2011, 20,000 residents of Joe …

Rising Food Prices In Kenya: How The Government And Its Citizens Are Coping, Or Not, Teresa Eilers

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Kenya’s food prices are skyrocketing and the price of Kenya’s staple food, maize meal, is escalating fastest out of all food prices. The global market is experiencing rising food prices; but, Kenyans are paying dramatically more for their food compared to other global citizens. The Kenyan government can confront these rising prices by utilizing various policy change options. Unfortunately, the Kenyan government and Kenyan citizens must confront the causes to exorbitant maize meal prices to address the current food crisis in the country.

Healing South Africa: The Institute For Healing Of Memories As A Lens For Post-Conflict Trauma Initiatives, Rachael C. Ward

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This paper investigates how South Africa is attempting to deal with its violent past and present, by way of helping individuals cope with trauma. The Institute for Healing of Memories was examined through a case study and the Trauma Centre for Victims of Violence and Torture was also researched. I inquired first, what is most successful about these organizations’ work, and second, whether these successful approaches could be exported to help a larger percentage of traumatized people in South Africa. My research found that the entire Healing of Memory workshop methodology is successful and would need to be exported as …

The Hands Behind The Handicraft: How “Fair” Is Fair Trade?, Carly Hubbard

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Nepal’s male-dominated society, tradition, and culture have left its female population to experience an undermining of their gender socially, politically, and economically. There are fewer opportunities for women in education and in the labor market. In an effort to encourage equality and decrease levels of the widespread poverty existing among Nepal’s female population, thousands of Fair Trade skills training programs have been established. By teaching simple tasks like weaving, sewing, and dyeing, such programs strive to teach those who would otherwise struggle to sustain themselves to perform tasks that will allow them to earn a living. Research and observation of …

The Language Of Action: A Creative Study Of Resistance To Slavery From West Africa To The Days Across The Sea, Kali Block-Steele

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The goal of this paper is to study one of the lesser known aspects of the Transatlantic Slave Trade: resistance. Before the discussion of resistance, a brief history of the trade can be found. The focus on active resistance to slavery both on an individual and collective level begins on the African continent and continues through the Middle Passage, finishing with a discussion on forms of resistance in the Americas. There is a second part encompassing some creative writings inspired by the formation of this paper.

Fight Or Flight: The Situation Of The Young And Jobless In Morocco, Anduriña Espinoza

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In the context of the Arab Spring, Morocco faces some of the biggest anti-government protests in recent history, many of which are motivated at least in part by the poor and persistent employment problem. Bearing in mind the staggeringly high numbers of unemployed youth in a country that is also one of the biggest senders of migrants to Europe and North America, I have based my study on the duality of choice Moroccans face. When confronted with deteriorating quality in a given product, as economist Albert O. Hirschman has articulated in his theory on exit, voice, and loyalty, people can …

The Impact Of Qmm On Social Relations In Fort-Dauphin, Christopher B. Collier

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

My interest in this subject began with a general desire to understand how Malagasy society adapts to “outsiders.” We learned throughout the semester about the various external forces that have shaped the culture of the island since the arrival of the first people here thousands of years ago. At first, my ideas were focused more on the experiences of people immigrating to Madagascar. I observed very particular patterns: immigrants of certain ethnicities fill specific socioeconomic niches in specific geographic areas, and with varying reception from the Malagasy community.

I came to realize, however, that similar patterns take place even between …

Ecuadorians In New York City, 1990—2008, Howard Caro-López

Center for Latin American, Caribbean, and Latino Studies

Introduction: This study examines demographic and socioeconomic factors of racial/ethnic groups in New York City between 1990 and 2008 – particularly the Ecuadorian population.

Methods: Data on Latinos and other racial/ethnic groups were obtained from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey, reorganized for public use by the Minnesota Population Center, University of Minnesota, IPUMSusa. Cases in the dataset were weighted and analyzed to produce population estimates.

Results: The Ecuadorian population in New York City doubled between 1990 and 2008 becoming the fourth largest Latino nationality behind Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, and Mexicans. Queens had the greatest concentration of Ecuadorians in …

Intimate Partner Violence In Urban Pakistan: Prevalence, Frequency, And Risk Factors, Tazeen S. Ali, Nargis Asad, Ingrid Mogren, Gunilla Krantz

School of Nursing & Midwifery

Background: Intimate partner violence (IPV) is an important public health issue with severe adverse consequences. Population-based data on IPV from Muslim societies are scarce, and Pakistan is no exception. This study was conducted among women residing in urban Karachi, to estimate the prevalence and frequency of different forms of IPV and their associations with sociodemographic factors.
Methods: This cross-sectional community-based study was conducted using a structured questionnaire developed by the World Health Organisation for research on violence. Community midwives conducted face-to-face interviews with 759 married women aged 25-60 years.
Results: Self-reported past-year and lifetime prevalence of physical violence was 56.3 …

Torch (March 2011), Brandon Baldwin, Civil Rights Team Project

Torch: The Civil Rights Team Project Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Factors Of Environmental Sustainability For Africa, Asia, And Latin America, Jacob Converse

Political Science Theses and Capstones

This study incorporates and analyzes several theories in regards to what causes countries to perform in an environmentally sustainable manner. This has been and is becoming an increasingly important and debated topic due to the ever increasing interest and concern about global environmental challenges. This issue has been examined through a variety of different lenses including economic, socio-political, and geographical perspectives and they have an assortment of results. One such existing finding suggests that the best way to improve a country’s environmental sustainability is to first focus on improving the gross domestic product which will eventually allow changes to take …

Patterns Of Inequality In The U.S. Class Structure, Eric J. Jenkins

Social Sciences

No abstract provided.

The Emergence Of Latin America: A Break With History?, Mauricio Cardenas

Brookings Scholar Lecture Series

The idea is to discuss recent economic and social trends in Latin America, many of which defy the conventional wisdom in the U.S. about the region. At the same time, the region is divided between two ideological camps, so progress will not be uniform between countries. Understanding the origins and implications of the ideological divide is crucial.

Self-Esteem And Mastery Trajectories In High School By Social Class And Gender, Christina D. Falci

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Using longitudinal data from 769 white adolescents in the Midwest, this research applies a social structure and personality perspective to examine variation in self-esteem and mastery trajectories by gender and SES across the high school years. Analyses reveal that high SES adolescents experience significantly steeper gains in self-esteem and mastery compared to low SES adolescents, resulting in the reversal of SES differences in self-esteem and the emergence of significant SES differences in mastery. Pre-existing gender differences in self-esteem narrow between the 9^th and 12^th grade because self-esteem increases at a faster rate among girls than boys during high …

The People Want The Fall Of The Regime: Schooling, Political Protest, And The Economy, Filipe R. Campante, Davin Chor

Research Collection School Of Economics

We provide evidence that economic circumstances are a key intermediating variable for understanding the relationship between schooling and political protest. Using the World Values Survey, we find that individuals with higher levels of schooling, but whose income outcomes fall short of that predicted by their biographical characteristics, in turn display a greater propensity to engage in protest activities. We discuss a number of interpretations that are consistent with this finding, including the idea that economic conditions can affect how individuals trade off the use of their human capital between production and political activities. Our results could also reflect a link …

Torch (February 2011), Brandon Baldwin, Civil Rights Team Project

Torch: The Civil Rights Team Project Newsletter

No abstract provided.

A Little Respect, Please, Christina Cerna

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Simon Tisdall suggests that last month, when Mohammed Bouazizi (twenty-six years old), “an unemployed graduate, set himself on fire outside a government building in protest at police harassment,” his act became the “rallying cause for Tunisia’s disaffected legions of unemployed students, impoverished workers, trade unionists, lawyers and human rights activists.” The reaction to his act of self-immolation and death on January 4th led to the flight of President Ben Ali ten days later to Saudi Arabia and to the end of Ali's twenty-three-year rule of Tunisia. Time reported the event as follows: “When Mohamed Bouazizi set himself alight on Dec. …

Unpaid Internships & The Department Of Labor: The Impact Of Underenforcement Of The Fair Labor Standards Act On Equal Opportunity, Andrew Mark Bennett

University of Maryland Law Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class

No abstract provided.

Torch (January 2011), Brandon Baldwin, Civil Rights Team Project

Torch: The Civil Rights Team Project Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Evaluating The Success Of Market-Based Incentives Against Child Labor: The Case Of The Harkin- Engel Protocol And Goodweave, Emily Lafferrandre

Annual Interdisciplinary Conference on Human Trafficking: 3rd (2011)

Heralded as a success of the anti-slavery movement, the recent phenomena of market-based incentives, appeals to the consumer for direct action in combating human trafficking and child labor. One of the most successful examples of this is Rugmark, a transnational non-profit utilizing the social labeling model to promote fair labor practices in the production of Indian carpets. The organization attempts to extirpate child labor in India’s carpet belt region of Mirzapur and Bhadohi through strategic marketing, labeling of licensed carpets and enforcement of fair labor practices. Utilizing this case study, the research will scrutinize and objectively measure the level of …

Asean And The Evolving State Of Human Rights, Hilary Stauffer

Social Space

What is it about human rights in Asia that has international governments so worked up? According to Hilary Stauffer, it is not necessarily about differences in culture and geography.

Pledge Your Body For Your Bread: Welfare, Drug Testing, And The Inferior Fourth Amendment, Jordan C. Budd

Law Faculty Scholarship

Proposals to subject welfare recipients to periodic drug testing have emerged over the last three years as a significant legislative trend across the United States. Since 2007, over half of the states have considered bills requiring aid recipients to submit to invasive extraction procedures as an ongoing condition of public assistance. The vast majority of the legislation imposes testing without regard to suspected drug use, reflecting the implicit assumption that the poor are inherently predisposed to culpable conduct and thus may be subject to class-based intrusions that would be inarguably impermissible if inflicted on the less destitute. These proposals are …

Fighting Fire With Flame: Visual Storytelling As The Antidote To Negative Media Imagery, Léna Sulpovar

Capstone Collection

This paper is an examination of the power of art in building bridges between groups of people in conflict. Through two complementary case studies where theater and film are utilized as catalyst for dialogue, the paper highlights the impact of visual storytelling on the hearts and minds of participants entering the experience with certain prejudices towards and fear of the “other” group. In particular, it shows that complex visual stories and empathetic characters have the ability to increase understanding of other perspectives, transform perceptions, and even instill narratives that are contrary to the ones dominant within the given culture. Interviews …

Northwest Arkansas: Point-In-Time Homeless Census, Kevin M. Fitzpatrick

Homelessness

The goal of this study is to provide Washington and Benton County government officials, school district officials, and homeless service providers with reliable empirical information on the current number of homeless, their characteristics, living circumstances, service use/needs and chronic conditions.

Bottom Fifth In Singapore, Jacqueline Loh

Social Space

Jacqueline Loh paints a numerical picture of the poor and cautions that without concerted interventions, many households could remain chronically poor.

Immigrant Women Organize For Justice: A Listening Project, Sandra Catalina Nieto

Capstone Collection

Over nineteen million immigrant women live in the United States. Each one of those nineteen million women carries with her a powerful history. Immigrant Women Organize for Justice: A Listening Project is an attempt to capture a breath of those histories, in particular the histories of four mujeres luchadoras: immigrant women who are organizing communities surrounding them and devoting much of their life and their work to the lucha (struggle or fight) for a more just and equal society. Immigrant Women Organize for Justice: A Listening Project is a two-part project. The first section is devoted entirely to remembering the …

Social Media For Social Change: We Fight On, Heather Soldonia

Annual Interdisciplinary Conference on Human Trafficking: 3rd (2011)

Anti-trafficking crusader Sunitha Krishnan once said “my biggest challenge is your blocks to accept these victims as your own.” That challenge is the inspiration for this online community. The purpose of redGNAT is to “Reverse Exploitation Daily through a Global Network Against Trafficking”. The purpose is to create an online community of NGOs, counseling providers, pro bono law services and other resources. This part of the online community will be a type of directory (i.e. Petfinder.com) and serve as a collective that increases in value as it increases in participants and content. Ideally, members will organically link together within their …

A Media Campaign To Increase Awareness And Prevention Of Human Trafficking In Asia: Background Strategies And Outcome Evaluation Of The Mtv Exit Campaign, Prawit Thainiyom

Annual Interdisciplinary Conference on Human Trafficking: 3rd (2011)

In 2006, MTV and USAID launched, "MTV EXIT (End Exploitation and Trafficking)," a multi-media, multi-platform awareness and prevention campaign against human trafficking that has reached over 20 million people in 21 countries in the Asia Pacific. This paper describes the campaign background, design and message strategies and the outcome evaluation of the MTV EXIT documentaries, which were developed to build knowledge and influence attitude and behavior of the target audience on human trafficking. Both quantitative and qualitative research methods were employed for the outcome evaluation in six selected countries: China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Philippines and Thailand. Quantitative data was collected …