This study aims to interpret Soviet propaganda posters published in the 1960s and 1970s using a selection of multidisciplinary analytical tools. More specifically this selection of eight Soviet...Show moreThis study aims to interpret Soviet propaganda posters published in the 1960s and 1970s using a selection of multidisciplinary analytical tools. More specifically this selection of eight Soviet posters are inspired by America's race relations, the Civil Rights era and the Cold War, with a particular focus on the USSR’s symbolic depictions of the state of African American civil rights during this time. To this end, the research questions is as follows: What can be interpreted from the state of African American civil rights as depicted in the Soviet Union’s propaganda posters from the 1960s and 1970s? The research question is answered through interpretation that is guided through the selection of academic research that looks at content analysis as well as the use of logical inference, such as the close analysis of visual ideology and linguistic meaning. This paper hopes to demonstrate one way in which the Soviet Union wished to contradict America’s democratic, free and liberal façade. Furthermore, it will exhibit how the Soviet Union worked to present their ideological enemy as a capitalist hypocrite in order to win the hearts and minds of its domestic audience, during a war that focused on a battle of political propaganda. On this basis, it can be interpreted that the intentions of the Soviet Union were to undermine the United States of America shown through the selection of these eight posters, although I do recognise that this in no way a definitive representation of all Soviet propaganda posters that depicted African Americans. Future research and the analysis of a wider pool of propaganda material published within a greater time frame, that targets an international audience would reveal other lines of ideological criticism, symbolic messages and would therefore draw broader conclusions.Show less
Hoe Lyndon Johnson gevangen kwam te zitten tussen de FBI van J. Edgar Hoover en de campagne voor gelijk stemrecht van Martin Luther King Jr. toen hij van beiden gebruik probeerde te maken.
This thesis researched the struggle between national security and civil rights of Arabs, Muslims and Middle Easterners who have resided or have entered the United States after the 9/11 attacks. It...Show moreThis thesis researched the struggle between national security and civil rights of Arabs, Muslims and Middle Easterners who have resided or have entered the United States after the 9/11 attacks. It examines the USA Patriot Act and the National Security Exit Entry Registration System (NSEERS) closely.Show less
The main focus of this thesis is how children’s books were used as a tool within the Black Power Movement to overcome the cultural deficit. After examining the state of children’s literature prior...Show moreThe main focus of this thesis is how children’s books were used as a tool within the Black Power Movement to overcome the cultural deficit. After examining the state of children’s literature prior to the movement the Black Power Era’s influence on children’s literature is addressed. The children’s books written by Julius Lester To Be a Slave (1968) and Black Folk Tales (1969) are then the key texts with which to examine how children’s books reflected the cultural changes that were developed during the Movement. The books provide a more nuanced and less overtly political view of black identity that is aimed at children. In conjunction with other materials, such as Ebony Jr., I demonstrate that the Black Power Movement enabled the production of various media such as magazines and children’s books that were not as extreme as the vision of Amiri Baraka’s view of the Black Arts Movement but nevertheless important in the struggle against the cultural deficit. Though these images and texts are less recognizable they were part of an effort that built on work prior to the Civil Rights movement but struggled in the shadow of the militaristic and provocative cultural expressions of the Black Power movement.Show less
This research aims to shed light on the effects that high-profile incidents of police brutality can have on police practices. More specifically, the thesis asks the question of how and to what...Show moreThis research aims to shed light on the effects that high-profile incidents of police brutality can have on police practices. More specifically, the thesis asks the question of how and to what extent the high-profile police brutality case of Rodney King has influenced the culture and practices of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD). The thesis concludes that the LAPD has underwent major reforms that have quite successfully addressed the problems of racism and excessive use of force. The LAPD has done so by focusing on building stronger partnerships with the different communities that it serves, and by changing its style of policing from a 'professional' model towards a 'community-based' model.Show less
