No one gets through life alone. To some extent, we are all products of our environments. We learn from our families, schools, and cultures. Every person has to face severe challenges and conquer obstacles. How we face our challenges depends on how we are shaped by others and our strength of character.

Certain individuals in our society have played powerful roles in the evolution of prevailing norms. While we learn our culture from agents of socialization, great leaders with lofty visions lead people and nations in the direction of emancipation, economic prosperity, and political freedom. Each of the following speeches tells the story of a struggle and its leader. Each speech echoes the aspirations of thousands of people as well as their desire to change their social situations.

The purpose of this assignment is to demonstrate the power of stereotypes as a shorthand communication tool. With great economy of words, each speaker uses stereotypes to frame the audience into an in-group of which he or she is the leader and the out-group on the opposing side.

Part 1: Read transcripts of famous speeches:

• King, M. (2004). ‘I have a dream’. New African, (435), 67-67.
  http://search.proquest.com.libproxy.edmc.edu/docview/230228033

• Cullis-Suzuki, S. (1994). An appeal for future generations. Earth Island Journal, 9(3), 14-14.
  http://search.proquest.com.libproxy.edmc.edu/docview/213829553

Part 2: Research other famous speeches

Explore various resources to research other famous speeches related to stereotyping and prejudice. Some suggestions are below. You may be able to find these speeches in video, audio, or text format. Try using a variety of search methods including visiting your local library, using Netflix or your local video store, or searching on YouTube. (You might also try locating the videos for the two famous speeches listed in Part 1 of this assignment.)

• Malcolm X: By Any Means Necessary
• Mahatma Gandhi: Nonviolence speech from the film Gandhi
• Gandhi’s definition on Satyagraha

Part 3: Write a Paper

For this assignment, select one of the above speakers/speech and prepare a 1200- to 1500-word paper that answers the following questions:

• Why did you select this particular speaker? Explain in around 300 words.
• Which is the in-group, and what are the unifying values or the ascribed status that provides its solidarity? Explain in around 300 words.
• What stereotype—prejudice, subordination, or discrimination—is the in-group challenging? Provide specific examples and explain in around 300 words.
• In your view, did members of the in-group conspire to subordinate the
  out-group, or was the in-group merely operating within the social structure of its time? Explain in around 300 words.
• How have your attitudes toward prejudice, subordination, or discrimination been influenced by the agents of socialization, such as family, peer groups, schools, and the media? Explain in around 300 words.

Provide a minimum of 3 references and apply the correct APA standards in the formatting of text, citations, and references.

Select two popular magazine websites: (one targeted at men, one targeted at women) and review the portrayal of gender roles and sexuality in the advertisements. In a 3-4-page paper, discuss your observations about the types of images you see in these magazines. Are there differences in the portrayals of gender in the magazine targeted at men and the other targeted at women? What about for sexuality? Are these magazines targeted at straight men? Straight women? How does that inform our understanding of gender being socially constructed? Is the assumption that a mainstream women’s magazine also be targeted towards straight women? Consider how women’s and men’s magazines cover sex as a topic. Be explicit in your analysis and descriptions of the ads.

If you are not aware of any mainstream men’s and women’s magazines, you should do an Internet search for “popular men’s magazines” and “popular women’s magazines.” It is important that you do not search for “gay men’s” or “lesbian” or “trans” magazines because we are looking at what is considered mainstream.

Instructions:

• Write a 3-4-page paper or about 1500 words, not including the title and reference pages, which are required.
• Your paper must be properly cited and formatted according to APA guidelines.
• Include a formal Reference page. This is an individual paper, however, you should reflect on our Discussion Forums and incorporate ideas from there as appropriate.
• You must support your analysis with at least three scholarly references and can include resources from this course. Sources such as Wikipedia, USA Today, Fox News, or MSNBC news will not be accepted.

Cain and Abel have decided to settle their case before it proceeds any further and causes them to expend more time and money. You have the previous information, including case caption, from the complaint and answer. Your supervising attorney has provided you with his final notes from the settlement conference and would like a settlement agreement and release drafted for his review. He has stressed that this document is of the utmost importance. He has provided you with two sample settlement agreements and requested you use these two samples to craft the settlement agreement for this client. Settlement Sample 1

Settlement Sample 2

The information to be included is as follows:

The name of the case, including case number

Cain filed the action, Abel counterclaimed

Both parties deny any wrongdoing on own part

Neither party is to admit any wrongdoing or violation of any law

Both Cain and Abel agree that this is the full and final settlement agreement, and are waiving any claims against each other, known or unknown

Cain is to pay Abel $5000 for the defamatory statements made against him

Both parties are to keep all matters regarding the case and settlement as confidential

The settlement is the entire agreement

Both Cain and Abel have agreed to 7 days to review the agreement and sign it–after signature by both brothers, the agreement will become effective Your supervising attorney proposes a “severability clause”

The agreement can be executed in parts, so that Cain doesn’t need to sign the same piece of paper as Abel

A non-disparagement clause, preventing Cain from making disparaging comments about Abel in the future

Purpose of Assignment

The purpose of this assignment is to select the best organizational form, and to discuss ethical concerns with the business scenario.

Assignment Steps

Scenario: Adam and Laura wish to open a pet grooming shop called Dazzling Doggies Day Spa. Laura’s mother Beth would like to contribute the startup costs in exchange for a share of profits, but she doesn’t want to participate in the daily operations of the business. She also doesn’t want to have any personal liability in the business.

Develop a 350- to 700-word summary with the following information:

• Which business organizational form would be best given the above circumstances, and why?
• Unbeknownst to Laura and Beth, Adam begins to use Dazzling Doggies Day Spa’s checking account to pay all his personal bills. Are his actions ethical? Why or why not?

Cite a minimum of two peer-reviewed references.

Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines.

Topic: Global Water Shortage

An argumentative essay, will present research relating the critical thinker to the modern, globalized world. In this assignment, you need to address the items below in separate sections with new headings for each. In your paper,

• Identify the global societal problem within the introductory paragraph.
  • Conclude with a thesis statement that states your proposed solutions to the problem.
• Describe background information on how that problem developed or came into existence.
  • Show why this is a societal problem.
  • Provide perspectives from multiple disciplines or populations so that you fully represent what different parts of society have to say about this issue.
• Construct an argument supporting your proposed solutions, considering multiple disciplines or populations so that your solution shows that multiple parts of society will benefit from this solution.
  • Provide evidence from multiple scholarly sources as evidence that your proposed solution is viable.
• Interpret statistical data from at least three, peer-reviewed scholarly sources within your argument.
  • Discuss the validity, reliability, and any biases.
  • Identify the strengths and weaknesses of these sources, pointing out limitations of current research and attempting to indicate areas for future research. (You may even use visual representations such as graphs or charts to explain statistics from sources.)
• Evaluate the ethical outcomes that result from your solution.
  • Provide at least one positive ethical outcome as well as at least one negative ethical outcome that could result from your solution.
  • Explain at least two ethical issues related to each of those outcomes. (It is important to consider all of society.)

• Develop a conclusion for the last paragraphs of the essay, starting with rephrasing your thesis statement and then presenting the major points of the topic and how they support your argument.

The Global Societal Problem, Argument, and Solution

• Must be 1,750 to 2,250 words in length (approximately between seven and nine pages; not including title and references pages) and formatted according to APA style, as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center’s APA Style (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
• Must include a separate title page with the following:
  • Title of paper
  • Student’s name
  • Course name and number
  • Instructor’s name
  • Date submitted
• For further assistance with the formatting and the title page, refer to APA Formatting for Word 2013 (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site..
• Must utilize academic voice. See the Academic Voice (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. resource for additional guidance.
• Must include an introduction and conclusion paragraph. Your introduction paragraph needs to end with a clear thesis statement that indicates the purpose of your paper.
  • For assistance on writing Introductions & Conclusions (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. as well as Writing a Thesis Statement (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site., refer to the Ashford Writing Center resources.
• Must use at least eight scholarly sources.
  • Source Document Requirements:
    • Multimedia sources (such as videos) may be used, but no more than two such sources may be used. If multimedia sources are used, they must be authored and distributed by credible sources, such as universities, law schools, medical schools, or professors, or found in the Ashford University Library.
    • Government sources may be used, but no more than two such sources may be used. Examples include whitehouse.gov, state.gov, usa.gov, cdc.gov, and so forth. These websites can be used to make a stronger point about your proposed solution within the argument.
    • Where print documents are used for source materials, those must be peer-reviewed, scholarly journal articles, and academically published books. Popular media sources (e.g., newspapers, magazines, television and radio shows, etc.) must not be used. Materials from advocacy groups (e.g., Greenpeace, Human Rights Campaign, National Organization for Women, etc.) must not be used.
    • Sites such as ProCon.org and Wikipedia must not be used.
    • Religious texts must not be used.
  • The Scholarly, Peer Reviewed, and Other Credible Sources (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. table offers additional guidance on appropriate source types. If you have questions about whether a specific source is appropriate for this assignment, contact your instructor. Your instructor has the final say about the appropriateness of a specific source for an assignment. The Integrating Research (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. tutorial will offer further assistance with including supporting information and reasoning.
  • Must document in APA style any information used from sources, as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center’s In-Text Citation Guide (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site..
  • Must have no more than 15% quoted material in the body of your essay based on the Turnitin report. References list will be excluded from the Turnitin originality score.
  • Must include a separate references page that is formatted according to APA style. See the Formatting Your References List (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. resource in the Ashford Writing Center for specifications.

Good Critical Thinking Tips:

• Your paper should include academic sources that explain multiple sides of the issue.
• Your interpretations of the evidence should be objective and state the conclusions and theses presented in the evidence clearly and fairly.
• Your paper should place the various forms of evidence in relation to one another and demonstrate why one form or perspective is stronger than the other positions that one could take on the issue.
• Your paper should point out the limitations of current evidence and attempt to indicate areas for future research.