public sociology

Renowned Sociologist Herbert J. Gans recently passed away at the age of 97. Gans was known for his sociological work on urban and suburban life, social policy, and the news media, including the influential books The Urban Villagers, The Levittowners, The War Against the Poor, and Deciding What’s News. Gans was also a liberal activist–opposing the VIetnam war and supporting freedom of the press–and a proponent for participant observation and publicly-accessible writing. This story was covered by the New York Times, the Washington Post, and ABC News.

In an interview with Ms. Magazine, Laurie Essig (Professor of Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies at Middlebury College) drew parallels between the dissolving democracies in the U.S. and Russia. Essig noted how masculinity and concerns about gender play into authoritarianism: “[E]very dictator we look at, had anxiety about masculinity. That’s true for Mussolini and Stalin, as well as contemporary leaders. Today, they’ve created this monstrous figure, “gender,” to explain the failure of masculinity. For Donald Trump it’s “gender ideology,” this idea that we’re trying to corrupt the children.” In the podcast project, Feminism, Fascism, and the Future, Essig and colleagues explore these themes across multiple national case studies. Essig also advised that “[p]eople need to get together and create a parallel society in a way where we take care of one another, where we engage in protecting our communities.”

In her recent book, Sin Padres, Ni Papeles: Unaccompanied Migrant Youth Coming of Age in the United States, Stephanie L. Canizales (Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of California- Berkeley) explores legal policies and cultural landscape that shape the lives of undocumented young people in California. She describes how these young people are often exploited in low-paying jobs and vilified for political gain. “If not leverageable for the sake of agenda-setting or even tone-setting to the public, the population is completely forgotten,” Canizales said. “And that really haunts me.” This story was covered by UC Berkeley News.

Craig Considine (Senior Lecturer in Sociology at Rice University) commented: “Pope Francis was the first South American pope in history, and this really shook up the church in a good way. During his papacy, the church became more representative of its actual members as Pope Francis made a sincere effort to reach out to Africa and to Asia and to Latin America, which are three of the epicenters of the Catholic Church.” This was covered by Rice University News and Media Relations.

Landon Schnabel (Associate Professor of Sociology at Cornell University) described how Pope Francis balanced tradition and social transformation: “Pope Francis’ leadership reveals how ancient institutions bend without breaking. His calculated reforms — allowing priests to bless same-sex couples while maintaining traditional marriage doctrine — create breathing room within doctrinal boundaries rather than dismantling them. […] Official doctrine and lived practice now stand in stark contrast. Roughly two-thirds of American Catholics support same-sex marriage despite the Vatican’s continued opposition. In many countries, Catholics regularly use birth control despite official teaching against it. The Church operates at two levels: what Rome proclaims and what the people practice.” This was covered by Cornell News.

Rebecca Hanson (Professor of Sociology at the University of Florida), David Smilde (Professor of Sociology at Tulane University), and Verónica Zubillaga (Sociologist and Co-Director of the Network for Activism and Research for Coexistence) wrote an article for the New York Times in response to the Trump administration’s deportations of Venezuelan men to El Salvador. Hanson, Smilde, and Zubillaga note that the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua lacks organizational power and political aspirations in the U.S.: “Organized crime is far less portable than people usually think. It typically involves control of illicit markets, which in turn depends on relationships with local people and officials. These networks are not easily transferable and limit mobility.” The authors challenge these inhumane deportations: “The mass criminalization, arbitrary detainment and violation of due process that have characterized the Trump administration’s actions so far have echoed some of the tactics of the Venezuelan regime many of these young men presumably fled from. It reduces U.S. credibility and emboldens authoritarians everywhere.”

Oneya Fennell Okuwobi (Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of Cincinnati) wrote an article for Salon highlighting the unintended consequences of diversity initiatives–in particular, that they tend to benefit corporations, not employees. Okuwobi explains how many workplaces engage in “diversity displays,” focusing on external appearances. “While workplaces receive the bulk of benefits, employees of color receive the burdens of upholding the image of diversity, with serious costs in terms of additional work, questions about our capabilities, and the need to fit the appearance of diversity that our workplaces desire.” Okuwobi writes more on this topic in her new book, Who Pays for Diversity: Why Programs Fail at Racial Equity and What to Do About It. 

Lucius Couloute (Assistant Professor of Sociology at Trinity College) wrote an article for The Conversation on how U.S. parole systems contribute to recidivism. Couloute argues that although parole was “originally designed to help those convicted of crimes reintegrate into society – through mentorship, supportive services and other resources,” it now serves as a system of punitive surveillance that creates “hidden traps rather than pathways to success.”

Lucius Couloute (Assistant Professor of Sociology at Trinity College) wrote an article for The Conversation on how U.S. parole systems contribute to recidivism. Couloute argues that although parole was “originally designed to help those convicted of crimes reintegrate into society – through mentorship, supportive services and other resources,” it now serves as a system of punitive surveillance that creates “hidden traps rather than pathways to success.”The New York Times ran an article on how I.V.F. technologies may be changing the way we view and relate to embryos. Time-lapse microscopy, a technology that has been widely used since the early 2010s, allows for observation of embryo developments. Many clinics share this video footage with patients on the day of their embryo transfer, before they know if the transfer was successful. The article cites research from Manuela Perrotta (Sociologist at the Queen Mary University of London), finding that some clients experience a deep connection with the video footage. “​​I felt like it was, it was a baby,” one patient told Perrotta and a research co-author. “It sounds really weird, but it felt like I was looking at a potential baby there, and watching it move and do all the stuff, and I just looked, it looked — I know it wasn’t just cells for me.”

This week, Christine L. William’s (Professor of Sociology at the University of Texas) work on workplace inequality was featured in a question on Jeopardy!: “Similar to a barrier to women’s rise, this ‘escalator’ coined by sociologist Christine Williams invisibly lifts men.” This story was covered by the ASA.

Jessica Calarco (Professor of Sociology at the University of Wisconsin) was interviewed by Salon on the difficulties that progressives face when building political coalitions. While the right–unified by a rejection of governmental solutions–can often agree to block new government programs, the left faces the difficult task of agreeing on what government solutions to pursue. “One thing I always tell my students is that, at least from a sociological perspective, causes imply solutions. When we are looking to solve social problems, first we have to agree that a problem exists,” Calarco stated. “Next they have to agree on where the problem is coming from. Those different understandings point to different possible policy solutions.”

The New York Times ran a story on Trump’s cuts to staff and funding in the Department of Education. Philip N. Cohen (Professor of Sociology at the University of Maryland) commented on how the data collected by the DOE is crucial for not only research on school performance, but also for research on the state of labor markets, the economy, and inequalities in America. “This is bedrock, base-line information for how our society is functioning,” Cohen stated. “It’s a common language — a shared reality we all have.”

Boom! Lawyered (a Rewire News Group podcast) interviewed David S. Cohen (Professor of Law at Drexel University) and Carole Joffe (Sociologist and Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health (ANSIRH), based at the University of California, San Francisco) about their new book After Dobbs: How the Supreme Court Ended Roe But Not Abortion. Cohen and Joffe discussed potential risks to abortion access and the importance of supporting abortion care advocates. “How come since Dobbs, when everybody expected disaster, the number of abortions actually has risen slightly? Not a lot, but it has risen,” Joffe said. “One big answer to that question is […] the phenomenal networks of people helping people get to abortions. The other answer to that question is the huge influx of money that happened right after Dobbs. The expression often used is rage spending. People were so angry about Dobbs they just gave a ton of money to local funds, to the National Abortion Federation, to Planned Parenthood, to a local clinic.”

Michael Elliot (Professor of Sociology at Towson University) wrote an article for The Conversation on the sacred nature of Comic-Con for dedicated fans. Elliot describes how, beyond entertainment and escapism, comic-con culture provides fans with a “source of principles” to guide behavior, community and fellowship, and sanctuary (Comic-con “provides space for fans to be themselves, helps them cope with personal struggles, and inspires hope.”).

Renowned British scholar Michael Burawoy passed away at age 77 after he was struck by a hit-and-run driver. An influential Marxist scholar, Burawoy was known for his seminal book Manufacturing Consent: Changes in the Labor Process under Monopoly Capitalism and advocacy for public sociology. Raka Ray (Dean of Social Sciences at the University of California-Berkeley) expressed the weight of this loss: “Michael dedicated 47 years of his life to Berkeley, contributing immeasurably to the discipline, transforming the fields of labor, ethnography and theory,” Ray said. “His greatest legacy, though, went far beyond the many books and articles he published or prestigious awards he received — it was in the people whose lives he changed. He was an extraordinary teacher who mentored and inspired thousands of students, changing their lives with his fierce intellect and kindness.” Geoffrey Pleyers (Professor of Sociology at the Catholic University of Louvain and President of the International Sociological Association) commented: “He left us at a time we most needed his leadership, his energy, his tireless work to understand our world, his example as an extraordinary teacher, his faith in a relevant public sociology, his openness to a global dialogue, his energy against injustice.” This story was covered by The Oaklandside.

The New York Times ran an article on the rebuilding of the Palisades after the recent California wildfires. Max Besbris (Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison) commented that “recovery in the Palisades is going to be this really fast, big buildup back toward really valuable, very expensive properties.” Besbris noted that residents of the area–with high economic and political power–will be “able to dictate the terms of their own recovery.”

This week, multiple sociologists offered reflections on the state of the U.S. under the new Trump administration:

• “Righteous indignation is known to fuel protest and set in motion the machinery and infrastructure of rebellion. Evidence suggests that Trump will continue to poke this bear of discontent because it is his nature and his agenda. But will this administrative stance summon a day of reckoning for the President and his followers?,” Aldon Morris (Professor of Sociology and African American Studies at Northwestern University) commented to Northwestern Now. “In this historic moment, time and the arrival of warm weather will tell.”
• “The biggest problem we have is that we’re afraid of change,” said Harry Edwards (Professor Emeritus at the University of California-Berkeley) on CBS News. “To the extent that we don’t face up to that challenge, there are some very, very, very dark days ahead. Because I am not convinced that we have the best and the brightest people making critical decisions, top to bottom in American society. At some point, things could very well be stressed and bent to the breaking point.”

Over 300 young, homeless migrants are camping in the Gaîté Lyrique theater in Paris, demanding governmental aid. In France, migrants recognized as unaccompanied minors are eligible for housing and other benefits, but the city government is arguing that it has no shelter available and questioning the ages of the migrants. “This is a huge issue in Europe,” Ulrike Bialas (Research Fellow at the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity in Göttingen, Germany) commented. Bialas stated that there are “vast numbers” of migrants from Africa and the Middle East to Europe and “many of them — in fact, in Germany, more than half of them — don’t have documents with them to prove their identity, and in particular, their date of birth.” This story was covered by The New York Times.

George Kassar (Instructor and Research Associate at Ascencia Business School) wrote an article for The Conversation on online performance reviews and “Netiquette” (Internet etiquette or digital norms of polite behavior). The article applies the late German sociologist Norbert Elias’ theories on the “civilizing process” to the digital age. Elias argued that “societal norms become more regulated and refined over time.” Kassar describes how Netiquette maps onto Elias’ theory and helps “ensure positive and constructive experiences.”