INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY



Crowds, Public, and Social Movements

Sociology 425

MW 2-3:50pm, KAP 138

University of Southern California

Fall 2010

Professor: James Thing, Ph.D. Phone: 213-740-4729 Office: KAP 348 B Office Hours: Monday 11-12:20

Thursday 12-1:30 Course Description:

Social movements play a vital role in U.S. democracy and are a prominent feature of the political landscape worldwide; and, while this class will touch on international issues, the main focus will be the United States. Since our social institutions such as the government, religion or the education system tend to resist change and most often support the status quo, social movements and other related forms of collective resistance such as protests and riots have been integral to processes of social change. Indeed, many of the rights and privileges that people in our society enjoy today – depending, of course on social location (i.e., race-ethnicity, class, gender and sexuality) – are the direct result of mobilization on the part of community members. Social movements are, however, not always “progressive,” since many movements work on limiting democracy, rights and privileges, instead of broadening them.

Often times community members lack power individually, however, working collectively can be powerful vehicles for progressive or regressive social change. In this class we will examine how society is influenced by individuals participating in movements. We will approach social movements from a sociological perspective through which we will critically examine how movements form, who participates in them and why, the motivation, goals, strategies and accomplishments of collective social action, resistance to social movements. While we will examine several different aspects of diverse social movements, we will focus heavily on three major movements: Religious Activism and Immigrant Rights, the Men’s Movement, and, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Movement.

Learning Objectives

□ To demonstrate knowledge of the major sociological theoretical perspectives in sociological social movements research.

□ To acquire a broad knowledge of some of the major U.S. social movements active in the past several decades.

□ To acquire a more in-depth knowledge and critical understanding of religious activism and immigrant rights, of the relationship between the conservative religious right and gay rights activism, and of various strains of the men’s movement.

□ To demonstrate – through conducting an original research project (for which you will either interview a social activist, conduct a focus group of a few activists, design and administer a survey to a small group of activist working together) – a deep, comprehensive understanding of a social movement and to analyze the formation and/or inception of the movement, its motivations, goals, strategies, accomplishment as well as the role of the research participants.

*The professor reserves the right to make changes to this syllabus as needed to address the educational needs of the class.

Required Texts:

• Fetner, T. (2008). How the Religious Right Shaped Lesbian and Gay Activism. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.

• Goodwin, J. and J.M. Jasper, (Eds.). 2009. The Social Movements Reader: Cases and Concepts, Second Edition. Wiley-Blackwell Malden: Massachusetts [Reader].

• Hondagneu-Sotelo, P. (2008). God’s Heart Has No Borders: How Religious Activists are Working for Immigrant Rights. Berkeley: University of California Press.

• Messner, M. A. (1997). The Politics of Masculinities: Men in Movements. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.

Course Grading

Midterm: 30%

Final: 30%

Research Project: 25%

Reading Facilitation: 10%

Attendance and Participation: 5%

*Your grade for the course will be in the A range if 90% and above, in the B range if 80-89%, in the C range if 70-79%, in the D range if 60-69%. Below 60% is an F.

Assignments, Requirements and Expectations:

Midterm and Final Exam:

The midterm and final exams will be some combination of definition, short answer and essay. The final is not comprehensive, but rather, covers the material after the midterm. The exams are closed book, in-class exams for which you will need a blue book. There will be no makeup midterms or finals unless you have a documented medical reason, or some other (verifiable) emergency, or unless the dates conflict with a religious holiday, or military service. Please notify Dr. Thing two weeks in advance to reschedule if for a religious holiday or military service.

Research Paper

For this assignment students will conduct a mini-sociological study using original qualitative or quantitative data: interview, participant observation, focus group or survey method. We will spend some time during the first few weeks of class discussing possible research topic ideas and methods. You may choose any topic pertaining to a social movement, either from a historical perspective or a current movement. Papers must be approximately 12-15 pages long and all paper topics must be approved by Prof. Thing prior to beginning your study. A

2-3 page project description, including a brief discussion of the topic, why it is important, a review of a few journal articles, a book or a few chapters from a book, and what method you will be using to collect original data (e.g., who you plan on interviewing or surveying) will be due the week after the midterm. The final research paper should contain all the components of a sociological study: including an introduction, research questions, hypothesis, a literature review, methodology, data presentation and analysis, and a conclusion. More detailed instructions will follow as the semester progresses.

Reading Facilitation:

Each student will be responsible for presenting and facilitating a discussion on one article from the weekly reading schedule. I will hand out a sign-up sheet on August 25th. Your, 20-25 minute presentation should provide as many of the following components as possible: a brief summary of the article, the main point of the article, the data collection methodology (if discussed in the article), the theoretical perspective used (if discussed in the articles), a brief positive/negative critique of the article (What could the researcher have done to improve the study or the argument?), blind-spots or holes in the authors’ argument, how the article relates to the other articles in the section, or even to articles in other sections, and finally a few questions to pose to the class. (Hint: at the beginning of each section the authors provide several discussion questions. These questions can help guide your presentation; and you may build on these questions in order to generate discussion in class.)

Written Assignments:

With the exception of the midterm and final exams, all assignments must be typed / word processed. Please use 10-12 point font, Times New Roman, double-spacing, and 1 inch margins all around on plain white paper. Carefully proofread (check spelling, grammar) and watch for “spell check” errors.

Late assignments will be marked down five percentage points for each late day, unless you make prior arrangements with Prof. Thing, or, again, unless there is a verifiable emergency or illness. NO late papers will be accepted more than 5 days after the due date. Do not email assignments to the professor though you may email me regarding specific questions and concerns. However, when you miss class for whatever reason, it is your responsibility to find out what you missed by first asking your classmates.

Academic Integrity:

Be aware that cheating and plagiarism are severe violations of academic standards and can severely affect your grade in this class as well as your status as a student at U.S.C. Should you require assistance in writing your assignments, please contact the Writing Center located on campus.

Email Etiquette

The best way to contact me is through email. Make sure to write “Sociology 425” in the subject line. Please do not email me to let me know that you will be absent, unless, of course there is some sort of emergency or illness that will result in missing more than one class period, for which, you should bring documentation. Email questions should be short and to the point. Any questions that require a lengthy response should be asked in a face-to-face conversation during our office hours or after class. Absolutely no assignments will be accepted via email.

Weekly Reading Schedule

The following illustrates the weekly subjects/topics and the required readings. Readings should be completed prior to the class lectures. All dates are approximates and subject to change. Students will be adequately informed should any scheduling changes occur.

Weeks 1&2: Introduction: The When, Why and Who of Social Movements

August 23: Introduction to Class

August 25

• Goodwin, J. and J.M. Jasper. Introduction to Part I, “Introduction.” (pp. 2-7).

• Goodwin and Jasper. Introduction to Part II, “When and Why Do Social Movements Occur?” (pp. 11-14).

• Blumberg, R. L. “The Civil Rights Movement.” (pp.14-23). [Reader].

• Freeman. J. “The Women’s Movement.” (pp. 24-35). [Reader].

• D’Emilio, J. “The Gay Liberation Movement.” (pp.36-41). [Reader].

August 30:

• Goodwin, J. and J.M. Jasper. Introduction to Part III, “Who Joins and Supports Movements?” (pp. 55-59). [Reader].

• Olson, M. “The Free-Rider Problem.” (pp. 60-65). [Reader]

• McAdam, D. “Recruits to Civil Rights Activism.”(pp. 66-74). [Reader].

• Cotgrove, S and A. Duff. “Middle-Class Radicalism and Environmentalism” (pp.75-83). [Reader].

September 1:

• Goodwin, J. and J.M. Jasper. Introduction to Part IV, “Who Remains in Movements, and Who Drops Out?” (pp. 93-95). [Reader].

• Hirsch, E.L. “Generating Commitment Among Students.”( pp.96 -104). [Reader].

• Whittier, N. “Sustaining Commitment Among Radical Feminists.” (pp.105-116). [Reader].

Weeks 3-4: The Men’s Movement

September 6: School Holiday, Labor Day

September 8

• Messner, M. A. (1997). Introduction, Ch. 1, 2 and 3. In The Politics of Masculinities: Men in Movements. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications. (pp.ix-48).

September 13:

• Messner, M. A. (1997). Ch. 4, 5. The Politics of Masculinities: Men in Movements. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications. (pp. 49-88).

September 15

• Messner, M. A. (1997). The Politics of Masculinities: Men in Movements. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications. (pp.89-110).

Week 5: Movement Participants: Views, Ideologies and Emotions

September 20 :

• Goodwin, J. and J.M. Jasper. Introduction to Part V, “What Do Movment Participants Think and Feel?” (pp.143-145). [Reader].

• Luker, Kristin. “World Views of Pro-and Anti-Abortion Activists.” (pp.146-160). [Reader].

• Mansbridge, J.J. “Ideological Purity in the Women’s Movement.” (pp.161-166). [Reader].

September 22:

• Ryan, C. and Gamson, W.A. “Are Frames Enough?” (pp. 167-174). [Reader].

• Jasper, J.M. “The Emotions of Protest.” (pp. 175-184). [Reader].

Weeks 6-7: Religion and Pro-Immigrant Rights

September 27

• Hondagneu-Sotelo, P. (2008). Ch. 1. In God’s Heart Has No Borders: How Religious Activists Are Working for Immigrant Rights. Berkeley: University of California Press. (pp. 1-24)

September 29.

• Hondagneu-Sotelo, P. (2008). Ch. 2 and 3. In God’s Heart Has No Borders: How Religious Activists are Working for Immigrant Rights. Berkeley: University of California Press. (pp. 27-70).

October 4

• Hondagneu-Sotelo, P. (2008). Ch. 4 and 5. In God’s Heart Has No Borders: How Religious Activists are Working for Immigrant Rights. Berkeley: University of California Press. (pp. 73-129).

October 6

• Hondagneu-Sotelo, P. (2008). Ch. 6, and 7. In God’s Heart Has No Borders: How Religious Activists are Working for Immigrant Rights. Berkeley: University of California Press. (pp. 133-196).

Week 8: Review and Midterm

October 11

• Catch-up and Review

October 13

***************************MIDTERM EXAM****************************

Weeks 9: Movement Organization and Strategies

October 18: The Structure and Organization of Movements.

*************************Research Proposal Due******************************

• Goodwin, J. and J.M. Jasper. Introduction to Part VI, “How Are Movements Organized?” (pp. 189-192). [Reader].

• McCarthy, J.D. and Zald, M.N. “Social Movement Organizations.” (pp.193-210). [Reader].

• Clemens, E.S. “Organizational Repertoires.” (pp. 211-223). [Reader]

October 20:

• Goodwin, J. and J.M. Jasper. Introduction to Part VII, “What do Movements Do?” (pp. 251-254). [Reader].

• Alinsky, S.D. “Protest Tactics.” (pp. 255-258). [Reader].

• Morris, A. “Tactical Innovation in the Civil Rights Movement.”(pp. 259-263). [Reader].

• Brym, R. J. “Suicide Bombing.” (pp.295-301). [Reader].

Week 10-13: Interactions: Social Movements and Institutions

October 25:

• Goodwin, J. and J.M. Jasper. Introduction to Part VIII, “How Do Institutions Influence Movements?” (pp. 313-316). [Reader].

• Jenkins, J.C. and C. Perrow. “Farmworkers’ Movements in Changing Political Contexts.” (pp.317-332). [Reader].

October 27:

• Gitlin, T. “The New Media in the Unmaking of the New Left.” (pp. 333-344). [Reader].

• Bob, Clifford. “The Question for International Allies.” (pp.353-363). [Reader].

• Lerner, S. “Global Corporations, Global Unions.” (pp. 364-370). [Reader].

November 1

• Fetner, T. (2008). Ch. 1 In How the Religious Right Shaped Lesbian and Gay Activism. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.

November 3:

• Fetner, T. (2008). Ch. 2 and 3. In How the Religious Right Shaped Lesbian and Gay Activism. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.

November 8:

• Fetner, T. (2008). Ch. 4 and 5. In How the Religious Right Shaped Lesbian and Gay Activism. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.

November 10:

• Fetner, T. (2008). Ch. 7. In How the Religious Right Shaped Lesbian and Gay Activism. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.

Week 13: The Decline of Social Movements

November 15

• Goodwin, J. and J.M. Jasper. Introduction to Part IX, “Why Do Movements Decline?” (pp. 373-375). [Reader].

• Epstein, B. “The Decline of the Women’s Movement.” (pp.376-382). [Reader].

November 17:

• Gamson, J. “The Dilemmas of Identity Politics.” (pp.383-392). [Reader].

• Brockett, C.D. “The Repression/Protest Paradox in Central America.” (pp. 393-399). [Reader].

Weeks 14-15: Movements Affecting Change

November 22

• Introduction to Part X, “What Changes Do Movements Bring About?” (pp. 411-413). [Reader]

• Gamson, W.A. “Defining Movement Success.” (pp.414-416).

*This week and next we will be discussing/synthesizing the changes that various movements we have studied this semester have brought about.

November 24

• Meyer, D.S. “How Social Movements Matter.” (pp. 417-422). [Reader].

November 29

• Sherkat, D.E. and T. J. Blocker. “The Personal Consequences of Protest.” (pp.423-434). [Reader].

• Pellow, D. N. and Brulle, R.J. “Environmental Justice.”

December 1

• Catch-up and Review

December 10

***************************Final Exam, 2-4pm*************************

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