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California State University, Dominguez Hills
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Created: July 27, 2003
Latest Update: April 17, 2008
jeannecurran@habermas.org
takata@uwp.edu

Spring 2008 CRMJ/SOCA 353 Criminal Justice/Social Justice

Spring 2008 CRMJ 353 Boxes

CRMJ 353: Criminal Justice/Social Justice

You will be held accountable for purposes of grading for the readings and exercises listed here. There will be no "testing." That means that you will not have to live in anxious anticipation of what we will ask and how much you will have to know. Instead, we will provide weekly discussion questions, lectures, essays, and concepts we feel that you should know as a result of having taken this course. You will assure us of that learning and receive your grade for the questions and concepts about which you choose to write and talk with us. In addition you will find detailed explanations and examples on our grading policies in the first week's reading.

* * * * *

Week 14: Week of April 20, 2008

Topic: ... Democratic Armor

Preparatory Readings:

• Cornel West. Democracy Matters. Chapters 7 (enitre book).
• Paul Loeb. The Impossible Will Take a Little While. -- entire book.
• Martha Minow. Between Vengeance and Forgiveness. -- entire book.
• Documentary: "---" (to be shown in class)
  
  

Lecture related links:

• Try making an origami earth.
• Actively participate in the Community Building discussion group.
  
• Paul Loeb's website
• W.I. Thomas "Definition of the Situation
  
  
• National Criminal Justice Reference Service. Administered by the Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice.
  

Concepts to be covered:

• parrhesia
• Socratic questioning
• hope vs. optimism
• the relationship between criminal justice and social justice

Discussion Questions:

Note: You will need to incorporate this week's readings and the documentary, "-----" into your answers.

1. In Cornel West's Democracy Matters, he states: "As the great Reinhold Niebuhr noted, democracy is a proximate solution to insoluble problems -- it is always messy and subject to corrupt manipulation, yet is still the best civic project for the demos," (p. 211). What did Niebuhr mean? Do you agree or disagree with this statement? Why.

2. What is the social context for hope? What are the political implications of hope? Do you agree with the various diagnoses of the problem in the Loeb book? Why. [from Loeb's website]

3. How is hope different from optimism? Is some vision of utopia necessary, even it if is never achieved in this world? How do people coming from religious and secular traditions differ or converge in their views of hope?

4. What were some of your favorite essays from the Loeb book? Why. Choose 2-4 people from these essays whose team you'd like to be on. Explain why. [from Loeb's website]

5. Compare and contrast the three books read in this course? Where do their ideas converge?diverge? Why. Which book do you agree with the most? the least? Why.

Self-Assessment Questions for each Visual Project:

1. List the names of the individuals in your group. What did you do exactly for this visual project? (If in a group, explain the division of labor and your individual contribution to this visual project).
2. Briefly explain how your visual project relates to "criminal justice/social justice" (i.e., the readings, the documentaries). What did you learn?
3. Assess how the 6Cs apply to your visual project, with special attention on competence and creativity. What is your visual project self-assessment (provide a letter grade) ___ ? Why.

Suggested Creative Measures:

Note: Start thinking about ideas for your creative measures. Must relate to "criminal justice/social justice." Must be approved before starting your creative measure. Cannot be something that you are doing or have done for another course. Research cannot be 100% online (i.e., google, askjeeves). Must conduct library research using scholarly works, (not the popular press -- Time Magazine, Newsweek, Sports Illustrated). No term papers! Allow time to dialogue and present your creative measure in class. Email me your idea.



• Make A Box a Week or some other visual presentation focusing on this week's topic.
• Select a current event and examine the left/right perspectives and other news source links on the Dear Habermas site (located in the middle of the front page). How do the different perspectives present this current event? Why.

Recommended Readings:

• James Hilton. Lost Horizon.
• George Orwell. 1984.
• Aldous Huxley. Brave New World.
• Margaret Haddix. Among the Hidden. series, especially her latest, Among the Enemy .
  
  
• Martha Minow. Breaking Cycles of Hatred: Memory, Law and Repair.
• Desmond Tutu. No Future Without Forgiveness.
• MoveOn.org. Move On's 50 Ways to Love Your Country.
  
  

• Instructions for making a box. Or, make an explosion box. .

Course Syllabus for CRMJ 353 Criminal Justice/Social Justice

takata@uwp.edu