Sociology

Unemployments Definition as given in the Census Bureau of Measurement defines the unemployed as people who were not working at all in the time of the survey week and were thus looking for work. The definition exemplifies further that other persons who are defined to be unemployed are those that would be in search of employment just but for the fact that they were unwell or they were expecting to resume working in the same situation that they were in before they were laid off for an undefined period of time. Such people held the thought that no work within their scope of skill and knowledge was available for them. The questions raised in this definition are thus those of objectivity as the definition is formulated to determine whether a person worked or did not and whether he was in search of a job (Hauser 1949).
How it affects those living in poverty
There is tremendous amount of proof that posits unemployment as the major cause of increase of poverty contributing to the major divide between the poor and the rich. In company to contributing towards increased poverty, unemployment also incites a host of debilitating effects that are social in nature on the unemployed people as well as their families and the surrounding community. As such this calls for welfare reform that will stress the need for formulation of sound policies that will generate employment opportunities. Despite the importance of employment opportunities as a solution to unemployment it should not be the only motivation and goal for the welfare system. The welfare system should formulate a model that guards against distortion in the income structure.
Extent of  problem
There are two myths in the fundamental welfare debate regarding the effects of unemployment and the poor (Saunders 2002).  The problem is that on the left side of the debate there is reluctance to reckon the central role that incentives play on actions that are deemed to be economic in nature. To the right the mystical assumption that is often assumed by those in positions of influence is that attempts to redistribute wealth so as to make tentative improvements within the circles of the poor are always wrought with disaster. The slippery slope of alleviating poverty through wealth redistribution results into an inescapable trend exhibited in the web of poverty (Gruen 1982). Assessing the cost of alleviating unemployment and thus poverty should be a primary goal of the welfare system.
Historical changes
Poverty rates became de-linked from the status of the economy in the nineteen seventies and particularly in the eighties (Haveman, 2000). According to the indexes that were brought before The State of Working America in the period starting from 1998-1999, the seventies experienced elevated poverty levels regardless of the fact that unemployment was dropping in America. In the first half of the nineties, the situation was only fairly improved (Mishel, Bernstein and Schmitt, 1999). In America, economic growth and falling unemployment ran in tandem with poverty. The predominant cause of this scenario is the discrepancies that characterized incomes with high disparities. 
Understanding the problem.
Public Opinion
In America, inequalities within the market directly result into increased poverty. This is because of the weak commitment to formulate policies and assume enterprise frameworks that motivate and enhance equality and redistribution
Views of the unemployed
Among the poor, unemployment exposes one to a heightened risk of poverty. This is because the lack of income to support one in meeting hisher living expenses such as food and housing as well as other costs like education and house bills is a sign of inability to support oneself. In a situation where two adults are living together as a married couple, having one of the two adults in employment is stressed (Miller 1997).
Effectiveness of past solutions
What reduced the risk of people languishing in poverty in the past was not the paid work itself but was as a result of the availability of fulltime work. Poverty can be managed when in a family of two grownups constituting a mother and a father there is at least one parent that is working full time. As such accessibility to full time work schedules is a major factor in alleviating poverty.
Viable Solutions
Programs that work and dont work
    Primarily, the debate against unemployment is that it inhibits accessibility to earning income with the resultant effect of increased poverty.  A point worth observing is that the welfare systems response of alleviating poverty by giving benefits to the poor work against them in the end. This is because the corporate world that is supposed to sustain these benefits is burdened by them and thus can not remain competitive enough to expand and create more employment opportunities to meet the demands of those who come into the employment market.
New programs and visions.
One program that is likely to work in solving the issue of unemployment and poverty is the raising and indexing of the minimum earnings to half the average earnings per hour. The center has also proposed that the government extends Pell Grants and at the same time put clear mechanisms in place that will make tertiary level of education readily available to the residents of each state. The federal government has also been advised to enhance the reintroduction and entrenchment of ex-convicts back into the society by finding stable working opportunities for them. Lastly, the federal government has been advised to reformulate its insurance legislation in a way that will see the insurance companies promote equity when dealing with workers on low wage. 
Which will work Why
A practice that is likely to bear fruit as stated in the new programs and visions as engendered in the policy is the raising and indexing of the minimum earnings to half the average earnings per hour. This is because in the present times, it is as a result of the casual system of employment with increased trends among employers to diminish wages that is leading to a new trend in the society that are creating the working poor (Richardson and Harding 1999)
Discussion of the policy that will work, why will it work
    (Bradbury and Jntti 1999) conclude that, one of the lead causes of divergent tendencies among children living in poverty is accessibility to market incomes. As such by linking disadvantaged and disconnected young Americans with an opportunity to attend school and work at the same time will access them to market opportunities that would have excluded them as a result of lack of skill.
Goals
Goodness of Fit
    The center in a bid to promote education among young Americans has also guaranteed child care assistance to families with low incomes.
Do the goals actually contribute to the greater social good
Alleviating the problem of bringing up a society full of uneducated children who grow up to be juvenile delinquents is absolutely critical as the uneducated lead up to societys detriment by engaging in criminal activities for survival as they lack the necessary skills to sustain them.
Who supports goals Who opposes
The centers proposal to promote formation of workers unions by legislating and enforcing of the employee free choice act by congress is a policy that has been criticized by those in the circles of big corporate ownership. This is because employees as a result of this act will be able to go on paid long leaves of absence and thus will not be productive and cost effective to the respective firms. Despite this fact, employees have received the measure well as it grants them liberty to break the monotony of work.
Feasibility
Does Funding exist
The centers proposal to provide 2,000,000 housing vouchers and enhance same level development in areas that include the outskirts and the inner core of the cities is portrayed in the governments supplementary efforts in ensuring that strained Americans do not loose their houses. 
Discussion of strengths and limitations of policy.
The housing policy is a strong measure towards making sure that poor families can access housing needs but it is questionable as to how the federal government will recover back the funds and more specifically will protect its loan portfolio.

Gender roles of masculine    Gender is a concept that is very difficult to pinpoint an exact definition on, as it tends to have several different meanings and origins. Some cultures may view gender as a strict idea that one is born with and others may view it as a culturally constructed concept that varies greatly. For many gender extends beyond one either being born male or female and includes the traits of being either masculine or feminine.
    For those who believe that genders have rigid guidelines and should behave in a certain way there is not such a broad definition. There are many people who tend to believe that males should act masculine and be tough, unemotional, and sporty or active for example. Men are generally seen as the dominant sex and gender in both the workforce and at the home. Even in the Catholic faith, it is men who are only able to become the ever powerful priests. This then means that females should act feminine and be emotional, sensitive, weak, and very into their appearances. These definitions are probably more so believed by a generation of the past and those of an older age. It seems now that younger members of society and those of a newer generation are beginning to veer away from these strict ideas and allowing gender roles to take on a more free definition. It is now becoming more acceptable for males to portray some  feminine  traits, perhaps being into their appearance or to not enjoy partaking in sports. Men can also express there emotions more now than before and no longer have to be stoic and unemotional. It is also more socially acceptable for females to be  masculine , enjoying playing sports and preferring to wear jeans and t-shirt rather than a feminine dress. In particular, it is becoming more common to see women in the work force doing what was presplm.

In todays world, the issue of the multiple cultures and races co-habiting in a single nation and the problems faced thereof is becoming increasingly relevant as boundaries are fading and the phenomena of immigration is turning into a rule rather than the exception. This essay examines how this concern has affected the environment in Canadian schools. In doing so it aims at exploring the question, Have the attempts made by the state and academic managements towards multiculturalism in Canadian schools been effective in easing out differences between the various  ethnic groups, offering them equal opportunities and treatment and if so, are the resultant academic environment conducive to a positive, common cultural identity for Canadian students.

The essay intends to be a critical analysis of how issues of racism, anti-racism, loss of cultural identity and problem stemming form them, like increase of crime and drop-out rates have been tackled in the past in Canadian schools. 

As the essay proceeds, it will present arguments offered by Dian Million in Telling Secrets Sex, Power and Narratives in Indian Residential School Histories, which demonstrates the trauma caused by the implementing of certain ill-thought of state policies by studying the narratives of aboriginal victims of abuse of residential schools (Million, D., 1999.). As a counter-thesis, the essay presents the views of Daniel Yon as published in Discursive Space of Schooling, which through an analysis of the state of affairs at Maple Heights, a secondary school in Toronto, illustrates how in an active attempt of tolerance and acceptance towards immigrant students, the school has lost the its strong identity and vibrant academic spirit. (Yon. D. A., 2000.)

Multiculturalism in Canadian Schools A Successful Reality

Canada with its reputation of being a good nation has always strived at achieving fair human policies compared to rest of the countries around the world (Alexander, L. M., 2000.). Since its colonization in the 1700s immigrants have flooded to the country from all corners of the world. Besides its original English and French settlers immigrants today include Italians, Jews, Vietnamese and Indians to name a few. With such a mix of ethnicity issues of racism and unequal treatment are bound to crop up but Canada as a nation has made conscious attempts to curb this at a very early stage when in October 1971 the government of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau delivered its Announcement of the Implementation of a Policy of Multiculturalism within the Bilingual Framework.. (Brown, M., 2007.)

However one particular policy adopted by the state has been proven to have resulted in devastating effects. Full residential Schooling, which was implemented in Canada in the late 1800s, hoped to benefit the Aboriginal people. Considering their unfortunate positioning in the community, it was anticipated that residential schooling would help Aboriginal children to gain a footing in white European society. (Conde, B., Kabgani, S., 200.)

However in the late 1980s narratives emerged from former students of these schools which described how they had faced sexual and physical abuse during their tenure at the residential schools. And on January 7, 1998, when the federal government of Canada announced the creation of a 350- million-dollar healing fund in an attempt to support redress the effects of the trauma faced by the residential school victims, formally acknowledging its role in tragic happenings, faith of the citizens in the states ability to do good was compromised. This was worsened by the fact that it was not the government that was accountable but also four Church denominations. (Million, D., 1999.) Such an incident is bound to raise doubts in the minds of Academic authorities regarding the validity of accepted notions of what is the right path towards multiculturalism.

On September 2009, in yet another attempt at uplifting people from a minority group, the Toronto district School Board (TDBS), established an Afro-centric Alternative School for elementary students. This was in response to their recent research findings showed the drop-out rate of Black students to be as high as 40 (particularly for the male students)  Considering this high drop-out and crime rates of Black students in the regular schools, the move aimed at providing specialized education, tailored to their needs and abilities. The school intends to include the histories, cultures, experiences and contributions of people of African descent and other racial groups into the curriculum, teaching methodologies and social environment of the schools (James, C.E., 2009.)

Though this move has been attacked by considerable criticisms it is hard to ignore the fact such kind of segregation manages to avoid altogether racial issues that is bound to arise in an otherwise multi-ethnic environment.
The modus-operandi behind the residential school regulation was to dominate the up-bringing of the children from minority-group families so that their cultural identity conforms to that of a whiteEnglish child. The establishment of a segregated school for African-Canadians will result in alienating the students of the school from other ethnic groups. The ultimate outcome, nevertheless, remains the same. Both schools were intended to possess a single dominant cultural identity.

However the majority of schools in Canada today function on a different principle all together. Rather than a melting pot, it would be best described as a mosaic of cultures (Yon. D. A., 2000.) These schools have students that hail from various backgrounds, each ethnic-group bringing with it its own language, customs, and culture. In an attempt to be politically correct and uphold human rights, the policy adopted by the schools was that of tolerance and acceptance. It was the teachers that adapted to the students cultures, learning their language and altering teaching methods, rather than the other way around. The identity of the schools, more than influencing that of the students, continuously changed in order to conform to their cultures.

Maple Heights, at Toronto, the school studied by Daniel Yon, was founded as a 1955, to cater to the more affluent population residing in its surrounding areas. Today it is converted into a secondary school that also teaches traditional trades and not just concentrated on academic pursuits. This was done because of the shift in demographic around the area as more immigrants settled in.

This phenomenon, created by the consistent practice of conscious anti-racism in the school, while helping to preserve the cultural identities of the minority groups by generating a sense of belonging within them, have sprung fears of not having a single united motivation and spirit. The school is more definable as a collection of groups, which turn inwards for strength and companionship. Though this maybe a positive aspect for the minority group it is apprehended to be a danger to the National spirit.

The dominance of immigrants over the school has reached to the extent that it has created some sense of resentment among the non-immigrant students making them feel like outsiders.

The increase of crime-rate in schools has also generated some cause for concern among the citizens of the Nation. Due to negative stereo-typing, crime is generally attributed to certain ethnic groups, which in turn leads to reinforcing its reputation. This has a negative impact on teenagers belonging to  close-knit minority groups, such as those that are prevalent in schools today, since they tend to modify their behavior to keep up to these reputations (whether real or imagined).

The answer to how one can create a healthy atmosphere of multiculturalism in schools seems to lie more within the second model rather than the first. Canada is blessed with a rich tapestry of cultures and much good can come out of tapping into the potential of each culture. Hence it is essential that one does not, in the pursuit of a singular National spirit, lose that of numerous ethnic groups prevalent in the country, mainly since Canada today is defined as a collective of these cultures.

The key is to make the minority groups feel secure enough in the school to be able to let go of their apprehensions and accept Canadian identities. It is essential therefore to not give importance to any one particular group, minority or otherwise (a common complaint these days is that Blacks tend to get all the attention) but have equal treatment for all.

From Daniel Yons essay it is evident that the academic community is only too eager to follow this path. Suggestions came from the teachers he interviewed at the school to not just celebrate African History Month but one for every ethnic group. This seems like a particularly good idea since tolerance after all stems on awareness.
Patriotism, represented by role models from varying cultural backgrounds should be inculcated into the curriculum. A more relatable image of what it means to be Canadian would be more acceptable to young minds.

The trends in todays youth is also helping to blur boundaries between communities as inter- racial-dating is more and more becoming a norm. Music and media (especially close to the heart of the young) are also crossing borders.

As mentioned before, Canada has always been a role model of sorts in the sphere of human rights and to adopt policies like that of imposing a culture on a minority group or segregating them from the rest should be considered un-Canadian.

One of the worst social problems that have hit humankind is the prevalence of the HIVAIDS disaster. According to statistics provided by the World Bank in 2002, the statistics of people affected by the scourge are staggering.  By 2002, around 25 million people had died of AIDS, and around 40 million people were estimated to be living with HIV or AIDS. According to the World Bank, these figures rose by about 50 percent between 1991 and 2002 as projected by the World Health Organization (WHO) (World Bank, 2008).
It is generally known from media and sociological researches that third world countries, and especially Africa have the highest prevalence of HIVAIDS, yet there are also conflicting reports of deaths associated with HIVAIDS in different continents. For instance, India is reported to have the highest number of death cases related to AIDS, yet ironically, the country is considered to have a low prevalence of the scourge (World Bank, 2008). Could this difference be attributed to differences in sociological perspectives and what the media generally report 
This paper will analyze various perspectives regarding the HIVAIDS scourge. In particular, the paper will focus on the sources of in regarding HIV and AIDS with particular focus on the crisis as it is in Africa an in the United States. The paper will focus on access to medication as well as the cost effectiveness of treatment of HIV and AIDS in these two regions. In addition, the paper will evaluate the popular media sources and considerations concerning HIV and AIDS. The other section of the paper will entail an analysis of attitudes about AIDS, perceptions and facts. In line with this, the paper will address the impact to the media in disseminating information about HIV and AIDS, in particular how this compares with sociological perspectives on HIV and AIDS.
Availability of academic sources regarding HIV and AIDS
Availability of information about HIV and AIDS has been considered the most effective approach to dealing with the pandemic.  It cannot be gainsaid that people need to be informed in order to understand the reality. There is much evidence the education helps people to protect themselves against HIV infections.  For instance, data obtained in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the period when the scourge was just emerging showed that there was a positive correlation between the peoples level of education and the rates of infection of the disease. This could be attributed to the point that the more educated people were of as higher economic status   and had greater mobility, enabling them to interact with and have a higher number of sexual partners. This was exacerbated by the fact that at the time of the onset of the HIV and AIDS pandemic education was devoid of topics on prevention of HIV and AIDS as well as behavior change (World Bank, 2008).
When means to prevent infections were better known people were empowered with ways to reduce further infections and adopt safer sexual behavior. With this, sociological studies later revealed that there was a reversal in the trend of infection - the uneducated people now being infected more.  This can confirmed by a study that was done in Zambia in which it was noted that there was a marked decline rates of infection of HIV among youths aged between 15 and 19 (having medium to high-level education), but there was a marked increase in the number of infections among people of lower education levels. That would imply that the prevalence of HIV and AIDS has been very high in Africa especially in the sub-Saharan region.
The next section focuses on access to medication in Africa as well as the United States
Access to medication
There is mixed opinion over the sociological views and what the media reports about HIV and AIDS as well as access to medication for the condition. In many regions, the prevalence of HIV and AIDS is estimated using local conditions that are not well suited for determining of the real prevalence in entire populations. Such estimates therefore fail to address issues such as monitoring the efficiency and patterns of transmission in many regions of the world.
There are also difficulties in obtaining accurate projections for new HIV infections if the prevalence rate is relatively low. This leads to a creation of two scenarios one, a case whereby sociological studies may reveal statistics that are inflated leading to more media attention in one given area and two a situation whereby the statistics are underreported, leading to diversion of media attention from areas that would otherwise have needed more focus. A key problem here is that when the statistics are overly alarmist, they tend to encourage either popular skepticism or even fatalism. On the other hand, overly low estimates rouse international suspicion (Van Niekerk  Kopelman, 2009).
The AIDS crisis in Africa and other international communities
In Ethics  AIDS in Africa the challenge to our thinking, Van Niekerk and Kopelman note that the vast majority of HIV and AIDS patients in developing countries have no access to life saving drugs (Van Niekerk  Kopelman, 2009).  Thus, the authors suggest that compulsory licensing of HIV and AIDS is preferable, both in moral and pragmatic terms. In line with this, the two authors suggest that   aspects subsidizing the availability of HIV and AIDS medication such as price cuts and donation schemes are imperative (Van Niekerk  Kopelman, 2009).
In Africa, studies have revealed that South Africa has the highest prevalence of the HIVAIDS pandemic. The prevalence rate was 10.8 percent of the general population in the year 2004 (Rohleder, Swartz,  Kalichman, 2009). The impact of the scourge is enormous if one considers factors such as access to drugs needed to combat opportunistic infections associated with the disease. The magnitude of the devastation caused by HIV and AIDS is exacerbated by the stigma associated with the conditions. Usually families have to spend fortunes caring for those affected with HIV and those in the AIDS stage. Significant costs are also incurred in funeral expenses the people who die of AIDS as well as supporting children who are orphaned due to the scourge. This implies that access to medication for those who are infected with HIVAIDS is a Herculean task (Rohleder, Swartz,  Kalichman, 2009).
There have been many attempts to deal with the spread of HIV but they are hampered by social perspectives about HIV and AIDS. Many considerations have been about employing vaccination trial programs in a bid to step infections. But any sociologist would view vaccine trial on human being as one of the most mind-boggling activities to be done by human beings. This cannot be gainsaid. According to Rohleder, Swartz, and Kalichman (2009), community participation in HIV vaccine trail is often times assumed to be a wide social good, particularly for communities that whose members are at very high risk if contracting HIV. Nevertheless, it has been noted that perception about participation in HIV vaccine trials may pose a significant personal risk for the participants as a result of the social stigma that the participants may be subjected to as a result of their participation in HIV related research (Rohleder, Swartz, and Kalichman, 2009). Most of the concerns are related to the side effects of the HIV vaccines. As such, many projects in HIV management in Africa are hampered by diverse sociological perspectives.
Media reports about HIV and AIDS in Africa are usually focused on one or few issues. For instance, a report published on the Voice of America website on 16 November 2009 cited the government of South Africa for not providing antiretroviral (ARV) drugs to the people who need them (Taylor, 2009). As such, the report says, supply of HIV and Aids support drugs has been left to non-governmental organizations such as Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) which strives to have patients afford the drugs (Taylor, 2009).  But can media reports be trusted Readers who commented on the VOA report had mixed opinions. One reader noted that the article was just an illustration of there United States media interest in Africa, given that there are also HIV and AIDS patients in the United States but their plight is not highlighted as much as it is in Africa (the comments can be accessed at httpwww1.voanews.comenglishnewsafricasouthernSouth-Africa-AIDS-PT1-Taylor-16Nov09-69963137.html)
AIDS in the United States
With better systems to check the prevalence of HIV and AIDS among its population, the United States is faced with a rather unique problem. Studies done in 2005 revealed that highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) causes HIV patient to live longer healthier lives, but this poses another sociological problem (Mooney, Knox  Schacht 2008).    Patients under the therapy engage more in unprotected sex with the belief that they have lower HIV load and are less likely to infect their partners (Mooney, Knox  Schacht 2008).  The implication of implication of this is that any high prevalence of HIV and AIDS in the United States is disguised by the highly effective medication that is available.
Media reports in the United States focus on revised HIV treatment as opposed to Africa where most reports concern inaccessibility of drugs, high cost of ARVs and so forth. Web sites such as aegic.com provide detailed information on how to treat HIV in the initial stages (Highleyman, 2009).
Cost and effectiveness of medication in the treatment of AIDS
Much attention on treatment of HIV and AIDS in developed countries is paid to cost cutting agenda as well as quality care. The situation developing countries different many people cannot have access to basic needs not mention the expensive medication for HIV and AIDS. But this varies among various target groups.
HIV and Black women
Studies by Centers for Disease Control have revealed that 64 percent of the women living with HIV and AIDS in the United States are African-American (Ho, 2009).   This means that there is need for more intervention on the social as well as other factors that cause variations in the prevalence rated between black women and white women (Ho, 2009). 
Gay men and AIDS
The gay marriages have been a source of controversy in recent years. Gays were initially viewed to be a group disconnected from the entire society recently they have gained recognition in many countries such as the United States and Australia. In the media, there are many newspapers that address their plight especially with respect to transmission of HIV through sexual acts (Moore, 2001).

Popular media sources and considerations concerning HIV and AIDS
Sociological studies on HIV and AIDS rely on findings obtained from sample populations. As mentioned earlier, the finding may be overly representative of facts or be overly under representative of the actual truth. Yet in many instances, media reports rely on these biased findings.  Hence, media houses that are generally trusted such as VOA may be sources of unreliable information. Report from developing countries in sub-Saharan Africa have generally indicates a high prevalence of HIV but if analyzed keenly, the information could indicate a generally high risk rate in a all populations around the world save for the better information and access to resources that that come countries have  (Moore, 2001).
Attitudes about AIDS
The fact that perceptions and facts surround the issue of HIV and AIDS presents mixed opinion about the condition. Perceptions about AIDS are rife given the nature of spread of the disease. Media such as newspapers often carry what is perceived to be the position about HIV and AIDS prevalence, but the figures may not necessarily be true. According to Landau-Stanton and Clements (1993), even professional  may deny the validity of scientific data due areas that have not been understood or well studied about HIV and AIDS such as risk guideline, routes of transmission, as well as personal risk assessment. There have many media report focusing on HIV among Hispanic American as well as African Americans, who perceived to be among the high-risk communities. The problem is that such groups are minorities and prevalence of HIV in any group is generalized to the entire minority populations.