The debate around the issue of abortion rights is not new in American politics. However, in recent years American politics has been polarized along partisan lines. This is also the case in the...Show moreThe debate around the issue of abortion rights is not new in American politics. However, in recent years American politics has been polarized along partisan lines. This is also the case in the abortion rights debate. The abortion rights debate has an effect on policy making in U.S. politics. Abortion rights also play a role in foreign policy making. Under the Trump Presidency, the Mexico City Policy was reinstalled and even further strengthened, entailing that no government funds were allowed to be given to actors that provide or promote abortions. Republicans, after years of supporting the initiative, now also threaten to defund PEPFAR, the successful initiative that has saved millions of lives in the fight against HIV/AIDS. They threaten to do this since they claim that the program funds abortion services. This thesis investigates and reveals the impact that this partisan polarization on the abortion rights issue has on American foreign policy and therefore on the United States’ image and influence in Africa. Furthermore, this research investigates China’s efforts to benefit from America’s impacted foreign policy by the abortion rights discussion. This thesis indeed reveals that the United States’ image and influence in Africa is negatively impacted by the partisan polarized abortion debate in American politics and that China is actively using its propaganda apparatus to portray the United States as hypocritical and unreliable and China as the better alternative.Show less
Indigenous (over)incarceration in Canada has been an issue raised by scholars, activists, and policymakers alike. Despite the many ideas that have been put forward to remedy the issue, either...Show moreIndigenous (over)incarceration in Canada has been an issue raised by scholars, activists, and policymakers alike. Despite the many ideas that have been put forward to remedy the issue, either through solutions focusing on prison reform or abolition, Indigenous (over)incarceration persists. This research focuses on the creative contributions of Indigenous prisoners, specifically poetry, and investigates in what ways Indigenous prison poetry contributes to the discourse on Indigenous prison reform and abolition. It involves a qualitative poetry analysis which focuses on the formal aspects of poetry. Using affect theory and Tribal Critical Race Theory (TribalCrit) as an interpretive lens, findings suggests that the poetry adds to the discourse in three main ways. The poetry allows for readers to engage with the topic of Indigenous (over)incarceration in a manner that is beyond the rationale, and it allows the liminal space of Indigenous (incarcerated) individuals to be at the center of the debate. Last, poetry lends itself particularly well as carrier of stories, which, according to Indigenous ways of knowledge, serve as theory. These stories can thus be used to further theorize ideas on prison reform and abolition.Show less
This thesis investigates the impact of US military imperialism on the Philippines, Puerto Rico, and Guam, centering on local perceptions and experiences. Employing qualitative thematic analysis and...Show moreThis thesis investigates the impact of US military imperialism on the Philippines, Puerto Rico, and Guam, centering on local perceptions and experiences. Employing qualitative thematic analysis and comparative case studies, this research contends how colonial legacies shape discourse and resistance. The findings indicate that economic dependencies and social hierarchies perpetuate US dominance, while local media and resistance movements protest this influence. This study advocates for a decolonial approach to US policy and emphasizes the need for context-specific analyses and interdisciplinary research. Fundamentally, this thesis contributes to the comprehension of the persistent impact of colonialism on discourse creation and narratives around autonomy.Show less
