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Essay #3 (Library Information Literacy Research): 12,3,4)
Michelle Alexander's New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness
Background: After our Brent Staples unit on the impact that implicit bias and stereotypes have on us as
individuals and our Glenn Loury unit on the role that institutional racism has played in the explosion of our
nation's prison population over the last 30 years, consider the following from Michelle Alexander's book which
explains the metaphor I would like you to think about: "The unfortunate reality we must face is that racism
manifests itself not only in individual attitudes and stereotypes, but also in the basic structure of society.
Academics have developed complicated theories and obscure jargon in an effort to describe what is now referred
to as structural racism, yet the concept is fairly straightforward. One theorist, Iris Marion Young, relying on a
famous "birdcage” metaphor, explains it this way: If one thinks about racism by examining only one wire of the
cage, or one form of disadvantage, it is difficult to understand how and why the bird is trapped. Only a large
number of wires arranged in a specific way, and connected to one another, serve to enclose the bird and to
ensure that it cannot escape" (184). For this third essay, you will choose a specific topic to "research" and write
about from the three general focus areas described in the "How It Works" section of Chapter 5 of Alexander's
book. The three general areas are the roundup, the period of formal control, and the period of invisible
punishment.
Something is going to pul you
Task: From within one of the above three general areas, you will need to choose a specific topic to "research"
during our library sessions next week. Look over your journal exercises for each of the four chapters we have
read in Alexander's book ("Lockdown," "Color of Justice," "Cruel Hand," and "New Jim Crow") and consider how
that work might help you in beginning the task of writing this essay. For the days that we spend in the library, you
will look for specific information on your chosen "research" topic to supplement your general discussion of
Alexander. You will need to find at least two additional academic sources for this essay (in addition to
Alexander as your main source, of course). Do NOT use Bryan Stevenson as a source for this essay. You will
need to write on your specific topic, tie your research to the broader themes of this course, and reflect on the
implications both for you personally and for our society in general, particularly in light of the very divisive
social, political, and economic climate we are living through today.
Tips for Success (The General but Specific Thesis Statement) : Your thesis statement should not be one that
can generically fit any other student's essay in this class. Your entire introductory paragraph "frames" the case
that you will make in the body of your paper. The thesis statement will need to allude to the general theme,
address problem at hand, and at the same time, that thesis statement (please underline it) needs to answer the
"So what?" question of why what you have to add to the continuing discussion on the topic is important for your
reader to consider. When I read your introduction, I should get a sense of the "case" you will "argue" in the
remainder your essay. After you have written your essay and read it through, give it a title that captures the
essence of your discussion !
Minimum Requirements: You will write a formal and structured minimum five-page essay with a clearly
identified general but specific thesis statement (underline it!) in your introductory paragraph. Write an
introduction that is interesting and engaging so that your reader wants to read on ! Be sure to introduce your
main source-Michelle Alexander-and include at least one integrated quote somewhere in that introduction
along with the necessary background information needed so that your reader, who has NOT read Alexander,
can understand the context from which the quote came). The remainder of your essay should consist of three or
more supporting body paragraphs and a conclusion that does not merely summarize but instead ties everything
together and leaves your reader your final thoughts and speculations on the topic, a sense of "where do we go
from here," and something that you want your reader to carry away and ponder. Avoid merely "dropping in"
quotes without context. Each time you quote a source, you need to provide an introduction to that quote and
the necessary context so that your reader understands the point you are trying to make in the context of your
discussion. Choose meaningful quotes that make the most impact for point you are making.
Continued on the back !
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NEW
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The New Jim Crow
Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness
MICHELLE ALEXANDER
WITH A NEW FOREWORD BY CORNEL WEST