Assignment Topic Suggestions- Writing Guide

Write a three to four page paper in which the student answers the following three (3) items using headers to separate each item:

(Note change of instructions: You only have to write one example of each of the 3 category question. That means one example of either a civil liberties or civil rights event, one example of a media event, and one example of a difference between the parties.)

1. Discuss either two civil liberties or two civil rights events (past or current) that have influenced a sense of social responsibility in the American government today. Provide examples to support your answer. Note: In your response, consider how the events influenced the way state, local or national political leaders or agencies responded in a socially responsible or ethical manner toward the community.

1. HERE ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF TOPICS:

A) Civil Rights:

Which means 'the basic right to be free from unequal treatment, based on certain characteristics which we deem important, like race, gender, and disability'. Civil rights include a class of rights and freedoms ensure one's ability to participate in civil and political affairs without discrimination or repression.

• Laws ensuring peoples' physical integrity and safety and laws to make sure that people are not forced into labor.
• Laws protecting people from private (non-government) discrimination (based on gender, religion, race, sexual orientation, etc.)
• Laws providing equal access to health care, education, culture, etc.

-Brown vs Board of education 1954 civil rights movement,
-American With Disabilities Act 1990
-LGBT Bathroom conflict between the federal Civil Rights Act - protecting civil rights of LGBT people vs the State Laws protecting the people's right to privacy
-Equal Pay Act supporting equal pay for women
-Civil Rights Act 1964; and the Black civil rights movement, Selma march and the Voting Rights Act.
-Any effort to support people to be free from discrimination, or unfair treatment with regard to employment, housing, sexual orientation, religious affiliation....

B)Civil Liberties

Any examples to protect people against government actions, or relating to basic rights and freedoms that are guaranteed in the constitution, Bill of Rights and by Court Rulings.

Use examples where the government gets involved regulating or ruling so that government does not step over the line into the people's right to:

• Right to privacy- Government restricted NSA National Security Agency's invasion of privacy
• Right to Privacy: Apple Defends Opposition to Helping FBI Hack San Bernardino Shooter's iPhone
• Right to a jury trial
• Right to freedom of religion
• Right to travel freely
• Right to freedom of speech
• Right to be free from self-incrimination
• Right to bear arms:- Brady Bill limits that
• Right to marry -conflict between state laws and Federal enforcement
• Right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures of your property
• Right to freedom of the press
• Right to be free from cruel and unusual punishments :- no water boarding
• Right to legal counsel- Miranda Rules
• Right to assemble peacefully
• Right to vote : Voting Rights Act ; issues related to requiring IDs to vote. can't block anyone from voting.

2. Discuss two media events (past or present) that have positively and or negatively influenced the public's opinion of a government agency. Provide examples to support your answer. Note: Consider how a news story or media coverage of an event positively or negatively changed the public's opinion (or perception) regarding how responsible a government agency should be towards meeting the needs of its customers; i.e. the American people.

1. EXAMPLES:

- Any of the Black Lives Matter incidents with the police and the government investigations of Police departments.
- Government response to Eboli outbreak, and the decisions of the Center for Disease Control CDC.
- Attacks on 911 and government creation of TSA Transportation Security Agency screening response
- Hurricane Katrina; Government slow response.
- Edward Snowden revelation of Government spying on citizens' emails.
- Watergate break-in scandal, and government response
- Flint Michigan water contamination and government response
- -2007 Washington Post inquiry into medical treatment of veteran soldiers
- Media coverage of the Viet Nam war in 1960's

3. Discuss two differences between the Republican and Democratic parties that may have an ethical impact (positively or negatively) on the American people. Provide examples to support your answer. Note: Consider the different ideals, values, morals, and/or goals held by the Republican and Democratic parties, and their different views on the ethically or morally right way to govern and make the best policies for the people they serve. Determine if your example presents any type of ethical concerns for or against the public interest of the American people.

1. EXAMPLES:

- The party'sdifferent positions on social programs and government services
- Minimum wage, or income inequality
- Equal pay for women, health care, govt influence on education
- Abortion, Death Penalty, climate change
- Support for poor, and middle class, deportation of immigrants
- Raising taxes for more social programs
- Different views on Supreme Court's ‘Citizens United' ruling and the role of money in politics
- Affirmative Action

Question 1: You need to state your point specifically in relation to the question. You go around the bush with information that is not linked to any specific topic sentence. Not easy to read and understand what point you are making.

question 2: good topic but you need to relate media coverage of the war with public perception of the American government's handling of it.

Question 3 does not address any specific differences between the two parties. You get off track with your quotations in the end.

-In general your quotes need to be specifically relevant to your topic, not off track.