To start I really like the concept of this essay. I love how much it varied from our average essays. When writing, I felt more connected to my words because I was not limited to what I could write. I felt as though this essay gave me the freedom to express myself. With the past papers, we wrote, there were more rules. We couldn’t share our own opinions and our writing had to be very much statistic based. This paper, although it was not opinion-based, I felt as though I could inspire people through my writing rather than just analyze a text or provide information.

Honestly, I chose to use a visual genre because I expected it to be easier. I was wrong. Although this essay was, in my opinion, easier than the last two, it was difficult to find photos that would provide my audience with the proper inspiration I believed they needed. I chose to use a quote on a billboard and an infographic in an Instagram post. Both I thought were very useful within my essay, but I do believe I could’ve done a better job finding more photos or even making the information my own.

Before I started writing my essay, I already knew that I wanted to write for women who don’t think they have a voice. When thinking of what rhetorical strategies could draw in my audience, I thought drawing on pathos would be perfect. I stated in my Audience Strategy that because we are emotional human beings, it is easier to persuade people by appealing to their own personal feelings. That is what I attempted to do when writing. I wanted to try and relate activist, Angela Davis, to the audience and prove how if someone, who may look similar to you or come from a similar background, can do what she did then so can we. I thought I did a good job when trying to appeal to women’s emotions. Overall, I really liked this essay and hopefully, I can do more like this in the future.

As I stated in my previous genre proposal, I would like to revisit my original topic of gender inequality. I said that I would want to include for #BlackLivesMatter and gender inequality in my essay, however, I’m still revisiting that idea. I would like to base my essay on overall injustices in America, but I believe that would be too broad of a topic. Instead, I just might go with gender inequality for this essay.

For my paper, I would like my intended audience to be both women and men. Specifically, those who feel as though their voice isn’t enough. In today’s society, it is very easy to believe that nothing you do as an individual can have an impact. Because an issue as big as gender inequality can have such a great impact, it becomes difficult to think that the work we do as a society will make this injustice any better. When reading my essay, I want my audience to feel inspired to know that the words they say or the actions they take can and will eventually make a difference. Because I know that gender inequality make usually be targeted towards women, I want any men who read my essay to know and acknowledge that any action they take is just as important as any action women might take as a whole. I would like men to realize that they would not only be speaking up for the equality of bother genders but for the positive welling being of society as a whole.

For my genre, I have chosen a visual genre. I think for this essay I could use infographics as a way of showing my ideas and getting my information across clearly. Also, I will be drawing on pathos for my essay. I believe as a society we are emotional human beings. It is very easy to relate to someone else’s emotions, and I believe by appealing to my audience’s feelings, I can bring about thoughts on the subject that they didn’t know they had.

To start, I would like to revisit my original topic from Essay #1 which was gender inequality. I believe both topics I chose were very important and meaningful issues and I would like to try and incorporate both within my essay. If I were to include both I believe my audience would be considered those who are afraid to fight for what they believe in. With this in mind, I plan to use a visual genre. I would like to include pictures of the different time periods within the Black Lives Matter movement and the fight for women’s rights. I could possibly create and collage of all of the pictures I have found or make a slideshow to show how the movements have progressed over time. My main goal within this essay is to provide examples of how speaking up for what you believe in and doing things such as protesting could really change a country for the better. Because my audience is those who are unaware of the power of speaking up, I think providing photos of protests or marches would hopefully change their mind. In my last essay, I focused specifically on America and the impact #BlackLivesMatter had on the country. However, I would like to focus, this time, on nations all around the world. I feel as though because this is such an influential topic it would be important to not limit myself to one country. I believe using a visual genre, I would be able to show the progress across the world very well.

To start off I feel as though this essay was much difficult than the first. I don’t really know what made it so difficult. Maybe it was the extensive amount of research or trying to organize all of my thoughts. When choosing my topic of interest, I was so confident I would be able to write so much information on my topic. I knew that because of my prior knowledge on the subject it would be fairly easy to come up with information. However, this was not the case.

Throughout my writing process, it was very difficult for me to find useful information that would relate directly to my question. I found a lot of information or I knew a lot of information but I was very doubtful of my ability to relate those facts to my topic. Because my main question was more specific it became harder for me to try not to stray from the issue. I believe at some points during my writing, my passion for the subject got in the way of the facts and statistical research which was needed in order to complete my paper. When writing I tried to believe I was writing for those who supported the movement and wanted to have more information on how it impacted America. I feel like my intended audience also hindered my writing because it included my personal opinion on the matter. I know I usually have trouble with trying to steer clear from opinions so that is something I know I need to work on.

Overall, I think, despite the essay being challenging, it was very eye-opening on what changes need to be made for my writing to improve. I think it is very important for me to work on timing and organizing when writing. And next time I might stay away from topics I am already aware of so I can learn more and also have a fresh mind that is not full of predetermined opinions.

To start I have altered my question to be: How has the #BlackLivesMatter movement influenced public policy in the United States and what other external factors influence the movement’s impact? I believe this question provides me with a clear path on how to organize my essay and how to better present my research without being too vague or even providing too much information.

Right now I have about eight different sources. I have four media sources, two scholarly sources, and the sample essay I chose to assist me. When looking for each source, I attempted to find articles that related heavily to my question and my overall topic. I wanted o get more insight on the topic while also finding valuable resources in which I could use within my essay.

When trying to find media sources, I used google scholar as well as the regular Google search engine to assist me. For my first media source, I used the official #BlackLivesMatter website. I felt as though this website will assist me because it contains the history of the movement and how it came to be. The website also includes other resources such as petitions which could lead me to find more information about the specific cases that started the movement, to begin with. My second media source, “Black Lives Matter goes big on policy agenda”, provides information directly on the policies the Black Lives Matter organizers have proposed and are trying to implement in America. The one policy the article speaks about specifically is the BREATHE Act. The policy came about after the death of Eric Garner and George Floyd who both stated the words “I can’t breathe”. As the article explains, the BREATHE Act contains four parts that cover everything from defunding the police to the injustice within the criminal justice system. I believe this article will assist me with much more information on this policy and other policies that have come into play because of the movement. My third media source, “How Black Lives Matter Changed the Way Americans Fight for Freedom”, explains exactly how the American people have adapted to the injustice within this country and fought against it. The article refers to not only racial injustice but other issues such as the unfair treatment of immigrants by ICE and how Americans have become stronger and more knowledgeable about combatting these issues. My last media article, “What’s Wrong With “All Lives Matter?”, goes into detail about, as the title states, what is wrong about saying “All Lives Matter”.  I wanted to include this information in my essay because I believe it answers the second half of my question which would be what outside factors impact the movement. Because All Lives Matter has become so popular, especially during the past three years, this article will help me discover its impact.

My first scholarly source, “Black Lives Matter: A Commentary on Racism and Public Health”, goes into detail about the Black Lives Matter movement and the issue of racism from a public health perspective. This source was written by Jennifer Jee-Lyn and Mienah Zulfacar Sharif, both of who are members of the Department of Health Sciences. This article what peer-reviewed which provides me with a clear understanding that this is in fact a credible source. I believe this source will provide me with a different perspective of the movement and provide me with information on how the movement has impacted different aspects of America. My second scholarly source, “#Black Lives Matter? Analyzing the Effects of Police-Caused Black Deaths on Media Coverage and Public Interest in the Movement”, speaks about the movement and tries to conclude whether or not news coverage on police brutality or the killing of black men and women has increased. In the article, the writers find that this was not true and only incidents of when the police officers were killed were televised. The entire source is based on figuring out how and why this has come to be. I believe this source will really help me in figuring out what sources have impacted the movement and why the movement has been broadcasted less than other events.

I am still thinking about referring to be chosen essay for help, but I do not think it could be used as a credible source. I think it would assist me in structuring my essay and lead me to other sources, but I do not think it could be used as a source itself. I also looked at other sources but chose not to include them because they either did not have useful information or I had to pay to unlock the rest of the information. I believe I am off to a good start when it comes to my resources and I hope I am able to easily organize myself and my writing in order to do the best job possible.

Bibliography

“Home.” Black Lives Matter, 22 June 2020, blacklivesmatter.com/.

Jee-Lyn García, Jennifer, and Mienah Zulfacar Sharif. “Black Lives Matter: A Commentary on Racism and Public Health.” American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, Aug. 2015, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4504294/.

Bordonaro, Francesca, and Dale Willits. “#Black Lives Matter? Analyzing the Effects of Police-Caused Black Deaths on Media Coverage and Public Interest in the Movement.” Journal of Criminal Justice and Law: Official Journal of the Law and Public Policy Section of the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences, vol. 2, 2018, pp. 102–121.

QUESTION: How has the #BlackLivesMatter movement influenced public policy, and how has it been impacted by different factors in America?

PUBLICATION: Portland State University

ESSAY MODEL: “#BlackLivesMatter: This Generation’s Civil Rights Movement” By Tanika Siscoe

https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1327&context=honorstheses

As I stated in my topic reflection #BlackLivesMatter has always been a topic that I am constantly thinking about. This year in particular I have taken an extensive amount of time trying to educate myself and trying to spread awareness about different topics. For my essay I chose the question, “How has the #BlackLivesMattermovement influenced public policy, and how has it been impacted by different factors in America?”. I was given the suggestion to try and combine all of my questions into one. However, I still wanted to explore the idea of how the movement has been influenced by America instead of only the other way around. I wanted to be able to do more research on how #AllLivesMatter has tried to combat the movement and why people believe this in the first place.

Although the death of Trayvon Martin sparked the idea of #BlackLivesMatter, police brutality, or brutality against the black community in general, was nothing new. The lack of equality for people of color has been a problem for as long as e can remember. Even though the Civil Rights Act was a huge accomplishment for the black community, with the amount of systemic racism and hate crimes against the people, it seems as though the government is always 10 steps ahead. This is why #BlackLivesMatter is such an important movement. It brings awareness to the injustice the country faces. By making others aware, especially those who are not people of color, it is easier to bring about change. When more people of different races, religions, sexualities, and genders, come together as one the leaders of this country could finally realize how important this matter is.

For this essay, I plan to pace myself and really take the time to read through each of my sources and make note of anything I can possibly add to support my research question. This week I want to look for more sources and read through some cases involving police brutality. I would like to create a timeline for myself which includes important dates and accomplishments the movement has brought about. I also want to conduct more research on AllLivesMatter and try to find out who started that and how it has influenced the movement. During Donald Trump’s presidency, the number of hate crimes has risen, I would like to try and include this in my essay and acknowledge the connection between racism in America and the president. I feel like there are many factors I can include in my essay. In the end, I would like my essay to be able to persuade my audience (those who are not educated on the topic enough to be in support of the movement) to want to be apart of this and recognize that change is needed.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Jee-Lyn García, Jennifer, and Mienah Zulfacar Sharif. “Black Lives Matter: A Commentary on Racism and Public Health.” American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, Aug. 2015, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4504294/.

When trying to choose my topic, I attempted to think about all of the topics that matter to me. For this essay, I wanted to branch out and speak about another social issue that I am passionate about besides gender inequality. The first topic I thought about was the Black Lives Matter movement. It was difficult trying to think of research questions but here are some I have in mind:

1. From 2013 (the year in which #BlackLivesMatter was founded) to now, how has the impact of the movement grown?
2. What changes have the movement brought into effect since 2013? (in America)
3. How has #BlackLivesMatter been influenced by different groups (meaning race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, etc) in America?

I believe all three questions have potential when writing my next essay. For the first two questions, I tried to base each on the more statistic point of view. However, in the third question, I tried to think of how the movement has been recently impacted and then form a question out of that. In my opinion, I think my third question would be the most interesting to learn and write about. I would like to incorporate more recent events and how the movement has reached so many people in such a short amount of time. I am planning on looking through my social media accounts and possibly finding many resources that could be useful for my essay. Although I was very young when #BlackLivesMatter was founded, I slowly began to realize why the issue of racial inequality was so important. This year, in particular, I learned a lot about injustice in America. When hearing about George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and many other black men and women who were wrongfully killed by police, I knew I wanted to do everything in my power to spread awareness and hopefully make a difference. I know how passionate I am about this issue and I’m hoping this will motivate me during my overall writing process.

I believe writing could be defined as a way of expressing oneself, your own ideas, and your beliefs. When learning about rhetorical analysis, my past beliefs about writing were contradicted in a way that I now knew that my personal beliefs could not be included in this writing style. To analyze each article, I forced myself to refrain from incorporating my own ideas and experiences about gender inequality. When writing my essay, I attempted to write as much as I could and then go back and correct any mistakes. I feel like my strategy worked pretty well when trying to interpret my ideas onto paper, however, I also think I did not try my hardest to reevaluate my thoughts and make sure they worked well with the prompt. I found this assignment to be very eye-opening. I realized not everything will be perfect on your first try and it was difficult to come to terms with that when trying to edit my final draft. I realize that I may be a perfectionist, which could be good or bad, but when writing I now understand how my mindset needs to change to succeed in this class and for any other writing in general. It becomes extremely easy to convince yourself that your writing is great just because you wrote it. You become very close-minded to constructive criticism because you think your work is fine the way it is. This is my problem. I think the best learning experience I can take from this assignment is to be open to new ideas and to understand that good work takes time. I look forward to improving in this class for future assignments and learning more about myself and my writing.

OPEN WEB SOURCE

https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/gender-equality/

This article, written by the United Nations, is just one of seventeen goals they have set for the overall improvement of society. On this page, the writer explains how the UN plans to take action to end gender inequality. In this article, there are many other resources included within the text which provide information about the progress women have made over time and the problems they still face today. The article also includes information on COVID-19 and how this pandemic has impacted the world not only health-wise but that it has weakened the development of gender equality.

MAGAZINE ARTICLE

https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/17/opinions/katrn-jakobsdttir-gender-inequality-intl/index.html

“Gender inequality is one of the most persistent evils of our times” is an article written by the Prime Minister of Iceland, Katrin Jakobsdóttir. Iceland is very well known as a country that has had much progress when it comes to gender equality. However, when it comes to the “Me Too” movement, Jakobsdóttir thinks otherwise. In the article, she explains how while researching the movement and its effects on society, she noticed that there was much more to uncover when it came to injustice. The Prime Minister mentions how when she heard the women’s testimonies, she was exposed to many more forms of discrimination which she said most of the citizens hoped didn’t exist within their country. Her article brings light to the effects of gender inequality and how prevalent it could be even when you least expect it.

NEWSPAPER ARTICLE

https://thediplomat.com/2020/06/fighting-gender-inequality-in-india-during-the-covid-19-pandemic/

This article explains the extremely harsh conditions in India and how they have been brought about due to gender inequality. In India, there are many different forms of sexism against women. These include the lack of feminine hygiene products, lack of education, and lack of employment. Because of the circumstances, India’s female population has been “over-represented among the poor”. It has been very difficult for the country to overcome the inequality it faces every day.

SCHOLARLY SOURCE

https://go-gale-com.ccny-proxy1.libr.ccny.cuny.edu/ps/retrieve.do?tabID=T002&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&searchResultsType=SingleTab&hitCount=11428&searchType=AdvancedSearchForm&currentPosition=6&docId=GALE%7CA236387715&docType=Report&sort=Relevance&contentSegment=ZONE-MOD1&prodId=AONE&pageNum=1&contentSet=GALE%7CA236387715&searchId=R2&userGroupName=cuny_ccny&inPS=true

This scholarly source speaks about gender inequality from a global aspect and its impact on the world as a whole. The writing specifically speaks about global gender inequality and how it’s development has altered the way our society works. The author uses various amounts of data to explain its effect. This article focuses on the information found in charts and past recordings to attempt to hypothesize three different outcomes of global gender inequality. The author concludes by saying gender inequality is a multistep process. This being that even if there was equality throughout the world, there would still be inequality within work fields and other smaller organizations.

As a woman who experiences the effects of gender inequality daily, my question has always been, “why does this happen?” or “why doesn’t anybody speak up about it?”. Walking home from school was always the most difficult thing for me because I had to cross streets just so I wouldn’t be catcalled. I was always told to cover-up because of men and because “you don’t want them thinking a certain way”. As I grew up and became more educated on the topic of feminism and gender inequality, I finally realized why I and many other women were treated the way we are. Gender inequality has existed since the beginning of time. With the implication of gender roles to the lack of resources or the lack of opportunities solely because of your gender. It has certainly been a long and exhausting battle for women all over the world. This topic is intriguing to me because of the personal impact it has on my own life. While writing, I expect to be more informed about the effects of gender inequality, not only from my own experiences but from the experiences of women around the world. I plan to read about women of all different age groups, religious backgrounds, and ethnic backgrounds because I am aware that many other social issues have a strong enough impact to affect the way we experience gender inequality. In the end, I hope to be able to use this knowledge to benefit people around me and bring light to these effects to further spark conversation about this important issue.