Discussion topics : Responses must be a minimum of 400 words. Students must also comment on at least one fellow classmate’s in addition to writing their own. Comments must be more substantive than just “I agree” or “disagree”. They must be a minimum of 100 words. The grade will be based on ability to following instructions as well as the content and thoroughness of the student’s response.

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here the discussion :

Do you think that the United States should have more than a two-party system like some other countries? If the United States feasibly had more than just two parties, what differences do you think could result from this shift? Could this possibly impact future elections? Should the United States do away with the Electoral College? Again, what differences do you think could result from this shift?Could this possibly impact future elections?

Part one: Influence of Media on Stereotypes

In your text, Framework Essay III explains how Asian Americans often are stereotyped positively, while African Americans often are stereotyped negatively.

To prepare for this Discussion:

• Review the “Framework Essay” in Section III and Readings 13, 31, and 33 in the course text. (Rosenblum, K. E., & Travis T. C. (2016). The meaning of difference: American constructions of race and ethnicity, sex and gender, social class, sexuality, and disability (7th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill). Pay particular attention to stereotypes and media representations of racial and ethnic groups.
• Think about how media influences racial and ethnic stereotypes.
• Consider positive and negative stereotypes that you are aware of.
• Watch a television sitcom, a drama, a news program, a talk show, or the commercials aired during one of these types of shows. Identify one example of a positive racial or ethnic stereotype and one example of a negative racial or ethnic stereotype.
• Consider how the racial or ethnic stereotypes in the media that you viewed may influence viewers’ perceptions of race and ethnicity.

With these thoughts in mind:

Post one example of a positive racial or ethnic stereotype that you viewed. Explain why you identified the stereotype as positive. Then, post one example of a negative racial or ethnic stereotype that you viewed. Explain why you identified the stereotype as negative. Finally, evaluate how the stereotypes that you identified might influence viewers’ perceptions of race and ethnicity. Provide specific examples to illustrate your explanation.

Part two: Perceptions of Social Class

To prepare for this Assignment:

• Review this week’s Learning Resources. Pay particular attention to the definitions of wealth, power, and the tri-racial stratification system in the article, “From Bi-racial to Tri-racial: Towards a New System of Racial Stratification in the USA.” (Bonilla-Silva, E. (2004). From bi-racial to tri-racial: Towards a new system of racial stratification in the USA. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 27(6), 931–950. doi:10.1080/0141987042000268530).
• Consider the impact of the tri-racial stratification system on perceptions of race and ethnicity.
• Think about how race, power, and wealth might influence people’s perception of social class
• Reflect on whether race, power, or wealth might have the most influence and why.

The Assignment (3–4 pages):

• Explain the impact of a tri-racial system on societal perceptions of race and ethnicity. Provide specific examples.
• Separately analyze the impact of race, power, and wealth on people’s perceptions of social class. Provide specific examples for each.
• Explain which you believe has the greatest influence on people’s perceptions of social class and justify your response.

• Length: about 4 pages
• Format: Double-spaced or 1.5-spaced
• Include full citations indicating the sources of your information (see below for more information)
• Please work alone on this assignment!

Instructions:

First read pp. 179-182 of chapter 10 in Zhou & Sun 2004. This chapter is written by the well-known Chinese linguist Sun Hongkai of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. You may remember him as the one who documented the Anong language. (Note: you are only asked to read the first 4 pages of the chapter.)

Then, download and read any one of the chapters 12 (Tibetan), 13 (Zhuang), 14 (Yi), 15 (Bai), 16 (Mangolian), or 17 (Korean) from Zhou 2004. You are free to choose the language that interests you the most. (Note that each of these chapters is written by a different author.) Read the description of the same language in Ramsey’s Languages of China and Legerton & Rawson’s Invisible China (some languages do not appear in both books, so just read what is available).

Making use of material in these three sources, combined with what you have learned from other class readings (for example, Dwyer) and lectures (we have discussed Yi, Tibetan, Korean, and Mongolian in some detail), write a brief summary of the ethnic minority people and language you have chosen. (Be aware that these three books are written by authors with very different backgrounds, perspectives, and agendas.) You may consult additional sources if you wish, but it is not necessary. Reputable published sources such as An ethnohistorical dictionary of China (on reserve at Odegaard and available as an ebook through UW library) are preferable to open collaborative sources (such as Wikipedia).

Include at least the following information:

• population and geographic distribution
• language varieties and dialects
• general language features
• type of writing system(s)
• important points related to language policy, education policy, and writing system policy as well as additional information that you think is interesting or worth noting.

Do not attempt to include all the information in your readings; use your judgment to summarize and highlight. Don’t include technical details that you do not understand. If there are technical descriptions that you feel are important to understand and include in your paper, ask me for an explanation. Be sure that the paper represents your own writing, i.e. that it makes use of the information you’ve taken from the sources, but extracted, reorganized, and presented in your own words.

Your grade will be based on

1. coherence and organization of your paper, general clarity of the writing
2. accurate representation of information learned from the readings
3. judicious selection of material from reading included in your paper
4. connection of the reading material to other information learned in class
5. sufficiency of attributions in the text or in footnotes, with complete bibliographic citations

Aside from these requirements, you have freedom to decide on the content and structure of your paper.

When you are done writing your paper, search on YouTube (or elsewhere on the web) for a video that features a speaker of your language. Watch the video to get a feel for the sound of the language. Add the URL (web page address) of the video as an appendix at the end of your paper.

For today’s topic: class inequality, instead of reading from your textbook, I would instead ask you to listen to one of the most prophetic voices on poverty. Please listen to Doctor Martin Luther King Junior’s famous speech, “Why I Am Opposed to the War in Vietnam” at the link below

Pay attention to the way Doctor King connects foreign war with domestic poverty and consider why he calls war “the enemy of the poor.” This speech was controversial and afterwards King received a great deal of criticism from across the political spectrum for his anti-war position. This speech was delivered approximately one year before his assassination.

Before he was killed, MLK returned to Memphis to support the sanitation (garbage) workers – as part of his struggle for labor equity and the founding of the Poor People’s Campaign. A campaign to provide housing, a decent standard of living, and good jobs for everyone.

Now, over 50 years after MLK’s assassination, a new Poor People’s Campaign has been launched by a coalition of secular and faith-based organizations across the country. Listen to Reverend Bishop Barber, Co-Chair of the new Poor People’s Campaign describe the crisis of poverty in the US – before begin arrested last month.

After you have listened/watched the links above, answer the following questions:

1. What is the relationship between militarism and poverty – as described by Doctor King?

2. What, in your opinion, are the similarities, and differences, between the conditions during MLK’s time – and our own time? Note: In your response, you may choose to draw upon the information on the website of the new Poor People’s Campaign:https://www.poorpeoplescampaign.org/demands/

3. What are some specific political/social/economic steps for reducing wealth inequality and lifting people out of poverty in the US and around the world?

4. What do you see as viable ‘exit strategies’ – opportunities for overcoming – what MLK called the Triplets of Evil (Racism, Materialism, and Militarism)? In other words, how are we to build a world of substantive human equity and environmental sustainability given the many challenges that lie before us?

5. Optional: Do you support or reject Bishop Barber’s arguments for a guaranteed basic income and universal healthcare.