Politics and Social Change Commons^™

Taiwanese Perceptions Of Refugees: Results Of An Experimental Survey, Stella Treumann

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

This research paper deals with perceptions of refugees, with the intent to demonstrate what factors influence perceptions of refugees in general, and specifically in the context of Taiwan. The paper is divided into two larger sections. The first section functions as a literature review with the aim of providing the reader with existing background information on the topic of perceptions of refugees. The second section contains an experimental study on perceptions of refugees in Taiwan. While the effects of individual-level factors on perceptions of refugees have been examined by many studies and in different countries, their effects have never been …

Correspondence: Card, Support James R. Myers Campaign, James R. Myers Campaign Fund

Saffy Collection - All Textual Materials

Political campaign funding ephemera.

Nothing To Write Home About: Aphorisms Against Actuality, Daniel Kissinger, Maisha Manson

Proceedings from the Document Academy

We ask the reader to consider what the claiming of home and home-ness means. For you, for each of us, for our nation. We jump between different documents and documentations of what it means to be, to make, to keep, to establish, to live at home. We look, particularly, to the aphorisms that collect around the sense and feeling of home, and home-ness. We posit counter-documents from historical archives to these structures of feeling which function to make (some of) us feel “at home,” or at least a certain way, while pushing out those who are marked as unwanted, who …

H.V.: The Cuban Revolution Through One Man’S Life, Isabel Valiela

Spanish Faculty Publications

This paper aims to illustrate the many ways in which the Cuban Revolution shaped the lives of the Cuban people by focusing on one man’s life from his childhood in the early part of the revolutionary period to his final departure from Cuba in 2006. H.V., as I call him, now lives in Barcelona, Spain. He is a man of humble rural origins who moved to Havana in his youth, where he benefitted from various government programs related to education, sports and job training. He and his family were initially very pro-revolutionary, but in the 1980’s he began to observe …

Grime Launches A Revolution In Youth Politics, Monique Charles

Sociology Faculty Articles and Research

"The relationship between grime and politics has been an interesting and evolving one. Grime is a genre of music that emerged at the turn of the 21st century in London’s inner boroughs. Early on, its sound was most closely likened to US hip hop and rap. But those in the know appreciate grime’s deep connections to its UK predecessors, which include music from the British underground scene such as garage and jungle, in addition to Jamaican dancehall, electronic/experimental music, and British punk. The grime 'sound' developed as it grew, eventually being acknowledged as its own genre at the MOBOs in …

Embodying Rhythm Nation: Multimodal Hip Hop Dance As A Site For Adolescent Social-Emotional And Political Development, Lauren M. Roygardner

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This exploratory study employed qualitative methodology, specifically values analysis, to learn more about how being involved within Hip hop dance communities positively relates to adolescent development. Adolescence was defined herein as ages 13-23. The study investigated Hip hop dance communities in terms of cultural expertise (i.e. novice, intermediate and advanced/expert) to look specifically at dance narratives (i.e. peak experience narratives and “I dance because” essays) and hip hop dance performances. The primary purpose of this dissertation was to (1) explore how adolescents use multimodal Hip hop dance discourse for social-emotional development and critical consciousness, and to (2) understand how values …

Social Order And The Culture Of Corruption In India, Arunodhaya Jebamani

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Corruption is rampant in India and is prevalent in every sector of the Indian society. The purpose of this paper is to discuss selected cases to understand the widespread corruption that occurs in various sectors of the society such as academia, business, banking, law enforcement and other everyday services. This paper will address how the social order contributes to these corrupt practices, and tries to shed some light on how corrupt practices have been socially accepted and have become an unavoidable norm in many cases. The paper also studies the structures that exist and aide in augmenting corruption in India …

Becoming Ghosts: The Public Veiling Of Puerto Ricans In New York City, Samantha Pina Saghera

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

In recent years Puerto Ricans in New York City have become difficult to locate in the public realm. This is a paradox given that Puerto Ricans make up the largest Hispanic subgroup in the larger metropolitan region. This study examines how, when, and why Puerto Ricans became publicly invisible in New York City.

Demographic, media-based, political, and cultural changes have all contributed to the decline in Puerto Rican ethnic visibility. The consequence is that although Puerto Ricans continue to be racialized (as evidenced by their socioeconomic indicators), their racialization cannot be seen in the public realm. Instead, Hispanic characteristics are …

The Expansion Of The Mandarin Mind, Tyler Okney

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This study will examine and contrast two periods of xenophobia and stagnation, late Qing dynasty China, and the PRC under Mao, with a genuine market place of ideas, Shanghai and the other foreign treaty ports in the period 1849 to 1949, and explain how this period of cosmopolitan ferment has had beneficial effects on China today. Countries that have shut themselves off from the outside world have frequently suffered first stagnation, and then decay. While this might appear a commonplace in the abstract, the application of this insight in the development of particular nations has been neither as thorough or …

Denial: A Sociological Theory, Christina Nadler

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation develops a theory of sociological denial through an investigation of contested social problems. I begin by reviewing the literature on denial, both sociological and psychological, in order to situate the project and exemplify the relevance and need for a sociological theory of denial. Then, through examining three scales of the social, I account for multiple layers of the social structure and denial’s place in each. These scales are the sites at which denial happens: geographic, cognitive, and unconscious. I explore five contested social problems through varied paradigms that allow me to analyze each scale of the structural. I …

A Political Ecology Of Information: Media And The Dilemma Of State Power In China, Michael L. Miller

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

In this dissertation, I employ a Weberian concept of social power in order to theorize the challenges posed by, and the varieties of state response to, the dilemma of state power: the need of all states to empower societies with social capacities that may, in turn, threaten state interests. Through a comparison of traditional and new forms of media in China, I show that rather than posing qualitatively new types of challenges to authoritarian states, new media exacerbate the dilemma of state power. They do so because along each of three dimensions of social control, new media shift the relationship …

The Torch (June 2017), Crtp

Torch: The Civil Rights Team Project Newsletter

Civic and Community Engagement | Civil Rights and Discrimination | Education | Gender and Sexuality | Inequality and Stratification | Politics and Social Change | Public Policy | Race and Ethnicity

Recommended Citation

Baldwin, Brandon and Civil Rights Team Project, "Torch (August 2013)" (2013). Torch: The Civil Rights Team Project Newsletter. 58. http://digitalcommons.usm.maine.edu/torch/58

Torch (June 2017), Brandon Baldwin

Torch: The Civil Rights Team Project Newsletter

Civic and Community Engagement | Civil Rights and Discrimination | Education | Gender and Sexuality | Inequality and Stratification | Politics and Social Change | Public Policy | Race and Ethnicity

Multiple Perspectives On Service Animals In Society, Arthur W. Blaser

Political Science Faculty Articles and Research

This paper explores alternative strategies for taking service dogs seriously. I argue for multiple analytical perspectives to understand service dog issues (as opposed to overreliance on a single method). Analysts (including journalists, policy-makers, and activists) should reflect on media coverage, socio-economic realities, politics and law, and many other factors. Rather than thinking "either/or" on service dogs in society, we need to move to thinking "both/and," to critical analysis of multiple perspectives.

Native American Tribal Child Social Workers' Experiences On Co-Occurrences Of Domestic Violence And Child Maltreatment, Elaine Brown

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Native American women and children suffer from domestic violence at an alarming rate on and off Indian reservations in the United States. Often these families that are impacted by domestic violence are involved in the state/county child welfare system. This study was to gain knowledge about Native American tribal child social workers experiences and challenges with co-occurrences of domestic violence and child maltreatment cases. This study used an exploratory, qualitative design with a phenomenological approach by collecting data through face-to-face and over the phone interviews with four Native American tribal child social workers from four different tribes across the nation. …

Student Censorship In The Social Work Classrooms, Lisa Kozlowski

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Through the evolution of the field of social work, a divide in its ideologies has emerged and certain political and ideological groups such as the religious and conservatives have become underrepresented. As a result, over the years the liberal philosophies have emerged as the dominant group. This has led to a decrease in diversity within the field. Recognition of biases in the field of social work is difficult. Through a qualitative analysis method, this study was meant to explore if social work students feel they are free to share openly in the classroom, and if they are accepting of all …

Strategies And Substance Treatment: Perceptions Of Older Adults 60 And Over, Kim Malveo Jones

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to gather the perceive strategies and substance treatment needs of adults 60 and over. To examine what recovery treatment models and strategies could be most effective for the age-related complex needs of the 60 and over population who are at risk for substance misuse, use or abuse. In the coming years, there will be a substantial increase in the numbers of older adults with substance misuse and abuse problems. Even though one in five individuals who experience substance abuse are older adults many clinicians remain ill equipped to serve older clientele, and particularly those …

Book Review: Prostitution Narratives: Stories Of Survival In The Sex Trade, Edited By Caroline Norma And Melinda Tankard Reist, Abigail Bray

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

No abstract provided.

Pension Fund Evictions: Lessons For Housing And Labor, Marnie F. Brady

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

In this dissertation I analyze an institutional investor portfolio of over-leveraged multifamily rental housing in East Palo Alto, California to demonstrate how changing forms of landlordism produce both new and familiar targets for tenants organizing against displacement and for housing security. Venture capital investors in the first decade of the 2000s exploited the Silicon Valley regional conditions of racial exclusion, uneven development, and municipal rent control. I introduce the legacy of Black political organization in East Palo Alto as a way of contextualizing the tenants’ and the city leaders’ response to the monopoly investment purchase. The structure of this rental …

The Donation-Based Approach To Solving Critical Social Issues: An Examination Of The Food Waste Recovery Approach To Solving Hunger In The United States, Desa Radic

Capstone Collection

As the issue of hunger continues to plague the lives of nearly 1 billion people around the world, we need to find real, lasting and empowering solutions. This is an interdisciplinary research study into the donation-based approach to solving critical social issues in the United States by examining the food waste recovery and hunger debate. Social, public and private sectors advocate that hunger can be solved through food waste recovery and redistribution methods. From a systems perspective, such thinking is not only problematic for the people facing hunger, but raises concern of achieving overall social justice and change. Using qualitative …

Bridges Out Of Poverty As An Anti-Poverty Strategy In Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, Katlyn M. Uhler

Capstone Collection

This paper explores the initial results of the Bridges Out of Poverty (“Bridges”) community framework as implemented by the organization Kennett Area Community Service in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania. The aim of this research is to provide perspective on Bridges Out of Poverty’s contribution to the understanding of poverty in the United States and its potential as an antipoverty intervention. It does so first through an exploration of the historical and current discussion on poverty and anti-poverty interventions in the United States, followed by research on the Bridges model itself and its implementation in Kennett Square. This latter research includes content …

Proliferating A Culture Of Fear: Islam In A Post 9/11 America, Setareh Motamedi

Political Science Student Papers and Posters

The threat of terrorism perceived by the American public has been shaped by a series of traumatic events over the past decade. In the years following the attacks of September 11, 2001, fear of terrorism has extended beyond the threat of terrorist groups. Much of the American public considers not only terrorist groups like al-Qaeda, but the entire religion of Islam to be a security threat. In much of this security discourse, ideas of hatred, violence, and terror have become associated with Islam. This study explores that association, and aims to identify what motivates existing stereotypes. Drawing on research from …

Imbalance: Mental Health In Higher Education, Heather Clark

Humboldt Journal of Social Relations

No abstract provided.

Rollerskates, David Longstreth

Humboldt Journal of Social Relations

No abstract provided.

The Borderlands Of Education: Latinas In Engineering By Michelle Madsen Camacho And Susan M. Lord, Mary E. Virnoche

Humboldt Journal of Social Relations

No abstract provided.

The Slow Professor: Challenging The Culture Of Speed In The Academy By Maggie Berg And Barbara K. Seeber, Michelle L. Edwards

Humboldt Journal of Social Relations

No abstract provided.

Color-Blind Contradictions And Black/White Binaries: White Academics Upholding Whiteness, Demerris R. Brooks-Immel Ed.D., Susan B. Murray Ph.D.

Humboldt Journal of Social Relations

This qualitative study maps ‘locally situated’ (Twine and Gallagher 2008), contours of whiteness as cultural practice and institutional discourse by examining how white college faculty, staff, and administrators respond to multiracial educational environments and multicultural ideals. Drawing on depth interviews with thirty white administrators, faculty, and staff, this study finds that these white educators adhered to an intermittent form of color-blind racism (Bonilla-Silva, 2009) that enabled them to hold fast to the fiction that race has no meaning in their lives, yet remains the single-most defining dimension of the lives of people of color. This analysis identifies five contextually-embedded manifestations …

Beyond Acceptance: Serving The Needs Of Transgender Students At Women’S Colleges, Annie Freitas

Humboldt Journal of Social Relations

The inclusion of transgender students in women’s colleges has been widely debated on campuses and in the media. Despite some opposition, transgender students at women’s colleges are growing in number and visibility. This study examines the ways that transgender students’ experiences differ from the experiences of cisgender students in both single-sex and co-educational environments. Conclusions are based on assessments of support, reported attitudes towards transgender students, and reported knowledge about transgender history and social issues using responses to a survey completed by 184 students at a variety of colleges and universities. The study found significant differences between women’s colleges and …

Unapologetically Queer In Unapologetically Black Spaces: Creating An Inclusive Hbcu Campus, Emily Lenning

Humboldt Journal of Social Relations

Historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are notoriously perceived as unwelcoming towards lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) students, and are considerably behind predominantly white institutions (PWIs) in regards to providing supportive and affirming environments. Fewer than 25% of the 105 HBCUs in the United States have LGBTQ student organizations, and only three have established LGBTQ resource centers. This article, written by the co-founder of one of these centers, is a reflexive exercise that describes the history, successes and challenges of developing and sustaining a LGBTQ resource center on one HBCU campus. Establishing LGBTQ initiatives at HBCUs is absolutely …

"I Know It (Racism) Still Exists Here:" African American Males At A Predominantly White Institution (Pwi), Ray Von Robertson, Cassandra Chaney

Humboldt Journal of Social Relations

This qualitative study examined the experiences of African American males at a PWI (Predominantly White Institution). The focus on African American males is deliberate because, as a group, they have the highest attrition rate of any college demographic. Utilizing in-depth interview data from 12 African American males at a PWI, this project delineated the nefarious station of black males who experienced racism and racial microaggressions in a purportedly post-racial, colorblind society. Qualitative analysis of the data revealed the following two themes: (1) Racism and Racial Microaggressions and (2) The African American experience is not important to faculty and the university. …