Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: The teaching challenges faced by instructors at community colleges are as unique as they are myriad. As a professor of political science at a large, urban community college, I routinely teach classes containing students who are not only racially, ethnically, and nationally diverse, but who are also unequal in terms of academic preparedness, work schedules, study habits, life goals, and family situations. Overcoming the challenges of reaching such students requires pedagogical creativity. In this paper I will discuss a few of the more effective strategies I have used to establish common ground among my students, most of whom enter the classroom with a distinct set of assumptions, expectations, and a healthy dose of New York cynicism. How to create a sense of commonality among students with no pre-existing ties of race, ethnicity or gender? What are some strategies to get such students to appreciate thinkers such as Alexis de Tocqueville or John Locke? How might I accomplish my pedagogical ideals of provoking critical thought, helping my students to internalize complex and often abstract issues into their own personal and cultural contexts, and teaching them to think differently about the world, in a setting where very little common ground initially exists?

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: In this paper, I put forward what I take to be a plausible non-religious foundation for the idea of human rights. In particular, I make a procedural and practical argument here, one that steps back from arguments about a universal human nature. To do so, I look to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights to claim that human rights represent a political consensus of overlapping ideas from cultures and communities around the world. It is not simply that no single tradition was victorious in setting out the foundation of human rights that others could accept, though it is true that none was; instead, the Declaration’s chief virtue is that everyone was able to agree upon and endorse a common foundation: the dignity of the human person. The nations of the world may disagree on a great many things – philosophical as well as practical – but they have all agreed on this important point: every human being is entitled to the rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration by virtue of the inherent dignity that is common to us all. This idea can be embraced by those who subscribe to what Michael Perry calls a religious cosmology and also by those who do not. In constructing this consensus, then, we have succeeded in establishing a practical non-religious foundation upon which the idea of human rights can rest.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Poetry holds an important place in the history of U.S. Latina discourse. It was in fact the predominant literary form among Latinas throughout the 1960’s, 70’s, and 80’s. Fully aware of both the diversity among Latinas and the potentially divisive effects of differences on group solidarity, my essay is a sociological exploration of recurring themes in Latina poetry in an attempt to illustrate the existence of a common identity struggle. What is striking when reading Latina poetry is the very clear persistence of two themes – themes that can possibly overcome, not overlook, the great diversity among Latinas – coping with and expressing identity struggles in terms of culture and gender in the United States. It becomes apparent that the two are closely intertwined and that the state of patriarchy and race relations in the United States means that these issues often translate into oppression, sexism and racism. Furthermore, grounded in the many connections between poetry and the political, I examine the implications that these parallel expressions have for a united Latina feminist identity. By addressing the common themes in Latina poetry, I hope to show that this literary form may be at the forefront of a united Latina feminist movement, in practice and identity.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: This exploratory study utilizes interviews to discern how Chicago police officers involved in economic development activities make sense of urban built and social environments and how those understandings lead to a strategy of residential construction as investment. Paying special attention to racial differences, particular focus is given to how these agents perceive neighborhood change and their contributions to it, as well as how information about neighborhood change is constructed and shared through policing activities, ultimately informing their strategies for construction site selection. The paper concludes with a discussion the role and development of metis, the experience-developed skills and rules of thumb that underlie complex activities, in the intersection of policing and urban development.