Browsing by Subject "Obama"

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Conversation with an Apple : play development as movement-building against mass incarceration
(2015-05) Goodnow, Natalie Marlena; Gutierrez, Laura G., 1968-; Alrutz, Megan; Jones, Omi Osun Joni L.
This reflective practitioner research project explores if and how viewing and responding to drafts of my original solo play in development, "Conversation with an Apple," contributes to efforts to build a movement against mass incarceration, with a particular focus on dismantling the school-to-prison pipeline. I draw upon Michelle Alexander's theorization of mass incarceration in the United States, social movement theory elaborated and archived by contemporary activists, and theories in performance and affect studies to contextualize my investigation. I describe how I utilized Liz Lerman's Critical Response Process to elicit audience responses to staged readings of "Conversation with an Apple," and also how I employed modified grounded theory techniques to analyze those responses. I then explain how insights gained through these methodologies informed revisions of the "Conversation with an Apple" script and my plans for future post-show workshops. I conclude with an evaluation of the usefulness of these play development and research methodologies in my artistic practice. I find that both Liz Lerman's Critical Response Process and the modified grounded theory analysis I utilized, along with a return to my guiding theoretical frameworks, contributed meaningfully to my reflective practice, yielding several key insights. First, I discovered that the play does seem to have the potential to raise consciousness among audience members regarding multiple manifestations of mass incarceration as it affects young people, although I decided that a few key mechanisms of mass incarceration might be more fully elaborated through script revisions. Second, I found that when audiences responded to the play, the shared experience of viewing the performance functioned as a springboard for conversation about other shared experiences in their lives, thus building a sense of community in at least a small way. I also theorize that the act of transmitting heightened affect together while viewing this play built community. Finally, my analyses revealed that although some audience members felt outraged at the realities of mass incarceration and inspired to make a change, many felt hopeless after viewing the play. These analyses informed my most significant revisions to the "Conversation with an Apple" script and plans for post-show workshops.
President Obama’s Executive Order on Chemical Facility Safety Is a Step in the Right Direction
(The Center for Global Energy, International Arbitration, and Environmental Law, 2013-08-19) McGarity, Tom
Stopping The Presses: Evaluating The Effectiveness Of The 2013 Justice Department’s New Protections For Journalists
(2018-05) Shokar, Jasleen
The Obama Administration ushered in a new era of accountability and communication between the government and those it governs. With the rise of social media and the creation of White House accounts on various platforms it seemed as if the Obama administration was taking his pledge to have the most transparent presidency of all time to serious heights. However, during the first term of the Obama administration, the justice department under Attorney General Eric Holder set some dangerous precedents. The justice department pursued several prosecutions of people who had leaked government secrets and developed a successful formula for these cases by way of the Espionage Act. Out of this behavior, a new landscape for the relationship between the government and the media was formed. After backlash, they conducted a review and used experts from outside the Whitehouse in the media, and academia to provide feedback. They then released a list of protections and new policies to protect journalists to undo the precedents they may have set and encourage future due diligence in the prosecutorial process regarding the role of media in leaks. I am evaluating how effective those protections are and whether they accomplish the goals they set out to meet.