- For this paper evaluate one to three items from the list below that you feel has the greatest impact on advancing democracy in the United States.
Racial Inequality due process protections Limited government
Gender Inequality Interest Group behavior Civic Education
Right of Privacy Voting & Elections 1st Amendment rights
Civil Rights Bill of Rights role of media and political socialization
Civil Liberties Bureaucracy Xenophobia/Immigration
Bicameral Legislature Economic Inequality Gerrymandering
Political Parties LGBTQIA Concerns Campaign Spending & Elections
- In the conclusion of this paper, please explain what role any individual person could play in society to promote a more effective and better functioning democratic system.
Political Science 1: Detailed Research Paper Instructions:
The whole point of this research paper is to get you thinking critically about what factors in society we need to focus on in order to improve democracy in the United States. Bottom line, this paper is fundamentally about democracy, which, as you will learn in this class, is a particular type of political system that gives ultimate authority to its citizens to determine who their leaders will be and what kinds of policies will govern over them. But no democracy, including ours, is ever perfect and it is accordingly our responsibility to be thinking about what adjustments we can make (or should be focusing on) in order to ensure that the process of political decision-making is a function of the overall public’s concerns and needs as opposed to just some elite group or faction in society. That is to say, a democracy is more legitimate to the extent that it includes in its decision-making process as many different voices and perspectives as possible. Conversely, to the extent that a nation-state excludes or hinders the input of any particular group in society then we can safely say that this country is decidedly less democratic because it is undermining the basic principle of inclusion that is indispensable for being classified as a legitimate democracy.
In saying all this, the best way to go about this research paper is to first think in what precise areas can America improve upon in order to get closer to this principle of “inclusion” that is so important for democratic legitimacy? If a democracy means that as many people as possible should be able to wield some effect over our government’s decision-making process then how can we get America’s political system closer to this goal? Some may argue that we can reach this goal by focusing on racial equality (that is, doing what is necessary to facilitate minority participation in the political process). Others may suggest that limiting the power and influence of interest groups is the key. Still others may argue that securing our Civil Liberties from national government infringement is the answer. The point here is there is no perfect answer or solution to this problem. All of these issues are important but for purposes of this paper I just want you to focus on one or two (or possibly three) items from the list above that you feel hold extra significance for advancing democracy in the United States. Keep in mind that it is perfectly normal in the process of researching scholarly articles and books for this paper that your argument will evolve. And in fact, expect this to happen. It just makes sense that as you familiarize yourself with your topic and come across more sources you will see how certain items from the list above complement each other. But do not feel pressured to have to account for everything. That is not the aim here. Boundary your argument around one to three items from the list above and simply find the scholarly articles and books that defend your particular thesis for improving our country’s democratic system.
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