ANALYSIS OF PUBLIC POLICY DEBATE RELATED TO MULTICULTURALISM

For this assignment you will select and deconstruct a public policy debate that is related in some way to the issues addressed in this class. Essentially, I want you to don your (newly fashioned) Critical Cultural Analyst hat, and examine what is being discussed in the world around you. What does this debate say about Americans and American culture (our diverse values and beliefs, our deep anxieties, the tensions and contradictions at play in our psyches and society, etc.).

Papers should aim to summarize (give an overview of the issue), synthesize (pull together of disparate elements, ideas, memes, etc. into identifiable patterns), and analyze(break down and examine different parts) of the debate.

Specifically papers should provide:

A brief overview of the current debate: how long has it been in the public consciousness? Is it a well-known debate, or one that is prominent in certain circles only (e.g., among educators, within a particular racial/ethnic community, etc.)? Where do the “fault lines” lay? What are the views, concerns & arguments of opposing sides? Is there balance (or imbalance) in the economic &/or political power of one “side” relative to the other(s)?

A discussion of any important historical antecedents to the debate (e.g., have the issues being raised been brewing for a long time? Are there events or relations from the past that bear on the current debate?)

A description of tactics used by different participants in the debate (e.g., narratives created & drawn on; spectacles deployed, money wielded, etc.).

Facts and statistics that will enable readers to understand the debate, and an assessment of the extent to which they support or detract from the arguments of opposing camps (i.e., what are the facts “on the ground,” based on non-biased sources, and how aligned are they with the rhetoric being deployed?)

Effects (or predicted effects) of policy (or lack of policy)on people’s lives (individuals from a community in question; other groups; and all members of society)

SOURCES:
You may draw on any or all of the following sources of information and perspective for your paper:
• Course readings
• Outside sources: journals, books, newspapers, websites, online news sources (be discerning about your choice of internet sources; there is some intellectually rich content on the net, but there is also a lot of pap and baseless rantings-try to draw from more of the former, although I do understand that some of thoserhetorical rantings may be good fodder for analysis)
• Interviews with peoplewho research, advocate, oppose, or are in some way affected by the policy or issue at hand
• Participant observation “in the field,” i.e., spending time, observing, and interacting with individuals who are passionately engaged in promoting their perspective/policy)

POSSIBLE TOPICS:
Come see me, or your TA if you’d like to discuss an idea you have. Here are some possibilities:

Any debates linked to multiculturalism in school, from kindergarten through college, e.g., affirmative action, halting Ethnic Studies programs, proposed (and opposed) curriculum changes related to diversity, broadly defined; policies aimed at fostering a more positive school atmosphere w.r.t. LGBTQ students, bullying, fights over religious freedom and inclusion, thus, debates over school prayer, whether Christmas is “allowed” or it has to be reframed as “winter holiday” with inclusion of Hanukkah&Kwanzaa (though conspicuously not the major holidays from other traditions), whether yoga can be included in the PE or wellness curriculum in public schools since it has a link to Hinduism and Buddhism, etc.),

Take a piece of the immigration debate and go deeper into depth (can be specific laws or policies, e.g., border policies, health care policies-not including undocumented workers in the ACA, for example; driver’s license controversies, etc.)

Look at multiculturalism through the lens of language debates (e.g., “English-only” laws, fights over whether Ebonics or BVE, Black Vernacular English are “real” languages, or “just slang”)

Look at tension over religion, and especially misconceptions concerning Islam, e.g., through the lens of hijab/veiling controversies (you can draw from international literature for this one, since the topic has been quite heated in France),

Examine debates and policies related to our criminal justice system (e.g., stop & frisk policy, incarceration trends, etc.),

Consider debates related to LGBTQ rights (could be the rather vocal debate over the legality, and for many the morality, of gay marriage, or a slightly older but still relevant debate about “gays in the military.” Could also be something less public and prominent, but still relevant to debates over diversity, like health & employment benefit policies: whether same-sex partners should be able to include their partner as beneficiary, visit their partner in the hospital, etc.)

Examine debates related to (dis)ability, e.g., demands for accessibility and accommodation for both visible and invisible disabilities

Delve into debates about appropriation (of language, dress and dance styles cultivated by members of a particular subculture, by representatives of mainstream culture) and the hailstorm of commentary it sparks, e.g., the Miley Cyrus controversy (which was interesting for questions it raised w.r.t. race, gender, sexuality & class), or about the internalization of narrow (typically white) cultural ideals of beauty and desirability,e.g., “light skin/light eyes” glorification in many communities of color, and the messages such a valorization carries