Homework answers / question archive / The paper is attached -Based on your research ipaper, write an Introduction with thesis statement based on your hypothesis which answers the question of how the countries resolve the challenge

The paper is attached -Based on your research ipaper, write an Introduction with thesis statement based on your hypothesis which answers the question of how the countries resolve the challenge

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• The paper is attached -Based on your research ipaper, write an Introduction with thesis statement based on your hypothesis which answers the question of how the countries resolve the challenge.
• Describe the cause, the independent variable, as it explains the outcome, dependent variable.
• Then write a conclusion which shows how your research supports your thesis you wrote in the Introduction.1 Racism in America/France Jude Husein 2 Racism in America The USA is one of the most powerful democracies in the world. This is because most of the political and governmental institutions have tried to promote racial parity over the years. The democracy that Americans are currently enjoying is an achievement by our forefathers who fought hard for equal representation and other forms of equality in the country. During the struggle for equality, the forefathers were oppressed, assassinated to name just a few. However, there is no pain without gain and therefore America has slowly empowered the minorities and the marginalized groups and today, they can equally own property and enjoy other rights provided for in the American constitution (Lewis et al., 2019). Before then, the country had discriminative policies that even barred some people from owning properties in the country. For instance, in the 1940s, only one in eight African Americans owned a piece of land in the country. Additionally, only less than 5% of the group was absorbed in the white-collar jobs, the rest population, representing more than 95% worked in manual jobs which were insecure and with little pay. Although racism is still evident in the country, the rates have reduced significantly. In other words, there is still systematic discrimination in play in the social and sustainable sector (Estime & Williams, 2021). For example, white men are more likely to be managers and earn more in most of the organizations across the country. Historical background which impacts the problem There are contrasting statistics that reveal the rate of racism in the country. For instance, in the 1940s, more than 60% of black women and other people of color worked as domestic laborers thus earning very little. Today the rate has dropped significantly to less than 2%. More than 60% of the blacks’ working class holds white-collar jobs in the country. Further, in terms of 3 social interactions, in 1958, less than 18% of the whites living in America confirmed that they had at least one black friend. The remaining more than 80% did not have black friends since they did not like to associate themselves with low-class people in the community. Currently, more than 80% of white people living in the country have at least one or two black friends. Further, around the same year, more than 44% of the whites living in America reported that they would relocate if a black family moved to their next door. In other words, over 40% of white people believed that they would not live together with black families due to the allegedly ‘heightened rate of terrorism’ associated with the blacks (Fletcher, 2017). A few decades ago, black people were trapped in extreme poverty conditions and most of them lived in suburbs in the south and white people’s lands either as squatters or casual laborers. The pay was very little to sustain them and their families and therefore most of their children had no access to a quality life in terms of education, food, housing, health to name just a few. As earlier stated, less than 10% of the black population living in the country owned a piece of land or a house. Most of the black population did casual work which had very poor working conditions despite the pay being very little. Only 5% of the population had been absorbed in the white-collar jobs across the country (Lewis et al., 2019). Further, as earlier noted, more than 60% of black women worked as house managers for 12 hours a day and with little pay. The current labor regulations that dictate how much one should be paid per hour were unavailable or were ineffective altogether. Finally, excessive police force and unfair application of the law against people of color sparks racism in American society. According to a recent survey in most of the southern states which are dominated by African Americans, most of them claim that the police service has continued to use excessive force 4 against them, and in some severe cases; some of the black people have lost their lives in the hands of the police. George Floyd's death is the most recent case of police brutality against people of color. His death led to one of the largest waves of anti-racism protests in the country. According to the protestors, the various reforms put in place to counter excessive use of police force had not worked for the black community and therefore the protestors wanted to defund the police force. Further, the rate of police shooting civilians across the country has been on the rise. For instance, in 2019, more than 900 civilians were shot dead by the police (Estime & Williams, 2021). A year later, some other 1,004 civilians were shot dead by the law enforcement team. In the two years, the rate of fatal police shootings among people of color was far much higher than that of the whites. A previous study on racial disparity in America revealed that one in three African Americans picked at random will be imprisoned in their lifetime. This represents about 33% of the population. In other words, 33% of black males will or have already been imprisoned in their lifetime (Fletcher, 2017). However, the rate was significantly low for other races. For instance, only 16% of Latinos had a probability of being arrested and imprisoned in their lifetime. Surprisingly, the rate was extremely low for the white population in that only one in seventeen white males picked at random had a probability of being arrested and imprisoned altogether. This study reveals a disparity in the law enforcement process where most of the police have been targeting the black community. Preliminary studies had revealed that, on American roads and highways, police are more likely to stop a black driver than a white (Ogungbure, 2018). Further, in the peace restoration process, the police are likely to pull the trigger on black protestors than their white counterparts. 5 Explain whether you will be comparing one country’s past and present reaction OR two countries’ different reactions to the same challenge. In this paper, I will compare America’s past and present reaction to racism. This is because different people were at the helm of leadership and therefore they applied different strategies to counter racial injustice in the country. Identify and describe the nature and extent of the problem or crisis, and how international organizations, international law, and international norms/values have impacted or been impacted by the problem. The country has seen a massive revolution of legislations that aim to protect minorities and marginalized groups. In the 1940s, the country had started a demographic and economic change towards equality. In other words, the racial attitudes in the white population changed significantly, and therefore most of them started to acknowledge that black people are ordinary beings and thus they need to be treated fairly like any other person (Fletcher, 2017). A new deal of legislation has been signed that sets the minimum wages and hours for the people working in both formal and informal settings. Further, around that time, the industrial revolution was at its best and therefore machines were introduced to help in performing various tasks in the factories and agricultural plantations. Further, American cotton faced stiff completion from other countries across Europe and therefore the demand for casual laborers in cotton farms reduced significantly. Additionally, following world war two in 1945, there was a shortage of workers in the northern factories and industries which led to an increase in wages such that by 1953, the average wages of the black workers had almost doubled that of the whites in the southern states. By the 1960s, only less than 15% of black workers were in the cotton 6 farms owned by the whites. More than 20% of the population had white-collar jobs including holding key managerial positions in various industries. By the 1990s, the wage gaps had been reduced significantly such that some of the black workers took home about 70 or 80% of what an average white person earned. In terms of poverty levels, African Americans have made significant strides towards owning property and improving their quality of life. For instance, in the 1990s, only 30% of the community lived below the poverty lines according to a report by then president Bill Clinton. The rate has since then reduced to about 9.9% in 2019 (Estime & Williams, 2021). Finally, the rate of police brutality against people of color has also reduced over the years. With more police reforms being put in place to counter the excessive use of force, blacks are now enjoying their rights, although not in their entirety, like any other citizen of this country. Some of the measures taken to reform the police force include; police being trained how to address racial biases, increased accountability for police service’s actions, police have been encouraged to focus on a few people causing chaos within a community rather than stereotyping the whole community, more black men and women have been recruited in police service to name just a few (Ogungbure, 2018). The international community has played a critical role in countering racism in America. Some of its contributions include; fighting for equality in representation of the minorities and the marginalized groups, fighting for the introduction of police reforms, and increased accountability to counter excessive use of force among others (Fletcher, 2017). What social/protest/dissident movements, interest groups, business groups exert influence in the political system? 7 The United States and France have well-organized social movements, interest groups, and business groups that exert a huge influence on political endeavors. In the United States, the leading social movements, including Black Lives Matter (BLM), #MeToo, LGBTQ+ rights, Occupy, and Gun Control & gun rights, are successfully influenced the government policies. In France, Artisans of Peace, Nuit Debout, and the National Council of European Resistance are the leading social movements (Waterman, 2017). Although France has well-organized social movements, they are not well-funded and still facing backlash from the government and antisocial movements (Civicus.org., 2021). On the other hand, the social movements in the United States are not only organized but also well-funded and operational. The U.S interest groups such as National Organization for Women, National Right to Life Committee, The Right-to-Know Network are well-organized just like the social movements. Similarly, France’s interest groups have played a critical in influencing government-policy making. However, racism and government influence impact negatively the progress of social interest groups in France and the U.S. Furthermore, the U.S’s business groups such as SCORE, Entrepreneurs’ Organization, and Young Entrepreneurs Council have shaped the taxation policies and other government agendas. How does the media impact the other actors in the political system in each country on this topic? In the U.S, media impact the political activities of the Senate, the Congress, and elected leaders. For example, media such as televisions, blogs, radios, and films are used to share grievances by citizens. Media helps leaders to understand the citizens’ wants or desires. With the emergence of social media such as Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram, it is easier to share political opinions and grievances that inform political activities. Similar to the U.S, media 8 in France play a critical role in shaping political opinions and political actions. In France, citizens, advocacy groups, and social movements use media to communicate about policies made by leaders. As a result, citizens get to understand whether or not their leaders are acting decisively and prudently. In both France and the U.S, media is used to enlighten citizens on political actions and invite them for political actions, such as demonstrations, boycotts, and go-slows. Media also set agenda for public debate. According to Agenda-setting theory, media can influence serious topics that affect citizens directly and indirectly. In reality, the media shows the public what is important to them. For example, the media can report on an increase in taxes. Compared to France, the U.S’s media is more decentralized and accessible to the majority of citizens. Therefore, the U.S media tend to have more influence as political discourses as compared to France’s media. Past: How have the type of constitution/type of government traditionally dealt with such questions? The U.S’s federal government, including the judiciary, executive, and legislature has dealt with the question of racism by using punitive measures, public education, petitions, and sensitization programs. Punitive measures, such as long jail terms, heavy fines, restitution, community service, and probation, are used. Although long jail terms have been criticized for violating the rights of the accused, studies have shown that long jail terms can hugely end racism. People found to be racially-abusive or biased to a large number of people were subjected to longer jail terms. Currently, the U.S government has embraced less punitive methods. 9 Just like the United States, France’s semi-presidential system enacts laws that make racism illegal. France’s traditional government used unorthodox methods, such as long jail terms, death penalties, and huge fines. However, death penalties for racism allegations have been eradicated after public outcry. Currently, short jail terms and fines are still at play. France’s unitary constitution treats racism as an illegal issue. Over the past 50 years, both the U.S and France have done an exceptional job in ending racism using anti-racism policies. Nevertheless, racism in these countries is still prevalent. Compared to France, the fight against racism in the U.S is very slow and painful. Past: How have social/protest/dissident movements, interest groups, business groups historically impacted policy-making in general and on this type of challenge? In the U.S and France, social movements used boycotts, strikes, go-slows, and boycotts to influence policy-making concerning racism. For example, Black Lives Matter (BLM) has organized several demonstrations protesting racial segregation against blacks. Through demonstrations, BLM has led to the creation of policies that prevent racism, segregation in place of work, or sexual abuse of blacks in the workplace (Wahl-Jorgensen, 2019). In France, Nuit Debout, a social movement, has organized successful boycotts and strikes protesting raciallysegregation labor reforms. Through the efforts of Nuit Debout, Loi travail or El Khomri law was enacted to remove sections that were deemed racially-biased. Interest and business groups used lobbying and sponsoring bills through elected leaders to influence policy-making concerning racism. They lobby for their preferred policies, or policies that affect them directly or indirectly. Also, they used mainstream media to raise awareness of new policy issues. Furthermore, they offered money for politicians’ campaigns. Interest and 10 business groups sponsored politicians who could advocate their interests (Dwyer & Molony, 2019). Finally, they engage in social media to spearhead their causes. Present: How are the type of constitution/type of government traditionally dealt with such questions? Currently, the U.S government uses public education, fines, and sensitization programs to end racism. Through state agencies that strive to end racism, the U.S’s federal government has managed to educate millions of citizens on the effects or dangers of racism. Studies have shown that public education is very effective, efficient, and less-punitive as compared to jail terms, death penalties, and sanctions. Similarly, the current France government uses sensitization programs aimed at changing public mindsets and worldviews regarding the issue of racism. Over the past 10 years, France has successfully rolled out sensitization programs. Present: How are social/protest/dissident movements, interest groups, business groups historically impacted policy-making in general and on this specific challenge? Currently, social movements and interest/business groups have invested in social media to fight against racism and segregation in workplaces. For example, BLM created hashtags on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook to advance their causes. Similarly, the #MeToo movement was centered on social media (Jost et al., 2018). They invest in social media because it allows them to reach a large number of people, minimize the cost of operation, and tailor their activities to a specific group of people. Social media platforms enable social movements to spread comprehensively and swiftly, with technology rendering the participants’ physical distance irrelevant. 11 References Civicus.org. (2021). Worsening Crackdown on Civic Space by Macron’s Government to Preserve ‘Republican Values.” Retrieved March 11, 2021, from https://monitor.civicus.org/updates/2021/03/04/worsening-crackdown-on-civic-space-bymacrons-government-to-preserve-republican-values/ Dwyer, M., & Molony, D. T. (Eds.). (2019). Social media and politics in Africa: democracy, censorship and security. Zed Books Ltd.. Estime, S., & Williams, B. (2021). Systemic Racism in America and the Call to Action. The American Journal of Bioethics, 21(2). Fletcher Hill, J. (2017). The sin of White supremacy: Christianity, racism, & religious diversity in America. Orbis Books. Jost, J. T., Barberá, P., Bonneau, R., Langer, M., Metzger, M., Nagler, J., ... & Tucker, J. A. (2018). How social media facilitates political protest: Information, motivation, and social networks. Political psychology, 39, 85-118. Lewis, A. E., Hagerman, M. A., & Forman, T. A. (2019). The sociology of race & racism: Key concepts, contributions & debates. Equity & Excellence in Education, 52(1). Ogungbure, A. (2018). Homoeroticism, phallicism and the racialization of Black/Brown males: A historiography of sexual racism in America. Inter-American Journal of Philosophy, 9(2). Wahl-Jorgensen, K. (2019). Emotions, media and politics. John Wiley & Sons. Waterman, P. (2017). Where are the Unions?: Workers and Social Movements in Latin America, the Middle East and Europe. Zed Books Ltd.. 12