Saturday, March 29, 2008
Class next Thursday, 4/3/08 STILL ON
Assignment due Tuesday, 4/1/08
Multiple Choice
Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
____ 1. The ____ states that poverty is reproduced from one generation to another, and functions to justify blaming the poor for their poverty and blaming social problems on innate deficiencies.
a.
culture of poverty thesis
b.
eugenics movement
c.
deficient hypothesis
d.
disability dogma
____ 2. The ____ uses a single issue (such as race or gender or sexual orientation) as the focus for identity formation.
a.
biological model
b.
cultural model
c.
minority group model
d.
empowerment model
____ 3. As noted in "The First Americans: Americans Indians," the "Trail of Tears" resulted from which of the following policies:
a.
the Indian New Deal.
b.
removal.
c.
assimilation.
d.
self-determination.
____ 4. As noted in "The First Americans: Americans Indians," assimilation of American Indians took the form of:
a.
boarding schools for American Indian children.
b.
the 1887 General Allotment Act.
c.
tribal governance.
d.
both a and b
____ 5. Matthew Snipp notes in "The First Americans: Americans Indians," that American Indians living in urban areas have been helped by:
a.
the government.
b.
reservations.
c.
pan-Indianism.
d.
none of the above
____ 6. According to Matthew Snipp, American Indians are one of the most ____ groups in American society.
a.
significant
b.
diverse
c.
destitute
d.
insignificant
Essay
7. Discuss the biological and cultural models of race, class and disability. How did these models impact policy development?
8. Discuss eugenics. What role did eugenics play in establishing a hierarchy of "lower" and "higher" races?
9. Compare and contrast the minority group model and the empowerment model. The authors advocate for the use of which model in understanding race, class and disability? Why?
10. How has the United States government carried out its goal of assimilation of American Indians?
Short Answer
11. Internet Exercises and Questions for Further Study:
a. National Council on Disability
http://www.ncd.gov/
1. What is the overall purpose of the agency?
2. Does this agency employ a single issue focus or does it address multiple concerns?
b. Native Web:
http://www.nativeweb.org/resources/history/united_states/
1. Explore an area of Native American history. What new information have you learned about the experiences of Native Americans?
2. How has this information broadened your understanding of the oppression of
Native Americans by the U.S. government?
Thursday, March 27, 2008
What do you think of this? Race, Class & Gender in the News
Thu Mar 27, 2:16 PM ET
WILKES-BARRE, Pa. - A judge known for creative sentencing has ordered three Spanish-speaking men to learn English or go to jail.
The men, who faced prison for criminal conspiracy to commit robbery, can remain on parole if they learn to read and write English, earn their GEDs and get full-time jobs, Luzerne County Judge Peter Paul Olszewski Jr. said.
The men, Luis Reyes, Ricardo Dominguez and Rafael Guzman-Mateo, plus a fourth defendant, Kelvin Reyes-Rosario, all needed translators when they pleaded guilty Tuesday.
"Do you think we are going to supply you with a translator all of your life?" the judge asked them.
The four, ranging in age from 17 to 22, were in a group that police said accosted two men on a street in May. The two said they were asked if they had marijuana, told to empty their pockets, struck on the head, threatened with a gun and told to stay off the block.
Attorneys for the men said they were studying the legality of the ruling and had not decided whether to appeal. One of the attorneys, Ferris Webby, suggested that the ruling was good for his client, Guzman-Mateo.
"My client is happy," Webby said. "I think it's going to help him."
The judge sentenced the four men to jail terms of four to 24 months. But he gave the three men, who already had served at least four months, immediate parole. Reyes-Rosario remains imprisoned on an unrelated drug charge.
Olszewski ordered the three to return with their parole officers in a year and take an English test. "If they don't pass, they're going in for the 24 (months)," he said.
Olszewski is known for outside-the-box sentencing.
He has ordered young defendants who are school dropouts to finish school. He often orders defendants to get full-time employment. But he also has his staff coordinate with an employment agency to help them find the jobs.
Thursday, March 20, 2008
additional assignment due 3/27/08
Assignment Due: Thursday, 3/27/08 (in addition to assignment already due)
TO READ/VIEW:· please read the following articles:
http://www.theroot.com/id/45321
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=88650809
http://www.slate.com/id/2175496/
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/02/07/opinion/main2441992.shtml
· please watch this Jeremiah Wright’s speech on you tube.com (search: “Jeremiah Wright - Hillary Clinton ain't never been called... “)
· please watch Barack Obama’s Speeach on Race on youtube.com(search: Barack Obama Speech on Race (Tuesday, March 18, 2008))(it’s about 9 minutes)
RESPONSE:
1. Please write a paragraph describing how race as an issue has manifested itself in the presidential race. Please be sure to reference either the articles you read or videos you watched. You can also complete additional research on line – if you do so, please specify the source of your information.
2. Please write a paragraph describing how gender as an issue has manifested itself in the presidential race. Please be sure to reference either the articles you read or videos you watched. You can also complete additional research on line – if you do so, please specify the source of your information.
Monday, March 17, 2008
Assignment Due 3/27/08
Articles 44 & 47
Multiple Choice
Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
____ 1. According to Gregory Mantsios in "Media Magic: Making Class Invisible," the media creates:
a. | the illusion of an egalitarian society. |
b. | an accurate image of the poor, the middle class, and the wealthy. |
c. | unity among the poor, the middle class, and the wealthy. |
d. | a double standard. |
____ 2. According to Gregory Mantsios in "Media Magic: Making Class Invisible," the media creates a universal middle class. This results in:
a. | the middle class fearing and blaming anyone who is less affluent. |
b. | more power to address poverty in America. |
c. | more unity in the fight against the waste of the wealthy. |
d. | all of the above |
____ 3. As noted in "Can Education Eliminate Race, Class, and Gender Inequality," a meritocracy is based on two misconception. They include:
a. | poverty and wealth are a result of individual inadequacies or strengths rather than the distributive mechanisms of the capitalist economy. |
b. | success in life may be enhanced by inherited positions, connections, or privilege based on gender or race. |
c. | the belief that everyone is master of his or her own fate. |
d. | both a and b |
____ 4. As noted in "Can Education Eliminate Race, Class, and Gender Inequality," the history of school desegregation demonstrates:
a. | the overwhelming success possible once racial segregation is stopped. |
b. | the importance given to education in promoting equality of opportunity. |
c. | that most children still attend segregated schools. |
d. | both b and c |
____ 5. The Coleman Report shifted the focus of educational reform away from educational facilities and on to:
a. | employment shortages. |
b. | discriminatory practices of teachers. |
c. | the family background of students. |
d. | gender differences in learning styles. |
____ 6. According to "Can Education Eliminate Race, Class, and Gender Inequality," the effectiveness of educational reform as a solution to ending social inequalities is limited because:
a. | the lack of viable employment maintains income disparities. |
b. | discrimination and prejudice cannot be regulated. |
c. | individual factors affect individual success. |
d. | both b and c |
Essay
7. What is "blaming the victim"? How does this affect the image of the poor?
8. What are the beliefs, assumptions, and misconceptions associated with the idea that a good education will lead to economic opportunity?
9. Distinguish between equality, equality of opportunity, and equality of educational opportunity.
10. Briefly explain the following educational reforms and summarize their impact on educational opportunity: school desegregation, the Coleman Report, compensatory education, human capital theory and work force education programs, and Title IX.
Assignment Due Tuesday, 3/25/08
Articles 38 & 39
Multiple Choice
Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
____ 1. According to Weston, a lesbian or gay identity has been portrayed as a rejection of:
a. | the family and a departure from kinship. |
b. | dominant society values. |
c. | the community. |
d. | freedom. |
____ 2. According to Weston, two assumptions surround the divide between gay life and family:
a. | the absence of children or lasting relationships and alienation of adoptive and blood kin. |
b. | too many children and poor relationships. |
c. | numerous children and only one biological parent. |
d. | none of the above |
____ 3. Weston believes assumptions about gays and lesbians are but a short step from placing them somewhere beyond the family, unencumbered by relations of kinship, responsibility, or affection to portraying them ____.
a. | as timely destroyers. |
b. | as a menace to family and society. |
c. | as assets to family and society. |
d. | as beneficial to family and society |
____ 4. According to Weston, a long sociological tradition in the United States of studying the family under siege or in various states of dissolution lent credibility to charges that this institution required protection from:
a. | destructive forces. |
b. | societal ills. |
c. | the homosexual threat. |
d. | lesbian threat. |
____ 5. Based on Weston's research, some lesbians and gay men have embraced the popular equation of their sexual identities with the:
a. | hope for a better future. |
b. | renunciation of access to kinship. |
c. | renunciation of fear. |
d. | remnants of power and success. |
____ 6. According to Weston, people who equated their adoption of a lesbian or gay identity with a renunciation of family did so in the double-sided sense of:
a. | fearing rejection by the families in which they had grown up, and not expecting to marry or have children as adults. |
b. | fearing acceptance by the families in which they had grown up and choosing not to have children. |
c. | fearing rejection by co-workers and not having a family to rely upon. |
d. | fearing a life of loneliness and wanting acceptance from the family. |
Essay
7. What is the significance of Childs' reference to the miner's canary?
8. What are the implications of the white families' discussions about their opposition to interracial relationships in non-racial terms? What are the implications of the black families' clearly identifying race as an issue with regard to interracial relationships?
9. What are some assumptions that heterosexuals make about the homosexual lifestyle?
10. Why is it necessary to understand one's biological family before grasping the meaning of one's homosexual family?
Assignment Due Thursday, 3/20/08
Articles 32 & 33
Multiple Choice
Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
____ 1. According to Amott and Matthaei, a(n) ____ perspective helps demonstrate the development of and relationships between gender, race-ethnicity, and class.
a. | unidimensional |
b. | historical |
c. | functionalist |
d. | myopic |
____ 2. Even though childrearing is women's work in most societies,
a. | many women work outside the home and all perform childcare duties. |
b. | many women do not have children, and others do not perform their own child care or domestic work. |
c. | many women do not have children, but are willing to adopt someone else's children. |
d. | many women love their children, but do not want to raise them. |
____ 3. Kenneth Brown expresses from his unemployment experience that prolonged unemployment can generate a psychological effect, by doing "a number on your:
a. | home and family. |
b. | psyche, your soul, and your spirit. |
c. | dreams and hope. |
d. | your peace of mind. |
____ 4. Kenneth Brown introduces a paradox in his job search when he questions whether his white male counterpart struggles with appearing ____ and capable without ____the people who have the power to hire.
a. | cool/depressing |
b. | cool/being intimidated by |
c. | skilled/intimidating |
d. | a and c |
____ 5. Kenneth Brown reveals that unemployment can make you question your:
a. | hopes and joy. |
b. | goals and self-esteem. |
c. | skills and ability. |
d. | faith and spiritual foundation. |
____ 6. For Kenneth Brown, gender role beliefs were also prominent in his unemployment experience, as he also questioned his:
a. | gender. |
b. | manhood. |
c. | sexuality. |
d. | gender attitudes. |
Essay
7. What does social construction mean?
8. How are gender, race-ethnicity, and class interconnected? Why is it important to analyze women's work with this understanding?
9. What does Kenneth Brown's vow regarding the proper speaking of the King's English reflect about the dominant and subcultures in America?
10. Why would unemployment cause Kenneth Brown to question his manhood? How did such strong convictions about work occur? What role does the society have in shaping such beliefs?
Short Answer
11. Internet Exercises
a. Women Watch
http://www.un.org/womenwatch/
Explore the issues presented on this site. How do factors such as race and ethnicity affect the issues facing women represented on this site?
b. U.S. Department of Labor
Unemployment Statistics
http://www.bls.gov/cps
Review the unemployment statistics. Click on the "dinasour" link, which will give you information about unemployment over the last decade or so. What do you notice about the current rate of unemployment in comparison to prior years? What is happening with the rate over the present time?