Minorities in Congress
In forming a government for the people, by the people, and of the people, our Founding Fathers developed the idea a bi-cameral legislature. This Congress, composed of the House of Representatives and Senate, thus became known as the people’s branch of government. American children are taught in schools that anyone can be elected to Congress, so long as they meet the qualifications of the Constitution. So long as you meet the age and residency requirements you are indeed qualified to be a candidate for Congress.
If we take a more in-depth look at the composition of Congress we see a body disproportionate with its Nation. Congress has maintained a fairly homogenous make-up since its founding even into the year 2001. This conclusion raises no eye brows as both the executive and judicial branches of government have also maintained a very white, male, Protestant resemblance. However, Congress was formed for a distinct purpose: to represent the people of the United States of America. The melting pot of America’s huddled masses has been slow in placing leaders that truly represent its demographics.
There are a number of simple and complex reasons as to why this under-representation of minorities has occurred. Who is the real minority in Congress? This is not a simple partisan question, though it seems partisanship is a factor. An examination of the composition of the current, 107th Congress will lend greater light on where Congress stands as a representative body. A quick laundry list of the minorities in the United States being under-represented might read as such: African-Americans, Women, Black Women, Hispanics, Gays and Lesbians, Asian-Americans and Pacific Islanders, Indians (Native Americans). All of the above groups have a unique history in struggling for greater representation. We now examine some of those histories in trying to answer why America’s Congress does not look like America’s people.
While Voting Rights legislation had a great impact on changing the composition of Congress, other factors exist as barriers to minority representation in Congress. One of these is the use of single-member districts. Of great debate as to whether it is helping or hindering minority candidates is the establishment of minority districting and the use of racial gerrymandering. The question of constitutionality and these dist...
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...tion has focused attention on the problems of our current system of voting. With the disproportionate amount of minorities being represented in Congress today, a change in the voting system is inevitable unless the two parties make a concerted effort to draw larger minority support and offer up minority candidates.
Political reforms other than proportional representation may prove to favor minority candidates. Those looking to narrow the gap in Congress have looked at term limits and campaign finance reform. The idea that term limits would aid minorities comes from the fact that incumbents are so much more successful in elections. While there is always a call by reformers of government to implement term limits, the probability of this occurring seems quite slim. However, campaign finance reform is making headway this year in Congress. Supporters of reform argue that it would open access to greater candidates seeking election and not just those supported by the “big money” interests or soft money backing of parties. This augmentation of viability for a candidate would enhance the chances of minorities becoming candidates, thus enabling their representation in Congress.
In the past century, people continued to express an increasingly discontent view of Congress especially true when one looks back before the Clinton Impeachment debacle As the size of the nation and the number of congressman have grown, the congress has come under attack by both public influences and congressman themselves. Yet looking at one congressman's relationship with his or her constituents, it would be hard to believe that this is the branch of government that has come under suspect. In “If Ralph Nader says congress is 'The broken branch,' how come we love our congressman so much?” author Richard F. Fenno, Jr., provides insight into this view and why, through congress coming under fire, constituents still feel positively about there congressmen. Although congress is often criticized, its fine tuned functioning is essential in checking the power of congress without hindering the making of legislation.
Today, the citizens of the United States must push Congress to formulate an oversight measure to fix voter disenfranchisement. By itself, Supreme Court Ruling Shelby County, Alabama v. Holder does minimal damage to the voting process of the United States. The court ruled discriminatory practices of district actions half a century old unconstitutional, but left a responsibility for Congress to modernize the Voting Rights Act, to ensure that no district nor individual is discriminated against. Given the history of the United States’s voter suppression and the original need for the Voting Rights Act, a new, modern voter equality policy is of dire importance.
...ilities of Congress is that minorities and factions exist: dissent takes place, not disagreements. Verbal brawls take place rather than actual argumentation, and that is what kills democracy. That is why things never get done.
Initially, the Founders intended to have a limit on the amount of time any one person could serve. In the Articles of Confederation, a rotation in office system was described, so that no one person could remain in a position for decades on end. However, this was abandoned in the Constitution because it was deemed unnecessary. At the time of the nation’s founding, the occupation of “politician” did not exist. One could hold an office for a number of years, but it was not considered a career path. Originally, politicians were seen as making great sacrifices, because they stepped away from their family and primary jobs for a number of years to serve their country, before returning to their normal lives (Vance, 1994, p. 429). In the words of Founding Father Roger Sherman, “The representatives ought to return home and mix with the people. By remaining at the seat of the government, they will acquire the habits of the place, which might differ from those...
The United States of America has engaged in the battle known as political polarization since before its foundation in 1776. From the uprising against the powerful British nation to the political issues of today, Americans continue to debate about proper ideology and attempt to choose a side that closely aligns with their personal beliefs. From decade to decade, Americans struggle to determine a proper course of action regarding the country as a whole and will often become divided on important issues. Conflicts between supporters of slavery and abolitionists, between agriculturalists and industrialists, and between industrial workers and capitalists have fueled the divide. At the Congressional level there tends to be a more prevalent display of polarization and is often the blame of Congress’ inefficiency. James Madison intentionally designed Congress to be inefficient by instating a bicameral legislation. Ambition would counter ambition and prevent majority tyranny. George Washington advised against political parties that would contribute to polarization and misrepresentation in his Farewell Address of 1796. Washington warns, “One of the expedients of party to acquire influence within particular districts is to misrepresent the opinions and aims of other districts.” Today, the struggle to increase power between political parties results in techniques to gain even the smallest marginal gains. To truly understand political polarization, we must examine data collected through a variety of means, the effects of rapidly changing technology, and observe what techniques are used to create such a polarized political system.
In American politics today, many practices exist that greatly harm the American public. One of these dangerous practices, known as gerrymandering, occurs in nearly every state. While some claim that the practice helps America, in reality gerrymandering harms American democracy and safety. Gerrymandering greatly affects society, and must become illegal to insure fair representation, the democratic processes in America continues, and America continues to thrive.
The single-member district election system is the most common and best-known electoral system currently in use in America. It is used to elect the U.S. House Representatives, as well as many state and local legislatures. Under single member district systems, an area is divided into a number of geographically defined voting districts, each represented by a single elected official. Voters can only vote for their district’s representative, with the individual receiving the most votes winning election. This method of electing representatives is better than any alternative solution in various ways. Four compelling reasons to support the single-member district election system include the fact that single-member districts give each voter a single, easily identifiable district member; the way single-member district voting helps protect against overreaching party influence; that single-member districts ensure geographic representation; and finally, that single-member districts are the best way to maximize representatives’ accountability.
In the words of rapper Busta Rhymes, “hip-hop reflects the truth, and the problem is that hip-hop exposes a lot of the negative truth that society tries to conceal. It’s a platform where we could offer information, but it’s also an escape” Hip-hop is a culture that emerged from the Bronx, New York, during the early 1970s. Hip-Hop was a result of African American and Latino youth redirecting their hardships brought by marginalization from society to creativity in the forms of MCing, DJing, aerosol art, and breakdancing. Hip-hop serves as a vehicle for empowerment while transcending borders, skin color, and age. However, the paper will focus on hip-hop from the Chican@-Latin@ population in the United States. In the face of oppression, the Chican@-Latin@ population utilized hip hop music as a means to voice the community’s various issues, desires, and in the process empower its people.
The topic of race, redistricting, and minority representation in Congress has emerged as one of the most salient issues in contemporary political thought. The creation of so‑called majority minority districts has been attacked as unfair and racially polarizing by some observers and ultimately struck down as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. The study of race in relation to American politics and institutions, and, in particular, to the institution of Congress, has produced a wealth of research and literature in recent years. This scope of budding research ranges from legislative activity and Congressional voting to the electoral process and campaigning. This study examines the effects of race in Congressional elections and campaigning, and will be primarily focused on constituent relationships with members of the House of Representatives. Through this research, a better understanding of the differences in constituent relationships and engagement between African American House members and their Caucasian colleagues will be reached. Based on the current literature and prevailing scholarly attitudes, one could likely conclude that African American Congress members, on the whole, develop closer and more personal relationships with their constituents than do white representatives.
It is important to preserve the dignity of all patients in the care of nurses and to not make them feel as though they are worthless. For example, when someone is incontinent and cannot care for themselves anymore, such as some residents in long-term care, it is important to help them remain dignified. The resident should be able to feel as though they are respected and are given the appropriate amount of privacy as we are working in their home. With this being said, it is very crucial for nurses to provide residents’ in long-term care, as well as patients in the hospital, with great care while still preserving their dignity and maintaining their privacy. It is important for the client to feel as comfortable as they would if they were in their own home. With this, Registered nurses must appreciate and respect each person in whom they care for. This respect is seen through the nurse as they explain to the patient what they will be doing as they are caring for them, as well as providing care within the wishes of the person. Patients in the hands of the Registered Nurse, appreciate caring as a core value during their stay in the hospital. This is proved as Davis (2005) states, “From a patient perspective, the caring presence that emanates from nurses, positively impacts patients’ hospital experience,” (p.127) As nurses, caring is the absolute root of nursing practice. Preserving patients’ privacy and dignity involves aspects such as closing doors or screens and making sure they are covered while doing so, (Royal College of Nursing, 2015). The Code of Ethics outlines the importance of Registered Nurses supporting the person, family, group, population or community receiving care in maintaining their dignity and integrity, (Canadian Nurses Association, 2008). All these factors involved with the Code of Ethics greatly impact the nursing practice of
Hip Hop a grass movement started in 1974 in the South Bronx in New York City. Created to end gang violence, a voice for the underrepresented minority. Rap music is critical to understanding the hip hop generation’s gender crisis, a crisis between sexes that allows African American males to blatantly disrespect African American women for the sake of the culture. The consistent referencing of African American women as ‘bitches’ and ‘hos’ and the hyper sexualization of their bodies is harmful to the African American community. These images instill that it is alright to represent black women in this nature, and harmful to the young girls who are intaking all these negative images. Harmful to both the perspective of young men and women Hip-Hop is like a pillar in the African American culture. It represents how each generation views themselves in this society and how they internalized these narratives. In this essay I will summarize the main arguments in Chapter 7 of Gender talk , discuss the creation and deconstruction on views
Collaboration is an effort of multiple members of a healthcare team to achieve a desired outcome. It is partitive that in healthcare the goal of the patient is centered around the patient needs. Here should be open dialogue and shared decision making amongst all members of the healthcare team and the patient (Davis, 2010). Professional boundaries are the intimate nature of nursing and often present challenges as nurse’s share problems and difficulties with patients that can be quite stressful (ANA, 2010). When the nurse finds that professional boundaries are becoming endangered the nurse should seek assistance from peers or supervisors or seek to remove themselves from the situation (Olin,
Hip-Hop is a vast and popular culture, one part of Hip-Hop culture is the popular genre of music with lyrics spoken by old school artists such as Tupac, Notorious B.I.G, N.W.A, Grandmaster Flash and modern artists including Kendrick Lamar, Drake, Logic and more. Lyrics written and produced depict the hardships and reality for the artists. Contrary, lyrics also showed violence and stereotypes, and portrayed a certain image for listeners. Looking deeper into the genre, evidence shows that hypermasculinity is embedded into lyrics, videos and icons of Hip-Hop. The image of Money, Masculine Fragility and Appearance are prime examples that support the connection to hip-hop and the negative male image it imposes.
The American Nurses Association created guidelines for the profession including, a set clear rules to be followed by individuals within the profession, Code of Ethics for Nurses. Written in 1893, by Lystra Gretter, and adopted by the ANA in 1926, The Code of Ethics for Nurses details the role metaethics, normative ethics, and applied ethics have within the field (ANA, 2015). Moral obligation for an individual differs within professions than it does within an individual’s personal life, so the code of ethics was written to establish rules within the profession. The moral obligation to provide quality care include the fundamental principles of respect for persons, integrity, autonomy, advocacy, accountability, beneficence, and non-maleficence. The document itself contains nine provisions with subtext, all of which cannot be addressed within this paper however, core principals related to the ethical responsibilities nurses have will be
Love, the single feeling that generates the funny sentiments in our stomach, giving us the warm pleasures in our body, causing us to feel joy, and to believe every aspect in our life will constantly go right. In addition, causing us to receive an accelerating, appealing feeling that makes us want to rejoice. Love can be a speeding of your heart, but it can also be nerve-racking. Our hearts rapidly begin to pump, making a rapid beat— “ba-boom, ba-boom, ba-boom”. Attempting to describe love is a rigorous task, but it is possible. However, the easiest detail to describe and understand about love is the concept of what it is about. Many people may obtain different views and definitions regarding love, but their ideas tend to unite at some point.