Final Review Blog

If you are looking to review as you are studying for the final feel free to use this space to post questions or thoughts to get ready for the exam . Checking back once a day would be a great idea as you can answer questions from others or get new ideas about how to link concepts from the course. Asking questions based on the review sheet or answering other students' questions will count for a blog post (1 max). Good luck.

For Class on 3/13: Looking Forward...

We have addressed racial and ethnic politics from many perspectives this semester. Though we have highlighted many areas of concern we have also discussed many methods used to improve the position, status, and political and economic power of marginalized groups. Although we often find it challenging to view things outside of the modern day perspective, much has changed over time. Consider the following:

1 year ago: The Supreme Court said that schools must apply strict scrutiny when using race or ethnicity based factors in admissions decisions. George Zimmerman Verdict (Trayvon martin Case)
6 year ago: the first nonwhite president was elected
7 years ago: Unemployment 4.5%, DOW at 14,000 (Today Unemployment 6.6% overall, 12.1% for African Americans, 9.1% for Hispanics, 4.8% for Asian Americans, DOW 16,450 )
8 years ago: very few of us had ever heard of Barack Obama
11 years ago: The supreme court ruled that colleges still had legitimate reasons to use race and ethnicity as factors in college admissions
13 years ago: 9/11
23 years ago: the Rodney King Case and racially charged rioting
25 years ago: prison population starts to skyrocket
36 years ago: Regents of University of CA vs. Bakke
41 years ago: Roe vs. Wade
46 years ago: modern civil rights movement ends (according to most historians), Martin Luther King killed, major riots, peak of troops in Vietnam
47 years ago: third year in a row of major racially charged riots throughout American cities
49 years ago: Voting Rights Act of 1965, new immigration laws dramatically increase immigration (especially from Asia and Latin America), Black Power movement, Malcolm X killed
50 years ago: Civil Rights Act of 1964
51 years ago: March on Washington, Birmingham protests
59 years ago: Montgomery Bus Boycott
60 years ago: Brown vs. Board of Education
69 years ago: end of WWII
70 years ago: Interment of 110,000 Japanese Americans
94 years ago: Women gain the right to vote
107 years ago: peak of immigration at turn of century
118 years ago: Plessy vs. Ferguson - separate but equal is constitutional
120 years ago: widespread lynching and intimidation
126 years ago: Chinese Exclusion Act
137 years ago: end of reconstruction, early Jim Crow Era (which lasts nearly 100 years)
144 years ago: 15th amendment - black men given right to vote
146 years ago: 14th amendment
148 years ago: 13th amendment - end of slavery
149 years ago: end of Civil War, Start of reconstruction, black codes
153 years ago: start of Civil War
205 years ago: end of slave trade
227 years ago: Constitution written including 3/5 compromise and slavery
238 years ago: Declaration of Independence
395 years ago: first slaves from Africa brought to colonies
407 years ago: first British Colony established
several thousand years earlier: Native Americans living here.

The point: much has changed, and often in a short period of time. Looking forward what do you predict will be the state of racial and ethnic politics in America 10, 20, or even 50 years from now? What can and should be done politically to help?

For Class on 3/6: Affirmative Action

We have read about the reasons for and reasons against affirmative action in hiring and school admissions. In class we will discuss the merits and whether these programs do more harm than good. For this blog I would like you to look forward. In terms of college admissions there are benefits to diverse classrooms, however in the movement toward a less race conscious society many would ultimately like to rely less and less on race and ethnicity as a factor in measuring who gets into schools. You are in charge of affirmative action plans for the department of education. Do you think affirmative action programs are beneficial/necessary today? Why/Why not? Over the next ten years what should be done to help eliminate the need for such programs?

For Class on 2/27: The Best form of Representation

This weeks readings include articles by Suzanne Dovi and Katherine Tate (recommended), both of which focus on representation in congress. While there are many theoretical arguments presented the debate boils down to which type of representation is best for marginalized groups: descriptive or substantive? Descriptive representatives are those who share demographic characteristics with those their constituents (i.e. a Latino congressperson is best suited to represent a Latino/a). Substantive representatives are those who focus on the interests and needs of various groups (i.e. a congressperson of any race who work substantively for what they perceive to be black issues). I would like to hear your views on this debate and more generally how our representative democracy should best represent an increasingly diverse nation.

Other food for thought that you might want to comment on include:

• exit polls for most modern presidential elections up to 2008 broken down by demographic characteristics (be sure to look at changes over time) and 2012 here
• the breakdown of the current 113th Congress (especially focus on pages 7-8)

For Class on 2/20: The Role of the Media

This week I would like you to take a look at a few examples of how the media has covered different events. Historically the media has played a crucial role in political successes such as the civil rights movement. The media has the power to influence the political agenda and frame issues and individuals in influential ways. Often the media is referred to as the "4th branch of government," in charge of oversight and responsible to hold political leaders accountable. However others see the media as perpetuating bias and power structures by highlighting shocking and violent news, often disproportionally focusing on racial and ethnic minorities, as well as supporting a clearly partisan bias. Others see racial and ethnic minorities simply lacking in representation on TV.

Look at the following clips and then comment generally on how media coverage affects racial or ethnic groups in America. What is the role of media in the process today? Has it changed from prior media coverage racially charged issues? What types of bias do you notice? Is it fair coverage? What role should the media take?
Feel free to add other clips that you find interesting and relevant.


Video 1: ABC coverage of the Rodney King verdict in 1991
Video 2: Malcolm X appears on a television show in Chicago called "City Desk" on March 17, 1963.
Video 3: Coverage of 2008 Election on CNN
Video 4: Reaction to the George Zimmerman (Trayvon Martin) Case and verdict

For Class on 2/13: The Latino Vote

Political parties are in the business of winning elections. They do this by creating their party platforms, selecting candidates, and raising money to support campaigns in order to win come election day. But the voters that each party desperately covets are generally thought of as coalitions: groups of groups, that each party wants to assemble and hold in order to maintain a majority of voters voting for their candidates. A great example of this was the "new deal coalition" which were made up of union workers, African Americans, Jews, northern intellectuals, farmers, and a few others who voted in huge numbers for Democrats from the New Deal (1930s) until the 1980s or longer. 

While campaigns are becoming more sophisticated and more individualized, parties still target groups that they would like to hold. This is true for the "Black Vote," the "Women Vote," and the "Latino Vote." The parties target these groups by trying to support issues important to many in the group. Obviously there is no single issue that everyone in a particular group agrees with. It is no more realistic to talk about women's reproductive health issues as THE issue for woman as it would be to talk about support of Israel wrapping up 100% of the Jewish vote. 

That being said the Latino Vote in America is among the fastest growing groups of voters and has been shifting more and more into the Democratic column. Take a look at this great report from Pew about the Latino vote in 2012. You will notice the trends over time about which party Latinos are voting for and some information about the issues that Latino's felt were most important in 2012. There are many issues that were important, online one of which is immigration, though it grabs most of the attention. We have discussed earlier the recent proposals around immigration. Currently the Republican Party is trying to determine what its immigration reform proposal should be and whether they should introduce it now or wait until after the midterm congressional elections in November.

This week I would like you to analyze the role of the Latino vote today and as we look into the future. You can find a detailed look at the latino vote from many different angles here. You might want to take into account where Latinos live, recent public opinion data about their views on immigration, and what other issues might be particularly important to Latinos. 

How should this voting block be viewed? What policies or actions by the government might be best for the largest number of Latinos? And most importantly how would you advise both parties (but especially the Republicans) in regards to gaining more Latino voters? Please respond to one another and simply use these questions as a discussion starter.

For Class on 2/8: Race, Ethnicity, and Religion

This week we are primarily looking at the role of religion within the landscape of racial and ethnic politics in the United States. There are many who argue that religious minorities face the same challenges and have the same political opportunities as racial and ethnic minorities. While religious discrimination has existed in America at least as long as racial discrimination, it does not fit neatly into the discussion of racial or ethnic politics. Religion has clearly guided political decisions in this country at least as much, if not more, than race or ethnicity. However it remains heavily debated as to whether religious identification is merely as aspect of culture or one connected to and influenced by race and ethnicity.

Take a look at some interesting findings regarding the breakdown of different religious groups in the United States in this summary of findings from the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life.

I would like to leave this blog post fairly open ended. To that end please respond to the questions below or more generally to the theme at hand and to the comments of your classmates.

1. Do religious minorities face the same political challenges that racial and ethnic minorities face?
2. What does your answer suggest about potential strategies that might be used by religious, ethnic, or racial minority groups in order to improve their political or social standing?

For Class on 1/30: Obama and African American Politics

This week we are looking into the historical and contemporary issues related to African American politics including historical barriers, systematic opposition, efforts to gain power, representation in the American political system, and the role of the 2008 and 2012 elections for blacks around the country (and people of color around the world). Although we will have another class specifically devoted to race and electoral politics, I would like you to specifically focus on the election of Obama for African Americans. 

You should browse this report from the Pew Research Center about the 2008 election voter turnout and how it has become continually more diverse over the past 20 years.

Also if you are interested here are the detailed exit polls from 2012,  2008, and 2004 if you would like to compare turnout by various groups, and an interesting snapshot of party identification of African Americans over time.

Take a look at this brief article about support for Obama by African Americans leading up tot the 2012 election.

Also you may want to explore thegrio.com a site organized around the African American perspective including many interesting articles and videos on American politics and president Obama.

Then I would like to discuss issues related to any the following questions: Has the Obama presidency affected African Americans in real or symbolic ways? Has the election affected Whites view of African Americans? Does the election of Obama affect all non-White racial and ethnic groups in similar ways? Will race play a large role in future presidential election?

For Class on 1/23: Growing American Diversity

Last week's topic, the social and historical construction of race and ethnicity, brings to light the effect of time on the views, values, laws, and overall social stratification existing in American society and throughout American politics. What happens in the past shapes, in part, our perspectives and choices in the present. Over the course of the past two centuries the United states has become the most diverse nations on earth and Chicago, one of its most diverse (and segregated) cities. These trends are continuing as immigration and demographic data show that the white population in America is not growing at near the rate of other racial groups. After looking at the data from our readings this week, what do you think this growing diversity means for the U.S.? What does it mean for Chicago? What are the strengths and/or weaknesses and what does it mean in terms of American politics?

Just a reminder: try to limit your responses to one long or two short paragraphs, and make sure you proofread your comment before loading it. The questions are just a starting off point. You are not expected to answer all questions. Instead they are meant to prompt a discussion. Respond to both the questions and the comments of your classmates. If you have technical glitches please let me know.

For Class on 1/16 (Due 1/15 at 8:00pm): Internalizing social and historical constructions

This is our final blog focusing on how race and ethnicity has been constructed in the U.S. before shifting gears toward the interaction between race, ethnicity and politics on a more practical level. To do so I would like you to take another, slightly different look at how we have internalized constructions and values associated with different groups. I would like you to take at least one Implicit Assessment Test (IAT) which will serve as a tool as to how we have or have not internalized socially constructed values about race and ethnicity.

The IAT tests have been designed by Project Implicit which, according to the project website, "represents a collaborative research effort between researchers at Harvard University, the University of Virginia, and University of Washington. While the particular purposes of each study vary considerably, most studies available at Project Implicit examine thoughts and feelings that exist either outside of conscious awareness or outside of conscious control. The primary goals of Project Implicit are to provide a safe, secure, and well-designed virtual environment to investigate psychological issues and, at the same time, provide visitors and participants with an experience that is both educational and engaging."

You can find the tests by clicking on "I Wish to Proceed" at the bottom of this screen after reading the disclaimer. On the next screen I would like you to select the Skin Tone IAT which should take no more than 15 minutes to complete. Afterward, if you would like, feel free to take other IAT tests including a Race (Black-white) IAT, Native (Native-White American) IAT, Asian (Asian-European American IAT), and Arab-Muslim (Arab Muslim - Other) IAT.

I would like you to comment on your experience taking the test and your results. I want to be clear: this is not a test suggesting that you are or are not racist. It is designed to indicate internalized preferences regarding issues that are both sensitive and influenced greatly by social, cultural, historical, and institutional influences. I look forward to a thoughtful discussion about your experiences on Thursday.

For 1/9: Self Reflection

This week we are beginning to look at how race and ethnicity is socially and historically constructed. In order to gain the most value from this course we also must examine ourselves in terms of how we conceptualize race and ethnicity and how these ideas and values have been constructed in each of our individual lives. That is your challenging task this week. As you read the assigned readings for this week think about your personal ideas regarding race and ethnicity and why you have these beliefs. Those ideas have been constructed throughout your life. Think critically about how you have personally constructed race and ethnicity by answering some or all of the following questions:

1. How do you identify yourself racially or ethnically (or what group(s) do you personally identify with)?
2. How has this affected your conception of race and ethnicity?
3. Who or what has affected your personal views about race and/or ethnicity (people, institutions, media, personal experiences, etc...)?
4. Why do you do feel the way you do about various racial or ethnic groups?
5. How does politics impact race and ethnicity in America?

This first blog is different from those that will follow. For this week only I would like you to type a 1-2 page personal reflection blog that will be turned in to class on 1/9. You are NOT expected to post your blog entry online. Gaining a more critical understanding of what you feel and how you have developed these views will help us as we look at the social and historical construction of race and ethnicity across the country.

Following this week you will post your brief blogs online. Each should be one long or two short paragraphs only. The blog this week is required. After this week you must complete 5 more over the course of the quarter.

Welcome

Welcome to your Racial and Ethnic Politics poliblog experience! Each week you will be required to read the post for that week (which may include a news article, question, comment, controversial issue, etc.) and respond with your comments. Each of your comments should be no more than 1/2 page (approx. one long or two short paragraphs) and must be posted by 8:00 Wednesday night. You do not need to do any outside research in order to respond, just reflect on the topic of that week, the other comments posted on the blog, and make an argument presenting your views. You must post at least one comment on 6 different weeks (NOTE: you do not need to write a comment every week). But you MUST read the post and all comments either Wednesday night or Thursday before class each week. Enjoy the world of the racial and ethnic politics poliblog.