Political Science Commons^™

Positive Rhetoric, Prejudiced Policy: The Contradiction Of Islamophobia In American Government After 9-11., Molly Bilz

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

Following the tragic terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, local and national leaders responded to the security crisis by uniting the country under the American ideals of freedom and democracy while condemning the Islamic terrorist group responsible. With beliefs rooted in historical American and European prejudice, Western scholarship promoted a “clash of civilizations” between Islam and the West wherein the cultures’ supposed irreconcilable differences would inevitably lead to warfare. Simultaneously, many Americans grew suspicious of Muslims after the attacks, including government officials. As hate crimes against Muslim and Middle Eastern Americans soared in the U.S., government leaders used positive rhetoric …

Implications Of Pop Cultural Diplomacy: An Analysis Of Idol-State Interactions, Elizabeth Erwin

Honors College Theses

This paper uses media coverage of idol-state interactions to understand the ways in which states utilize pop culture as a component of their public diplomacy strategy. Idol-state interactions are defined as an event where a pop cultural figure accompanies or is accompanied by a state official to a formal meeting with a representative of a foreign government. Looking specifically at South Korean diplomatic events where K-Pop idols are present, I find that idol-state interactions have the potential to increase media coverage, further cultural understanding and serve as a relationship-building tool.

The Effect Of The Political Climate On Latinos’ Wellbeing, Magda E. Mendoza Soto

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

The presidential election of Donald Trump significantly influenced various aspects of the population of the United States. Given Trump’s emphasis on anti-immigrant policies, it is essential for professionals and practitioners to better understand how the Latin population is experiencing and responding to today’s political climate. Participants in this study ranged in age from 18 to 64 and were from Latin descent, which consists of persons, cultures, or countries related to the Spanish language, culture, people, or to Spain in general. Ninety-six participants completed the quantitative measures including The Adult Hope Scale (HS), Resilience Scale (CD-RISC), the Beck Anxiety Inventory, the …

The Return Of State Vs State Competition, Albert James Contreras

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This thesis outlines a theoretically informed case study analysis of the United States' recent actions (US) regarding the United Kingdom's (UK) relationship with the Chinese telecommunications company, Huawei. There have been multiple US concerns regarding Huawei's activities in the UK and their potential implications for US national security. These concerns arise because it is a state-owned enterprise with close ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Because of its ties with the CCP, the US expressed fears that China will use Huawei's telecommunications technology to infiltrate and spy on countries that use their products. This is especially concerning as the …

Do We Protect? Children's Rights In International Codification, Sandra Nehring

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

International arena fails to protect. Each year, millions of children face violence, neglect, and abuse. Responses provided by state actors are not enough to eliminate children's rights violation, making child abuse an uncomfortable aspect of development. This Thesis argues that international regulations regarding children's rights do not provide equal, universal, and sufficient child protection, what further leads to greater child abuse. Specifically, it analyzes the status of six international documents introduced between 1924-1996, in order to set a common theoretical foundation for the subject of children's rights. The results of the analysis of legal documents discussing children's rights, when compared …

America Delayed: An Analysis Of Comprehensive Sex Education In The Us, Carolyn Jones

Political Science

Sex education in the United States has been and continues to be a threat to public health. Compared to European countries, the United States has incredibly poor health outcomes all of which are a direct result of poor sex education. A deep dive into sex education per state reveals a list of bad actors across the United States, not just a result of a few bad acting states. In 2015 California passed what many health experts consider the exemplary sex education bill. A comparison of two similar states, New York and California try to identify the casual mechanisms that allowed …

“They Were Simply Invisible”: Advocacy Groups’ Inequitable Impact On The Passage Of Fosta/Sesta & The Role Of Social Acceptability, Kathryn Weidner

Political Science

FOSTA/SESTA, a federal law passed in 2017, was intended to thwart sex trafficking on the internet by amending Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996. In practice, it has radically changed the ways internet service providers (ISPs) moderate user content, oftentimes impacting the livelihoods of sex workers. Considering FOSTA/SESTA’s broad bipartisan support, this thesis examines the roles of different advocacy groups in FOSTA/SESTA’s creation. By examining witness testimonies before Congress, public statements, and letters for/against FOSTA/SESTA, the author finds that, the more socially accepted an advocacy group’s members are, the more influence that stakeholder group held over the …

American Samoa Politics: Performing Sāmoa, Dayonara S. Gaoteote

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

American Samoa as a self-governing U.S. territory located in the South Pacific is fortunate to be able to maintain their cultural traditions, language, and lands in all aspects- including their government. However, when the community suffers from a number of growing issues that affect the health and safety of its citizens, an analysis of the culture and leadership is fitting. I interviewed Jacqueline Tuiasosopo-Mata'u, Dr. Tapa'au Daniel Aga, and Chief Tauaisafune Niualama Taifane to gain insight into American Samoa government history, American Samoa government and community in the present, and to describe cultural practices and traditions that are in place. …

Presidential Rhetoric About Immigration From Ronald Reagan To Donald Trump, Katya Palacios

Political Science & International Studies | Senior Theses

The United States is known as the “land of opportunity” where many seek safety, economic prosperity, and freedom. The U.S is a nation built by immigrants. While achieving the American Dream has never been easy, the U.S has a population of over 45 million migrants. Immigration policy is a federal responsibility and, as such, requires presidential leadership. Presidents have had to address the issue and have done so differently. For example, during one of the 1980 Republican primary debates, George H.W Bush and Ronald Reagan both agreed that building a relationship with its Mexican neighbor was important for the United …

The United States And Its Coercive Democratization Attempts In Japan And Iraq, Noah Shepardson

College Honors Program

The United States engaged in coercive democratization (bringing democracy to a country via coercive measures such as occupation) endeavors in both Japan and Iraq, achieving drastically different results. The democratization of Japan is typically regarded as the gold standard of coercive democratization due to Japan’s rapid social and economic development following the United States’ occupation of the country in the years after World War II. The United States’ democratization effort in Iraq, on the other hand, has failed to create such prosperous conditions and has arguably made Iraq more unstable. This thesis seeks to identify why coercive democratization worked in …

A Study Of Young American Women, Conservatism, And Feminism, Laurel Lux

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

As of June 2020, only 31% of self-identified conservatives in the United States were women. Modern political conservatism is known for rejecting modern feminism as well, which is often stereotyped as a women’s issue. With such a small percentage of women identifying as conservative, the question arises as to why young American women reject modern feminism and identify with modern political conservatism. In this study I examined the literature comparing modern conservatism, conservative women’s movements, and modern feminism, and conducted a small questionnaire of conservative women 18-24. I concluded by describing three generalized schools of thought regarding conservative women’s views …

Latino Voter Registration And Participation Rates In The 2020 Presidential Election, Laird W. Bergad, Luis A. Miranda Jr.

Center for Latin American, Caribbean, and Latino Studies

Introduction:

This report examines voter registration and participation rates among Latinos in every presidential election since 1992.

Methods:

All data on registration and voting found in this report were derived from the Voting and Registration Tables issued by the U.S. Census Bureau at https://www.census.gov/topics/public-sector/voting/data/tables.html.

Discussion:

Latino voter registration rates reached an all-time high in the 2020 presidential election: 61.1% of all Latino citizens 18 years of age and older, rising from 57.3% in 2016. Latino voting rates (the percentage of Latinos eligible to vote who actually voted) also rose to a historic high of 53.7% in November 2020, increasing from …

Governmental Repression: The Cases Of China, Akbar Rahmani

Honors Theses

This thesis explores what factors can explain why the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) response to two pro-democracy movements – 1989 Tiananmen Square and the 2014 Umbrella Movement – had varied repression levels. Specifically, this thesis will explore the impact of social media, breakdowns in government cohesion, and the type of protest on governmental responses. This research finds that a breakdown in government cohesion during the 1989 protest caused the declaration of martial law and the use of tanks followed by infantrymen. Although the 2014 protest was regime-threatening, social media constrained the government’s ability to use alternative media and harsh repression. …

Presidents And Populist Politics, Brooke Sobo

Honors Theses

Populist language is a common rhetorical practice of United States Presidents. There is a breadth of literature on the study of populism and populist language, yet few studies identify populist language as reimagining the relationship between president and people. This paper identifies populist language as a political tactic of presidents and links the tactic’s use to the cultivation of authority and legitimacy. A central theoretical foundation of this paper rests on Skowronek’s concept of political time and authority structures. Through the use of four case studies spanning the presidencies of Andrew Jackson, Franklin Roosevelt, Ronald Reagan, and Donald Trump, this …

The Effects Of Spousal Cues On Candidate Religious And Ideological Perceptions, Joseph Murphy Iii

Honors Theses

The importance of religion, or lack thereof, in determining vote choice has seen a growing body of literature in the last few decades, especially in Europe and the United States. Given the way religion has been ingrained in American society since its inception, it is not surprising that political candidates would use language cues as a way to signal that they share certain beliefs with their voters. These cues do not always have to be uttered by the political candidates themselves as, for example, the spouses of political candidates are often deployed as surrogates for the candidate. The experiment I …

'Here We Start And In Jerusalem We Meet:' The Motivational And Organizational Influences Of Israel's Statehood Ontransnational Salafi Jihad, Charlotte Armistead

Honors Theses

The Israeli occupation of Palestine and its impact on the proliferation and longevity of transnational Salafi jihad is largely underestimated in current literature. In this thesis, I argue that Palestine, defined as both the nation and physical borders before the Balfour Declaration, largely contributed to the twentieth century revival of transnational Salafi jihad and is used by both Al Qaeda and ISIS as liberation and annihilation movements, respectively. In order to assess the motivational and organizational influences of the Israeli occupation of Palestine on transnational Salafi jihad, I examine the works of Abdullah Azzam, a selection of Osama Bin Laden’s …

The Backlash Of The Online-Right During And After The 2020 United States Presidential Election, Luis Roberto Lopez Jr.

Theses and Dissertations

What type of Internet memes were utilized by the Online-Right to show support to former-President Donald Trump and to delegitimize the 2020 Presidential Election? In this thesis, I argue that the Online-Right used Internet memes for two purposes. The first was to discredit and attack the election and former President Trump’s opponents. The second purpose is that the Online-Right created a cult of personality around Donald Trump with the usage of Internet memes. Most of the literature focuses on the type of groups that use Internet memes on the Internet. I focus on what type of Internet memes were used …

Exploring The Electoral Impact Of Sexual Scandal On Four Recent Political Candidates: Cal Cunningham, Donald Trump, David Vitter, And Bill Clinton, Madeline Mckenzie Connelly

Honors Capstones

No abstract provided.

Letter From The Editor, Sara Lopez

Sigma: Journal of Political and International Studies

No abstract provided.

Determining The Constitutionality Of Public Aid To Parochial Schools After Espinoza, Anna Bryner

Sigma: Journal of Political and International Studies

No abstract provided.