Laura L. Finley – författare

In America, sports are a popular passion, and an astoundingly lucrative business as well. Americans pay out millions of dollars annually for channels and stadiums to bring them closer to their favorite players, and every year, young athletes go to greater lengths to reach those exalted fields of play themselves. Unfortunately, in the quest to offer an ever more compelling product, the sports industry is blind to the manner in which that product is created. Doping, playing through injury, and eating disorders are widespread problems in both professional and college athletics, and speak volumes about the lengths to which people will go in order to make themselves successful. Dirty play, hazing, and cheating are common even at the lowest levels. Most troubling of all, however, are the societal problems created by the sports industry, which include racism, sexism, classism, and homophobia.Peter and Laura Finley's comprehensive work confronts the many problems facing athletics today. Using numerous examples (both historical and current), they begin with the issue as they exist at the highest levels and as they are represented in the media. They then go on to look at how the values and models expressed by professionals are adopted and utilized by coaches, parents, and eventually by amateur athletes of all ages. Finally, the Finleys provide recommendations for improving the sports environment in America, suggesting ways we can work to counteract some of these many harmful influences to ensure that sports realize their potential as a positive and rewarding activity.

From concerns about juveniles' incorrigibility at the turn of the century to school violence in the 1990s, adults have attempted to understand, control, and prevent juvenile violence. Yet, juvenile violence takes many forms, including both violence by juveniles and violence against juveniles, and has various causes and consequences. Since juvenile violence cannot be understood without examining the social context of a given time, this comprehensive encyclopedia provides a historical overview of many significant time periods and offers entries about many types of juvenile violence. It covers competing theories of youth violence; issues such as gender, race, and educational status; and the criminal justice system's methods for dealing with both victims and offenders over time. Additionally, several topics that receive little attention in traditional volumes about juvenile violence, such as hazing, systemic violence in schools, peaceable schools, are covered in these pages.Each entry utilizes current sources, making the book as up-to-date as possible. The front and back matter offer important information, including a chronological list of significant events related to juvenile violence and book and Web resources. Authors represent many different fields, including Sociology, Psychology, Education, History, Social Work, Political Science, Policing, and English. This offers readers a diversity of perspectives and information from a variety of sources. Confronting a difficult and often-misunderstood subject, this encyclopedia is essential to a better understanding of juvenile violence.

Throughout U.S. history, attitudes toward young people have vacillated between fear of and fear for. These attitudes impact social programs for youth, including the system of juvenile justice. Attitudes are shaped by the socio-political and cultural cliimate of the times, and can be traced back to colonial times. However, changing mores and values often create confusion and conflict, resulting in ineffective strategies for preventing and responding to juvenile delinquency. Tracing the history of juvenile justice back to the pre-colonial era through the present day, Finley sheds light on just how we arrived where we are in terms of juvenile justice. She connects the competing attitudes about young people to the social, economic, and political changes of a given era, and offers recommendations for establishing more effective and more humane policies toward juveniles in the justice system.Early America is known for its harsh treatment of young people, most notably, the stubborn child laws, which authorized use of the death penalty for children who defied their parents. Yet, even then, many people held more nurturing attitudes toward youth. Thus originated the mixed messages in the U.S. regarding juvenile delinquency and the hodgepodge of approaches that follow. The establishment of the juvenile justice system, founded on the concept of parens patriae, or the state as parent, would seem to have settled the debate over how juvenile offenders should be treated. In reality, however, there remains much controversy over how best to handle juvenile offenders, especially those who commit the most serious offenses. While some still maintain juveniles are developmentally different and should be treated in ways consistent with these differences, others are dismayed at what they feel to be a system that is too lenient and that leads to higher juvenile crime rates and more serious offenses.With the advent of three strikes laws, curfew laws, boot camps, and referring juveniles to adult courts, and subsequently assigning them to adult prisons, many question just how we got to this place in juvenile justice. Here, Finley offers the history behind the controversial goals and development of the juvenile justice system, providing detailed descriptions of the major trends in juvenile justice. Addressing the most current aspects of the controversy, she also sheds light on issues of race, social class, and gender. Offering recommendations for addressing the weaknesses and confusion in the system, Finley offers a unique and compelling perspective on controversial subject.

Revelations about U.S. torture and prisoner abuse in blatant violation of the long-established and universally recognized Geneva Conventions have horrified most Americans. Nevertheless, it has been argued that the high stakes of the War on Terror have made the protections offered by the Conventions obsolete, or that the abuses are the work of a few rogue soldiers and officers. This book reaches past the headlines into the historical record to document POW torture and also domestic prisoner abuse dating well back in our history as well as government and military knowledge of and collusion in such ostensibly illegal and reprehensible acts. Is torture and prisoner abuse justified in the name of some greater good? As a society we shall have to decide. The historical record presented here can contribute much to an informed national discussion.Timeline anchoring the discussion in time and placeBibliography of print and Internet resources guiding further exploration of the subjectCharts and tables analyzing complex data, including survey results

Cheaters, gamblers, drugs, and violence. Sound like the latest action/adventure film? It is most likely playing in a stadium, ice rink, track field, basketball court, or ballpark near you. We're talking about the larger-than-life scandals that often surround and sometimes engulf the world of sports. Covering everything from the little leagues to college and professional sports, this indespensable book offers students an intriguing, readable guide to the most notorious scandals in American sports history.Each chapter focuses on a specific category of scandal, including race-related, gender-related, drug-related, violence-related, recruiting and academic-related, and coaching scandals. Insightful, in-depth entries offer and overview of the historical and cultural context, what occurred and who was involved, as well as the response to the scandal. Entries within chapters clearly outline the diversity of viewpoints surrounding the scandal as well as the associated ethical, moral, and legal issues. Highlighting why sport scandals matter to athletes, to coaches, to teams, to organizations, to the media, and to the public, this volume is an ideal resource for both ready reference and for reading cover-to-cover.

This book offers a practical guide to the everyday actions and decisions that anyone can take to promote gender equality and social justice in their own life and the world around them.Beyond Burning Bras: Feminist Activism for Everyone is an antidote to the poison of shock jocks who caricature the women’s movement as a radical fringe of man-haters and paint activists as spoiled hooligans. Two real-life feminist activists, Laura Finley and Emily Stringer focus on the mainstream of everyday feminism, explaining what feminism is really all about and fanning out a spectrum of simple, imaginative, user-friendly ways in which ordinary readers can promote gender equality and social equity in their own lives and in the world around them. Beyond Burning Bras taps the life stories and first-person accounts of 50 ordinary individuals of every age, sex, sexuality, class, nationality, race, ethnicity, and learning style. All of them tell how they found within themselves the courage to take a stand on the front lines of feminist activism, whether in subtle private ways or in life-changing public ways. After a survey of the history of feminism in the United States, the authors and contributors show in successive chapters how feminism today meshes with other forms of activism relating to the workplace, sexual violence, the environment, politics, human bodies, the arts, youth, empowerment, and mothering.Comprises over 50 entries arranged topically to show the broad reach of contemporary feminismPresents more than 40 contributors, including scholars, activists, professionals, students, and moreOffers a timeline of key events in feminist activism provided at beginning of volumeIncludes an annotated appendix of recommended resources for feminist activists, including books, websites, and periodicals

How has Barack Obama done in his first term as a "progressive president," especially in relation to his campaign assertions? This book analyzes the performance of Obama and his administration in promoting progressive causes in a wide range of policy areas, including the economy, education, immigration, healthcare reform, criminal justice, and foreign affairs.Grading the 44th President: A Report Card on Barack Obama's First Term as a Progressive Leader is written in clear language that is free of jargon and from a leftist perspective, offering a comprehensive analysis and critique of Obama's performance as a progressive president during his first term. The authors provide in-depth analyses with respect to Obama's handling of specific issues, including the economy, education, healthcare, criminal justice policy, the environment, immigration, Iraq and Afghanistan, race relations, gender issues, and gay/lesbian issues, covering topics in detail that general biographies of Obama and examinations of his political career miss. This book presents clear, accessible information for general readers, and contains in-depth discussion of topics useful to high school, college, and university students of sociology, government, political science, philosophy, and history.

Study compares the Swedish Child Welfare Board and the California Juvenile Court Systems. Primarily descriptive, it also surveys the international situation as to the competent organization and study of those factors which enhance the structural differentiation between juvenile and adult offenders.

This book offers a new perspective on the death penalty in the US, examining capital punishment as state crime or state-produced harm. It addresses the death penalty, showing how the state not only authorizes a system and a practice that tortures human beings, but is also aware of its deep flaws and chooses not to address them.Building on the vast literature on state crime together with case examples and interviews with activists seeking to abolish the death penalty, this book offers a new and innovative critique of state punishment in the US. It draws on a range of issues and topics such as arbitrariness, inadequate counsel, racial bias, mental illness, innocence, conditions on death row, the protocols, and the equipment used for executions. It emphasizes the need for abolition of the death penalty and highlights efforts being made to do so, with a focus on successful elements of abolition campaigns.The Death Penalty as State Crime is essential reading for all those engaged with capital punishment, human rights, and state crime, and will be of interest to criminologists, sociologists, legal scholars and political scientists alike.

This book offers a new perspective on the death penalty in the US, examining capital punishment as state crime or state-produced harm. It addresses the death penalty, showing how the state not only authorizes a system and a practice that tortures human beings, but is also aware of its deep flaws and chooses not to address them.Building on the vast literature on state crime together with case examples and interviews with activists seeking to abolish the death penalty, this book offers a new and innovative critique of state punishment in the US. It draws on a range of issues and topics such as arbitrariness, inadequate counsel, racial bias, mental illness, innocence, conditions on death row, the protocols, and the equipment used for executions. It emphasizes the need for abolition of the death penalty and highlights efforts being made to do so, with a focus on successful elements of abolition campaigns.The Death Penalty as State Crime is essential reading for all those engaged with capital punishment, human rights, and state crime, and will be of interest to criminologists, sociologists, legal scholars and political scientists alike.

Using historical and current examples from film, television, literature, advertisements, and music, this book reveals the ways that rape and abuse are typically presented—and misrepresented—and evaluates the impact of these depictions on consumers.Incidences of domestic abuse and sexual assault aren't only commonplace nationwide and the source of a shockingly large number of serious injuries and deaths; they're also problems that are often subject to myths and misleading depictions in popular culture and media. The author of this important book seeks to shed light on the situation by examining the specific issues related to domestic violence and sexual assault, from the scope and extent of the problem to victim and offender characteristics, and from common misconceptions to societal, cultural, and judicial responses and prevention efforts.Each chapter discusses movies, music, literature, and other forms of popular culture that address issues of domestic abuse and sexual assault, identifying both accurate depictions and problematic examples. The final section of the book addresses how our culture responds to and attempts to prevent domestic abuse and sexual assault, covering depictions of police response to these kinds of crimes in popular culture, how the justice system handles these cases, and individual and community efforts to curb domestic abuse and sexual assault. A compendium of films, documentaries, popular books, and song lyrics featuring domestic abuse and sexual assault enables readers to easily investigate the subject further.

A comprehensive resource, this book reviews current and historical examples of violence in film, television, radio, music, music videos, video games, and novels.Despite decades of attention and various attempts to enact legislation that limits violence in American popular culture, it remains ubiquitous across films, television, radio, music, music videos, video games, and popular fiction. Studies have shown that programs marketed to children are often remarkably violent and that viewing or otherwise consuming such violence has numerous negative effects on children's psychological health. This book sheds light on the scholarship related to violence in popular culture and compares historical and current examples, analyzing popular shows such as Game of Thrones, video games such as Mortal Kombat, young adult fiction including the trilogy The Hunger Games, and more.Not only does Violence in American Popular Culture provide a comprehensive review of the research about the effects of violence in media, but it also offers detailed assessments of violent content in various expressions of popular culture. In addition, it invites readers to compare violence in American popular culture with that globally via entries on violence in popular culture outside the United States. An appendix of additional resources and primary sources gives readers further tools for deepening their understanding of this complex and controversial issue.

This one-stop resource for students, activists, educators, and advocates provides a thorough and accessible overview of the many dimensions of domestic violence and abuse, including risk factors, consequences, and resources.Appropriate for readers at the high school level and above, the volume focuses on the scope, extent, and characteristics of domestic violence by studying the issue from a variety of perspectives and vantage points, including the voices of domestic violence survivors and the activists and advocates working on their behalf to end one of the world's worst human rights problems. The volume also includes illuminating chapters devoted to contextual historical overview, examinations of key issues and trends in the struggle to end domestic violence, a chronology of key events, relevant data and primary documents, a glossary of terms, and recommended online and print resources for further study and analysis.

Including more than 300 alphabetically listed entries, this 2-volume set presents a timely and detailed overview of some of the most significant contributions women have made to American popular culture from the silent film era to the present day.The lives and accomplishments of women from various aspects of popular culture are examined, including women from film, television, music, fashion, and literature. In addition to profiles, the encyclopedia also includes chapters that provide a historical review of gender, domesticity, marriage, work, and inclusivity in popular culture as well as a chronology of key achievements.This reference work is an ideal introduction to the roles women have played, both in the spotlight and behind it, throughout the history of popular culture in America. From the stars of Hollywood's Golden Age to the chart toppers of the 2020s, author Laura L. Finley documents how attitudes towards these icons have evolved and how their influence has shifted throughout time. The entries and essays also address such timely topics as feminism, the #MeToo movement, and the gender pay gap.

A timely investigation of the history, legislation, and perpetrators of school violence, this guide debunks the myths and misconceptions about this terrible problem of national concern.With school violence on the rise, schools have implemented security safeguards like never before in the form of metal detectors, video cameras, and armed guards. School communities have mixed opinions regarding these drastic prevention measures—many welcome the protection, while some condemn the reminders of violence these tactics evoke. This comprehensive text introduces the history of school violence in the United States, providing an overview of proposed causes—from violent video games, to inadequate parental involvement, to bullying by classmates—and detailing the pros and cons of various deterrents.Experienced criminologist Laura Finley incorporates personal reflections, primary source data, and profiles of key figures to address the painful reality of school shootings and other violent acts. The text expounds upon the characteristics of victims, individuals who are most likely to carry out violence, and common types of assaults. Chapters include a discussion on current legislation; stories of infamous perpetrators; activists who are working to make schools safer; and school, community, and societal risk factors.

To truly move toward a more peaceful society, it is imperative that peace education better address structural and institutional violence. This requires that it be integrated into institutions outside of schools and universities. Doing so will be challenging, as many of these institutions are structured on domination and control, not on partnership and shared power. In particular, U.S. criminal justice, social services and prevention programs, and sport have tended to be dominator-modeled. This book offers analysis and suggestions for overcoming these challenges and for integrating peace education into important social institutions.Creativity will be one of the most useful assets in moving peace education from schools to other institutions. This book argues that with creative visioning, collaboration, and implementation, peace education can be integrated into the most challenging situations and provide hope for holistic changes in our society.

To truly move toward a more peaceful society, it is imperative that peace education better address structural and institutional violence. This requires that it be integrated into institutions outside of schools and universities. Doing so will be challenging, as many of these institutions are structured on domination and control, not on partnership and shared power. In particular, U.S. criminal justice, social services and prevention programs, and sport have tended to be dominator-modeled. This book offers analysis and suggestions for overcoming these challenges and for integrating peace education into important social institutions.Creativity will be one of the most useful assets in moving peace education from schools to other institutions. This book argues that with creative visioning, collaboration, and implementation, peace education can be integrated into the most challenging situations and provide hope for holistic changes in our society.

This edited book is a new and valuable resource for students, teachers, and practitioners, providing a detailed exploration of how qualitative research can be applied in the field of peace and conflict studies. This book explores considerations and components of designing, conducting, and reporting qualitative research in this field, and also provide exemplars of recent empirical research in peace and conflict studies that employed qualitative methods. Scholars and researchers in peace and conflict studies and peace education face unique challenges in teaching, designing, and conducting qualitative research in these fields. This edited book discusses tips in designing qualitative studies in this area and for teaching emerging peace researchers best practices of qualitative inquiry. In addition, the book discusses some of the trends, challenges, and opportunities associated with research in peace and conflict studies and peace education.Written at a level appropriate for both graduate students and active researchers, the primary audience for this book is those teaching and learning about the application of qualitative methods to peace and conflict studies, as well as those conducting research in this field. There are currently approximately 230 graduate programs in peace and conflict studies. This book also provides a useful tool for researchers and students in other academic disciplines who are interested in qualitative research. Such disciplines might include education, sociology, criminology, gender studies, psychology, political science, and others.

This edited book is a new and valuable resource for students, teachers, and practitioners, providing a detailed exploration of how qualitative research can be applied in the field of peace and conflict studies. This book explores considerations and components of designing, conducting, and reporting qualitative research in this field, and also provide exemplars of recent empirical research in peace and conflict studies that employed qualitative methods. Scholars and researchers in peace and conflict studies and peace education face unique challenges in teaching, designing, and conducting qualitative research in these fields. This edited book discusses tips in designing qualitative studies in this area and for teaching emerging peace researchers best practices of qualitative inquiry. In addition, the book discusses some of the trends, challenges, and opportunities associated with research in peace and conflict studies and peace education.Written at a level appropriate for both graduate students and active researchers, the primary audience for this book is those teaching and learning about the application of qualitative methods to peace and conflict studies, as well as those conducting research in this field. There are currently approximately 230 graduate programs in peace and conflict studies. This book also provides a useful tool for researchers and students in other academic disciplines who are interested in qualitative research. Such disciplines might include education, sociology, criminology, gender studies, psychology, political science, and others.

This edited volume, authored by scholars, students, and activists, focuses on how peace educators at the collegiate level can more effectively address gender and sexuality. Chapters focus on the classroom and the campus at large, and emphasize the importance of interdisciplinary practice, thoughtful approaches that offer both challenges and safety, and solidarity and support. The volume includes entries on hot and important topics, including trigger warnings, using popular culture in the classroom, sex trafficking, campus sexual assault, and more. Contributors come from a variety of disciplinary areas, making the volume eclectic in nature. Further, most entries include student voices, providing much- needed agency for college youth. While the book does offer a critical perspective, importantly, chapters also offer hope and possibility.

This edited volume, authored by scholars, students, and activists, focuses on how peace educators at the collegiate level can more effectively address gender and sexuality. Chapters focus on the classroom and the campus at large, and emphasize the importance of interdisciplinary practice, thoughtful approaches that offer both challenges and safety, and solidarity and support. The volume includes entries on hot and important topics, including trigger warnings, using popular culture in the classroom, sex trafficking, campus sexual assault, and more. Contributors come from a variety of disciplinary areas, making the volume eclectic in nature. Further, most entries include student voices, providing much- needed agency for college youth. While the book does offer a critical perspective, importantly, chapters also offer hope and possibility.

Drawing from many disciplinary areas, this edited volume shares tools, techniques and ideas for engaging college students in difficult discussions. From sexual violence to race to poverty and more, chapters in the book present useful strategies as well as limitations in creating safe classroom spaces. Ideal for peace and justice educators, this volume also includes the voices of students in every chapter.

Drawing from many disciplinary areas, this edited volume shares tools, techniques and ideas for engaging college students in difficult discussions. From sexual violence to race to poverty and more, chapters in the book present useful strategies as well as limitations in creating safe classroom spaces. Ideal for peace and justice educators, this volume also includes the voices of students in every chapter.

This edited volume focuses on best practices in experiential learning. Chapters address service-learning, community-based research, international efforts and other experiential methods, highlighting innovative approaches, successes, and issues of concern. Further, the book also demonstrates the interdisciplinary nature of experiential education, with authors hailing from psychology, sociology, education, social work, nursing, business and more. This timely and thorough volume will be useful to educators who are already involved in experiential education as well as those who are interested in the pedagogy and practice.

This edited volume focuses on best practices in experiential learning. Chapters address service-learning, community-based research, international efforts and other experiential methods, highlighting innovative approaches, successes, and issues of concern. Further, the book also demonstrates the interdisciplinary nature of experiential education, with authors hailing from psychology, sociology, education, social work, nursing, business and more. This timely and thorough volume will be useful to educators who are already involved in experiential education as well as those who are interested in the pedagogy and practice.

Drawing from many disciplinary areas, this edited volume explores how the Coronavirus pandemic has disproportionately harmed vulnerable and marginalized people in the U.S. Chapters address harm to people of color that exacerbated structural racism and harm to low-wage workers that highlighted existing inequalities. In addition, the volume provides strategies that have been successful in mitigating these harms and recommendations for a post- pandemic more peaceful and just future.

Drawing from many disciplinary areas, this edited volume explores how the Coronavirus pandemic has disproportionately harmed vulnerable and marginalized people in the U.S. Chapters address harm to people of color that exacerbated structural racism and harm to low-wage workers that highlighted existing inequalities. In addition, the volume provides strategies that have been successful in mitigating these harms and recommendations for a post- pandemic more peaceful and just future.

While public attention has often centered on the most visible and violent expressions of incel ideology, this volume offers a deeper analysis, moving beyond reductive narratives to explore the complex social, psychological, and communicative dimensions of inceldom.Drawing on expertise from sociology, psychology, communication studies, and conflict resolution, contributors explore the historical development of incel ideology, the formation of incel identity, gendered aspects inceldom, the relationship between involuntary celibacy and violence, and the emergence of femcels and queer incel communities. The volume concludes by exploring avenues for disengagement from incel ideology, while offering concrete proposals for future research into the evolving dynamics of online radicalization and gendered alienation.

Dating and domestic violence are two the most frequently occurring forms of gender-based violence, both in the United States and globally. A growing body of international law has identified the failure of states to adequately protect people from gender-based violence as a violation of human rights. In order to improve prevention efforts, people must understand the scope, extent, dynamics, and characteristics of dating and domestic violence. Unfortunately, too many people hold dangerous misconceptions about abuse that hinder prevention efforts.This book is intended to help address misconceptions about dating and domestic violence, thereby helping to inform readers who can and should be involved in prevention practices. The first part of the book shares important information about dating and domestic violence, describing how they are a violation of fundamental human rights as well as reviewing the scope of abuse in the United States and globally, risk and protective factors, characteristics of victims and offenders, the effects of abuse, and barriers to leaving abusers. The second part of the book builds on that foundation to present curricula that can be used in schools and other institutions to teach about abuse, as well as other lesson ideas for various settings. As well, the second part of the book presents a case study of how to build a campus-community collaborative prevention program. In all, the book aims to promote peace in every relationship through a deeper understanding of dating and domestic violence.