Author: TheConversation

By John M. Eason, Associate Professor of Sociology; Benny Witkovsky, PhD Candidate; Chloe Haimson, PhD Candidate; Jungmyung Kim, PhD Candidate; University of Wisconsin-Madison Kenosha, Wisconsin, became a national byword for racial unrest when protests in August erupted in violence. After local police shot a Black man, Jacob Blake, seven times in the back, leaving him paralyzed, furious residents took to the streets expressing years of pent-up anger. During nighttime hours, fires were set. Law enforcement’s response only escalated the situation. One night an armed white militia showed up, and Kenosha officers thanked them. Then, at 11:45 p.m. on Aug....

By Arash Javanbakht, Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Wayne State University About a year ago I began to follow my interest in health and fitness on Instagram. Soon I began to see more and more fitness-related accounts, groups, posts and ads. I kept clicking and following, and eventually my Instagram became all about fit people, fitness and motivational material, and advertisements. Does this sound familiar? While the algorithms and my brain kept me scrolling on the endless feeds, I was reminded of what digital marketers like to say: “Money is in the list.” That is, the more customized your group,...

By Robert M. Adelman, Associate Professor and Department Chair of Sociology, University at Buffalo; and Lesley Reid, Professor of Criminology and Criminal Justice and Interim Dean of the School of Social Work, University of Alabama Undocumented immigration does not increase the violent crime rate in U.S. metropolitan areas. In fact, it may reduce property crime rates. These are the key findings from our recently published article in the Journal of Crime and Justice, co-authored by Yulin Yang, James Bachmeier and Mike Maciag. Research shows that the American communities where immigrants make their homes are more often improved by their...

By Connie L. Schaffer, Associate Professor of Teacher Education, University of Nebraska Omaha; Martha Graham Viator, Associate Professor Emeritus of Education, Rowan University; and Meg White, Associate Professor of Education, Stockton University On November 14, 1960, after a long summer and autumn of volleys between the Louisiana Legislature and the federal courts, Ruby Bridges, a 6-year-old Black girl, was allowed to enroll in an all-white school. Accompanied by federal marshals, Bridges entered William Frantz Public School – a small neighborhood school in New Orleans’ Upper Ninth Ward. If that building’s walls could talk, they certainly would tell the well-known...