As the semester draws to a close...

It's hard to believe that tomorrow is our final day of class presentations and then the semester will be finished! Thinking back, I honestly had no idea what to expect out of this class when I signed up for it. However, I must admit that I learned a great deal about social movements and how they have effected change on our country over the years. This class opened my eyes to the numerous methods of studying these movements, from the characteristics of social movements to emotions of protest, symbolism of collective action, social movement theories, and so much more. What initially sounded like a dry topic that was simply going to fulfill one of the course requirements for my political communication minor (sorry Mike!), turned out to be very informative and thought provoking. Although I have always taken a pro-environment stance, this class (and especially the amount of research I conducted for my final paper), encouraged me to learn more about the environmental movement. Now I better understand the amount of work that goes on behind the scenes, the planning/structuring that is required, and the framing and other techniques that are employed in order to win possible participants over to the cause. Final presentations during the last two class meetings have shown that my fellow students have also learned quite a bit about the social movements that they chose to study. The knowledge that we have gained from this course has provided us with a deeper understanding of movements beyond what's on the surface. We now have the ability to analyze these movements and determine what methods have contributed to their success, or lack thereof. So, as the semester comes to a close, I realize that despite my initial lack of enthusiasm regarding the course subject, this class did indeed surpass my expectations.

Obama’s plans for the environment

In taking my own advice from a previous post (and also to get back on the topic of my favorite social movement), I want to bring up the issue of president-elect Obama’s plans for the environment. Being the pro-environment girl that I am, I must admit that I am optimistic about his overall environmental agenda. After spending the last semester doing extensive research on his environmental plans (for a paper that I am writing for my Media & Politics class), I can definitely say that he has good intentions. He is determined to “take a leading role” in combatting climate change by implementing a cap and trade policy that would reduce carbon emissions by 80% by 2050. He is also a huge proponent of conservation, along with creating clean, alternative energy technologies.
Based on early assessments, it looks as though the environmental movement is likely to gain some ground under an Obama presidency. Of course, we’ll have to wait and see if Congress agrees with his environmental plans. It should be an interesting topic to follow over the next four years. As for other issues, I’m not so sure, but I’m keeping the optimism intact thus far.

You can read more about Obama’s environmental plans here and here.


And in news completely unrelated to Obama, I found this New York Times article to be quite interesting and wanted to share it. Even Broadway is going green! :)

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope everyone has a very happy and blessed Thanksgiving! Be sure to take a few minutes to think about all the things you have to be thankful for! :)

Much anticipated political post....sorry, couldn't resist

So, I haven't blogged on anything political for a while, and now that the election is over, I think it's time to resume that. But, for the next 2 weeks, this still needs to tie in with social movements, so please bear with me. :)

As most of you know, the election did not turn out how I would have liked. While I was expecting a successful result for the Democratic party, I still held on to a shred of hope that the GOP would pull through, but clearly that did not happen. Was I disappointed? Certainly. However, I must say that my disappointment continues, only now the focus has shifted to the behavior of some of my fellow Republicans. The outcome of the election obviously shows that the GOP has some serious work to do toward reforming our party and our campaigning strategies, however, most of what I've been hearing is not about how we can improve, but rather how miserable life is going to be with Obama as president. I wish people would think back to the inspirational and heartfelt words of Senator McCain during his concession speech:

I urge all Americans who supported me to join me in not just congratulating him, but offering our next president our good will and earnest effort to find ways to come together to find the necessary compromises to bridge our differences and help restore our prosperity, defend our security in a dangerous world, and leave our children and grandchildren a stronger, better country than we inherited. Whatever our differences, we are fellow Americans. And please believe me when I say no association has ever meant more to me than that. It is natural. It's natural, tonight, to feel some disappointment. But tomorrow, we must move beyond it and work together to get our country moving again.

Sure, our parties have stark differences in certain beliefs and moral issues, but in the overall scheme of things, we all want to live the American dream...we just have different philosophies on how to go about achieving that dream. Yes, we may disagree with many of president-elect Obama's policy plans, but like it or not, he is going to be our President come January and no amount of complaining is going to change that. As our commander-in-chief, he deserves our respect. Since the election ended, I have received numerous facebook invitations to groups such as "Now that Barack is president, I think I'll be a lazy bum" or "Don't Blame Me...I Voted for McCain!" What happened to giving the guy a fair chance? He hasn't even taken office yet and these are people's sentiments? It's no secret that I was a McCain supporter, but there comes a point where you have to stop being a sore loser. America is America because of democracy and free elections. The Democrats won this election because Americans apparently wanted a "change." Give Obama time to take office and start implementing his platform. If he screws up and you voted against him, then you have a right to start complaining, and maybe the majority who supported him will end up joining you, but in the meantime, show some optimism and refrain from the negative accusations. He is going to be our president for the next four years, like it or not.

Are these feelings the result of the liberal college atmosphere rubbing off on me? I don't think so. I remain firm in my conservative values and I still support the principles that the Republican party stands for. I am simply appalled by the behavior of some self-professing Republicans who seem to have forgotten the meaning of respect toward our country's leaders.

Okay, sorry for the rant. I just needed to get that off my chest. Thanks for reading! :)

MLK’s objectives in writing “Letter From a Birmingham Jail”

One of the assigned readings for our current study of the Civil Rights Movement was Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “Letter from a Birmingham Jail.” King wrote this letter in response to a claim by eight Birmingham ministers that segregation was moving too quickly and should be fought through due process of the law instead of on the streets. Their letter was a reaction to the demonstration against segregation led by King, which was the reason he was in jail at the time. Directly quoting their resentment toward “outsiders coming in,” King addresses this assertion by justifying his reason for coming to Birmingham. He writes, “I, along with several members of my staff, am here because I was invited here. I am here because I have organizational ties here.” That statement provides basic justification for bringing his fellow demonstrators to Birmingham, but it serves as a segue for him to delve into the fundamental reason for marching there: to bring attention to the injustice that is occurring in the South. “I cannot sit idly by in Atlanta and not be concerned about what happens in Birmingham. Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” He then writes, “Anyone who lives inside the United States can never be considered an outsider anywhere within its bounds.” This serves to address, yet again, the ministers’ accusations that King is an outsider who came to town to stir up controversy.

He makes an unwavering effort to appeal to the consciences and emotions of fellow Christians. “Yes, I see the church as the body of Christ. But, oh! How we have blemished and scarred that body through social neglect and through fear of being nonconformists.” He goes on to compare movement participants to the early Christians who were similarly persecuted for being “outside agitators.” King continues to lay a guilt-trip on church members by discussing the fact that young people are fed up with the current state of the church, meaning that church membership will dwindle in years to come. This serves as a call-to-action for Christians to stop ignoring their God-given responsibilities and instead join the peaceful fight against injustice in the form of segregation. He adds to his morality argument and reinforces his determination to overcome injustice by calling attention to the overlap of legal & moral obligations. "One has not only a legal but a moral responsibility to obey just laws," King said, "but conversely, one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws." He substantiates his basis for this claim by pointing out that Hitler’s policies in Nazi Germany were “legal,” while it was “illegal” to provide any aid to Jewish people. This comparison is meant to evoke strong emotions typically associated with the injustice, devastation, and inhumanity of the Holocaust, and likewise, bring the public to view the oppressive state of segregation in a similarly unjust light.

In sum, King’s obvious overall objective is to bring an end to segregation, both in the literal sense and in the attitudes and actions of people everywhere. Regarding this letter specifically, his aim is to defend the method of nonviolent protest which he employs, to refute the statements made by the Birmingham clergymen, and to make known to the public the vital need for the Civil Rights movement to intensify its efforts. In writing this letter, his heartfelt, yet firm words serve as a motivation for others to get involved and fight for his just cause.

Campus Sustainability Day

Tomorrow, colleges and universities across the nation will be observing "Campus Sustainability Day." This is JMU's first time participating in the event, and they intend to "trash" our campus in order to make an impression on students. Does this sound like an oxymoron? Probably. For those of you who have not heard about this event, allow me to explain.

According to JMU's website, tomorrow at 9:00 am, three dumpsters full of trash (taken from UREC, a faculty building, and a dorm) will be unloaded on the steps of ISAT. Then, students from JMU EARTH, JMU Recycling, the Institute for Stewardship of the Natural World, and health classes will sort through all of the garbage to determine how much of what was thrown away could have been recycled. The results will also be compared based on which location each dumpster came from.

This event is kicking off JMU's waste reduction effort, which is one of the main areas of sustainability that JMU is focusing on as part of the American College and University President's Climate Commitment that President Rose signed earlier this year.

This is just another example of how the environmental movement is impacting JMU and in turn, how JMU is contributing to the environmental movement by encouraging students to adopt lifestyles that contribute to sustainability. So, if you're not doing anything tomorrow between 9:00-11:00, make plans to stop by ISAT and witness this "trashy" event.

JMU's 2nd "No Drive Day" coming up this Wednesday, Oct. 15th

The JMU Clean Energy Coalition, Shenandoah Bicycle Company, and JMU's Institute for the Stewardship of the Natural World are sponsoring the 2nd annual "No Drive Day" this coming Wednesday.

Here are some interesting stats from last year's event (taken from the JMU website):
During No Drive Day last year:
-From 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., traffic on campus was reduced by 7.7 percent.
-2,801 fewer vehicles navigated campus than on an average day.
-Transit ridership increased by 14.06 percent.
-Five tons of carbon dioxide were saved from entering the atmosphere.

Obviously, I believe this is a great cause and encourage everyone to participate!

More information on this initiative can be found here.

Radical groups and their effect on other social movement organizations

Recently, we read an article for class titled "Earth First! and the Rhetoric of Moral Confrontation," written by Brant Short. I was personally not familiar with Earth First! before reading this article, but I learned that this radical group uses extreme (and often illegal) measures such as "placing metal spikes in trees to prevent logging, pulling up survey stakes on land development sites, vandalizing machinery, and sitting in trees that are scheduled for timber harvesting." The founders of Earth First! split with the mainstream environmental movement, accusing its members of being too "soft," and "selling out" to political agendas or personal motives. Today's mainstream environmental groups fear that Earth First!'s tactics will hurt the overall environmental movement by causing the public to associate all environmentalist causes with radical environmentalism.

The author also uses Earth First! as an example of how agitation and confrontation can be important rhetorical tools for a social movement. Now, I would like to make it clear that while I consider myself to be very pro-environment, I am by no means a radical environmentalist, and definitely do not support the tactics that are employed by Earth First! However, it is interesting to consider how Earth First! can actually help the larger environmental movement. First, the radical group's controversial policies bring publicity to the concerns that the movement is aiming to address. Secondly, by creating a counter-response, these radical extremists make other pro-environment groups, such as Greenpeace, the Sierra Club, National Wildlife Federation, etc., seem much more moderate/rational in the agendas they set and the actions they take in order to preserve the environment.

Short's ideas on rhetoric can be applied not only to environmental groups, but to social movement organizations of all types. No matter what the cause, if a radical movement develops from a larger, but more moderate movement, the publicity they attract will reflect back to the moderate group. Thus, the larger movement will be given an opportunity to counter the radical agenda with a more rational one that the public will be more likely to support.