Thursday, May 2

Tag: behind

Behind Decisions To Deny Black High School Students From Being Recognized As The Top In Their Class Lurks Racism
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EDUCATION

Behind Decisions To Deny Black High School Students From Being Recognized As The Top In Their Class Lurks Racism

Jamel K. Donnor, William & Mary Two Black students – Ikeria Washington and Layla Temple – were named valedictorian and salutatorian at West Point High School in Mississippi in 2021. Shortly afterward, two white parents questioned whether school officials had correctly calculated the top academic honors. Ultimately, the school superintendent named two white students as “co-valedictorian” and “co-salutatorian” on the day of graduation. High school seniors with the highest GPA in their graduating class are chosen to be valedictorians and are often responsible for delivering the graduating speech. Salutatorians, who are high school seniors with the second-highest GPA in their graduating class, often give the opening remarks. The superintendent attributed the mix-up to a new school cou...
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Even When It’s Not A Hate Crime, Racism Is Behind Anti-Asian American Violence
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Journalism

Even When It’s Not A Hate Crime, Racism Is Behind Anti-Asian American Violence

Over the past year, attacks on Asian Americans have increased more than 150% over the previous year, including the March 16 murders of eight people, including six Asian American women, in Atlanta. Some of these attacks may be classified as hate crimes. But whether they meet that legal definition or not, they all fit a long history of viewing Asian Americans in particular ways that make discrimination and violence against them more likely. I have researched and taught on Asian America for 20 years, including on the pernicious effects of stereotypes and attacks on individuals. Race can play a role in violence and prejudice, even if the offender does not clearly express a racist intent. Much remains unknown about the attacks in Atlanta, but the man charged with the murders has said he did ...
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Even When It’s Not A Hate Crime, Racism Is Behind Anti-Asian American Violence
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Journalism

Even When It’s Not A Hate Crime, Racism Is Behind Anti-Asian American Violence

Over the past year, attacks on Asian Americans have increased more than 150% over the previous year, including the March 16 murders of eight people, including six Asian American women, in Atlanta. Some of these attacks may be classified as hate crimes. But whether they meet that legal definition or not, they all fit a long history of viewing Asian Americans in particular ways that make discrimination and violence against them more likely. I have researched and taught on Asian America for 20 years, including on the pernicious effects of stereotypes and attacks on individuals. Race can play a role in violence and prejudice, even if the offender does not clearly express a racist intent. Much remains unknown about the attacks in Atlanta, but the man charged with the murders has said he did ...
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Behind Donations Of $50 Million Or More To Colleges And Universities, Alumni Gratitude And Support For Causes
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EDUCATION, Journalism

Behind Donations Of $50 Million Or More To Colleges And Universities, Alumni Gratitude And Support For Causes

The top motive people cite for their donations of US$50 million or more to colleges or universities was a desire to repay a university for what they or a loved one had gotten out of attending, according to a study we published last year. The second two most common reasons were an effort to simply do what they believe is the right thing and a wish to support a particular cause or political agenda. We found this out when we researched the motives of 30 of these higher education megadonors, through random sampling, from 2010 to 2018 and reviewing about 1,700 publicly available documents and news items that discussed their gifts, including some that quoted the donors themselves. Many donors mentioned more than one motive when they explained why they gave so much money to a school. Why it ma...
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Frozen Wind Turbines – The Science Behind Them And How To Keep Them Spinning Through The Winter
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SCIENCE

Frozen Wind Turbines – The Science Behind Them And How To Keep Them Spinning Through The Winter

Winter is supposed to be the best season for wind power – the winds are stronger, and since air density increases as the temperature drops, more force is pushing on the blades. But winter also comes with a problem: freezing weather. Even light icing can produce enough surface roughness on wind turbine blades to reduce their aerodynamic efficiency, which reduces the amount of power they can produce, as Texas experienced in February. Frequent severe icing can cut a wind farm’s annual energy production by over 20%, costing the industry hundreds of millions of dollars. Power loss isn’t the only problem from icing, either. The uneven way ice forms on blades can create imbalances, causing a turbine’s parts to wear out more quickly. It can also induce vibrations that cause the turbines to shut ...
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Police violence in the United States: what lies behind the ‘bad apples’ narrative
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VIDEO REELS

Police violence in the United States: what lies behind the ‘bad apples’ narrative

The May 25 video of George Floyd’s death sparked outrage and demonstrations across the United States as well as around the world. The direct responsibility of police officer Derek Chauvin is reflected in the charges – on June 3 were upgraded to second-degree murder, while three other officers were charged with aiding and abetting Floyd’s death. However, the interpretations of what lies behind Chauvin’s behavior and the underlying racism differ greatly, and frequently along political lines. Structural vs individual racism A frequent interpretation is that George Floyd’s death was an isolated incident by a “bad cop”. This is the prevalent view in the Trump administration and more generally among conservatives. It was clearly expressed by Robert O'Brien, the president’s National Security Advi...
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What the coronavirus crisis reveals about vulnerable populations behind bars and on the streets
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COVID-19

What the coronavirus crisis reveals about vulnerable populations behind bars and on the streets

The notion that COVID-19 is an equal opportunity killer has crumbled. The health and economic fallout from the crisis has disproportionately hit lower-income areas and communities of color. Nowhere is this discrepancy more evident than in prisons, jails and homeless shelters – made up disproportionately of poorer, black and Latino men and women. Here, COVID-19 cases have mushroomed due to dormitory-style living conditions and the inability of people, often with underlying health issues, to practice social distancing. As the virus rages on, comprehensive COVID-19 testing for these populations remains elusive. As experts on jails, health disparities and how to help former prisoners reintegrate into society, we believe that missteps in how we transition incarcerated individuals back to the ...
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Not all kids have computers – and they’re being left behind with schools closed by the coronavirus
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IN OTHER NEWS

Not all kids have computers – and they’re being left behind with schools closed by the coronavirus

The big idea Since 2014, the Dornsife Center for Economic and Social Research, located at the University of Southern California, has been tracking trends in health economic well-being, attitudes and behaviors through a nationwide survey for its Understanding America Study, asking the same individuals questions over time. The nationally representative survey is now assessing how COVID-19 is affecting U.S. families. This includes their health, economic status and, for the first time, educational experiences. With two other education researchers Amie Rapaport and Marshall Garland, we analyzed the educational experience data that have recently been added to the study. What we did We worked with the broader Understanding America Study team to ask Americans about the effects the pandemic is hav...
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Low-income Americans have borne the brunt of the coronavirus pandemic. They may also get left behind in the recovery.
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IN OTHER NEWS

Low-income Americans have borne the brunt of the coronavirus pandemic. They may also get left behind in the recovery.

Income inequality has increased dramatically in the United States over recent decades, surpassing its previous peak in the 1920s. In 2016, the average income among the bottom 24.9 million households was US$21,000. Meanwhile, the top 1%, or 1.2 million households, earned an average household income of $1.8 million. These disparities have spurred social movements and become a central issue for some candidates in the 2020 U.S. presidential election. However, much of the attention has focused on inequality across the entire U.S. population, regardless of where individuals live. Our research and other studies show that levels of income inequality within counties and cities vary considerably across the country. Challenges in rural areas Our work focuses specifically on differences in inc...
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What Hundreds Of Prison Gang Members Had To Say About Life Behind Bars
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IN OTHER NEWS, Journalism

What Hundreds Of Prison Gang Members Had To Say About Life Behind Bars

The United States incarcerates a larger proportion of its citizens than any other developed country in the world, with around 1.5 million people serving time in prison. But to anyone who doesn’t work or live in a facility, life behind bars largely remains a mystery. The public gets a glimpse of life on the inside only when there are riots, executions or scandals. As criminologists, we spent nine months interviewing over 800 prisoners in Texas in 2016. They told us about their lives before and during prison, as well as their impending return to the community, a journey shared by over 600,000 people each year. We also learned about a significant reality in prisons: gangs. Our new book pulls back the curtain on how gangs compete for control and structure prison life. Gangs wield power behi...
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