EXPERIENCING WHITE RACISM PROJECT

EXPERIENCING WHITE RACISM PROJECT GUIDELINES

It is your task to help one or more visitors from the imaginary town of “See-No-Racism”

understand the day-to-day lives of those who experience white racism in America. See no racism does not mean racism does not exist in the town, only that the “white” residents–the majority of

the population–do not “see” or acknowledge or it. The focus must be on white racism in the present, not just in the past. Keep the focus on white racism. Do not give an example of “white” people understanding what white racism is by being the victim of racism by “black” people. How would you help people from See-No-Racism experience white racism? What exactly would you want them to experience? For what purpose? If a resident of that town could have this experience what effect do you think it would have? The medium for this experience is limited only by your imagination (e.g., a photographic essay, job-related or other personal experiences, a discussion of relevant novels, film, audio tapes or CDs, newspaper clippings, a game, in-depth interviews, a brief short story or vignettes, etc.). Choose a method and explain its advantages and

limitations for what you hope to accomplish. Use only one method. Do not discuss the specific details of your method in the experience section. It is not enough to simply describe what the experience will include. The “experience” must center on an actual person who is having the experience. Readers of the project paper should be able to actually “experience” what that resident of See-No-Racism experiences about white racism simply by reading the experience section of your project.

The project must be divided into the following three sections and headings.

The Method (approximately 2 pages)

The Experience (approximately 4 pages)

The Anticipated Effect (approximately 1 page)

If you chose, you may place relevant “experience” documentation in an appendix (e.g., photographs, audio and video tapes, etc.). Do not put such material in the body of the paper. The appendix material is optional. It is not required. In the Anticipated Effect section discuss not only the effect your experience will have on the individuals involved but also in addressing the problem of white racism. It is not enough to say it will have no effect. Before turning in your project carefully check the “Experiencing. . .” format checklist available on Husky CT.

Format for Experiencing White Racism Project

Observe minimum page limits, typed pages requirement (i.e., at least seven full typed pages, not including the title or reference pages; but no more than nine pages) and deadlines. Projects are due at the beginning of the class period. They will not be accepted after that. Pages must be double spaced. Please number pages. Do not use onion-skin (i.e., very thin) paper. Staple pages together. Do not put the project paper in a folder or in plastic.

References should be documented according to the following format. In the body of the paper, for example, Davis (2018) or (Davis, 2018). If you quote directly you must use quotation marks or “block” quotes (for quotations longer than eight lines) and must give the page number, e.g., (Davis, 2018: 532). Page numbers must also be cited if you refer to specific facts taken from a particular source. On the references page at the end of the paper list references alphabetically using the following format.

Davis, John R. 2018. The Sociology of Deviance. New York: McGraw-Hill

or

Davis, John R. 2018. “A Re-analysis of Sutherland’s Theory of Differential Association.” American Journal of Sociology 155: 319-22

For further details see:

The Chicago Manual of Style or the American Sociological Association Style Guide

For websites used the name of the organization sponsoring the website must be cited with the website address in the references section of the paper.

For help with your writing see William Strunk, Jr. and E. B. White’s The Elements of Style and visit the Writing Center on campus.

Again, projects are due at the beginning of the class period of the project’s due date. Late projects will not be accepted.

Students find that I tend to be more demanding in my grading of written work than for exams. If you are not prepared to do quality work you should not do the project. A poor-quality project will likely bring your final grade down.