Category: Uncategorized
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The Commercialization of Bodies: How Industries Commodify Womanhood
From brothels to “pink salons,” to even the rise of online platforms such as Pornhub and OnlyFans, the commodification of sex and sexuality, namely women’s sex and sexualities, has shaped global consumerism. With that being said, it’s important to note that since the dawn of the sex industry there has, ever-presently, been an overshadowing demand…
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Unlearning the Good Intentions of Western Feminism- A White Feminist’s Reckoning Through Postcolonial Feminism
As a white woman in America, I always thought that I was following the closest path to feminism that a person could and doing my part to “bring down the patriarchy”. I spent the first 37 years of my life believing this, right up until this Fall 2025, the beginning of my senior year at…
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From DH to Reparations: A Settlement in Asheville, NC
On June 17, 2024, the Asheville Reparations Commissions “voted to approve a settlement for injuries caused by redlining and urban renewal.” This is an incredible result of a project that has gone on, in many shapes and with different foci, for many years. Professor Richard Marciano (now Director of the Advanced Information Collaboratory at the University…
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Changing the Narrative on Older Immigrants
When you think about older adults, what comes to mind? Growing older is commonly associated with declining health and mobility—being able to do fewer activities, becoming unable to care for yourself, and generally being in a state of ill health. Aging is also associated with physical changes, and many people fear ‘looking their age’…
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Kali: A Creative Project for Social Justice Inspired by Feminist (Art) Therapy
For my first blog post on HASTAC, I want to share the start of my current work as a doctoral student in the Arts, Technology, and Emerging Communication department at the University of Texas at Dallas. I have been a gender-based violence expert and social justice advocate for 15 years. It takes great pride for me to share a project…
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Chapter 5: Black America, Brought to You by …
Tom Burrell founded Burrell Communications in 1971, a pioneer in Black advertising By Lisa Covington The development in marketing and advertising strategies were one facet of McDonald’s evolution, the second is the value of the community engagement and cultural context individual owners incorporated regularly. In Franchise, Chatelain provides an overview of how Black people from middle…
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Chapter 6: A Fair Share of the Pie
Chapter 6 focuses on two lawsuits against McDonald’s by black franchisees in 1970s and 1980s Los Angeles. Litigants, James T. Jones and Charles Griffis, accused McDonald’s of barring black entrepreneurs from ownership opportunities within the corporation by restricting their employment to black, mostly impoverished, neighborhoods. Such contracting practices, they claimed, unduly burdened minority owners with…
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The Politics of Wealth: Jay’z’s Manifesto to Economic Justice in 444
Our class discussion this past week was on Jayz’s “444” album and the way in which Jay Z discusses and drops GEMs about financial freedom. 444 has a few themes in the album: Jay responds to Beyonce’s “Lemonade” by explaining and apologizing for his infidelity along with explaining his journey into manhood. In addition, Jay lays out a…
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Do Black Lives Really Matter?
(Intro) Do Black Lives Really Matter? When it comes to activism in this new day in age, social media is becoming more and more prominent in it. There are some positives in it as well as quite a few negatives. I think you can make good arguments in favor of both sides. With that being…
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Solutions for Misinformation in the Digital Age
What is Fake News? The presidential campaign of 2016 brought about an increase in the spread of disinformation through media outlets and online networking platforms. The term “fake news” can be defined as news stories that are false with fabricated quotes, sources, and/or facts. Some stories may include small bits of the truth but are…