Milestone 2 Submission: The Heart of the Story
Britta Carlson
The Art Institutes
Abstract
This paper discusses the major forces affecting society, including the social and political climate of my location. I reside in Denver, Colorado. For purposes of this paper, I will be using the city of Denver and the state of Colorado for my research. I use my sociological imagination to describe the attitudes, struggles, and conflicts of the residents. My discussion is rooted in practical observation and sociological theories. In that context, my paper will discuss issues such as: conflict, inequality, wealth classes, privilege versus power and prestige, and how voting is affected based on age, race, gender, economic class, and religion. Two sociological theories, functionalism and conflict theory, are the foundation to my The Heart of the Story paper. Segments of society are interdependent, and as they work together, society survives. Functionalism is the study of these interactions within segments. On the other hand, conflict theories look at social conflicts, power struggles, and competition in the face of disharmonious societies. These theories seek to reform society (The Art Institute of Pittsburgh Online Division, 2018). Following is my in-depth discussion and analysis of these topics.
The Heart of the Story
Denver, Colorado, a city full of diversity including ethnicity, race, gender, economic classes, and religion. According to City-Data.com (n.d.), in 2016, the city’s population was 693,060. Race and ethnicity are socially defined traits. Race groups people based on observed or perceived physical traits, while ethnicity groups people based on nationality or language (khanacademymedicine, 2014). Due to the size and diversity of this city, social conflict and inequality exist. Interaction between more than one individual may result in social conflict. (Oberschall, 1978, para. 1). Uneven distribution of capabilities within a society can result in social inequality. Wealth distribution in the United States is an example. The top 20-percent hold 72-percent of the wealth, and the bottom 20-percent only control about 3-percent of the wealth of the country (khanacademymedicine, 2015).
An example of social conflict is Colorado Proposition 112. This proposition dictates the minimum distance requirements for new oil, gas, and fracking projects. During our most recent election, this issue was a widely controversial conflict. The key variable in the vote was whether or not new oil and gas development projects must be a minimum distance of 2,500 feet from occupied buildings. The people voted to allow new projects to be within 2,500 feet of occupied buildings by a vote of 55.11-percent to 44.59-percent (Ballotpedia, n.d.). This is a current, relevant, and continually discussed and debated social conflict in Colorado.
Income is an example of social inequality. This particular social issue has reached historic highs in the state of Colorado. Over the past 45 years, the top one percent of income earners has grown to 44-percent of the total income growth. This has resulted in a crippling of the social mobility for lower- and middle-class families. It has also reduced growth for Colorado’s overall economy (Colorado Center on Law & Policy, 2018). This example of inequality is a current issue in Colorado.
Social stratification refers to how the hierarchical ranking is structured within a given society. Social class is looked at through the lenses of prestige, wealth, and power. Prestige is the respect and reputation earned by an individual due to success and achievements. Wealth is an abundance of money, assets, and resources accumulated by an individual or family. Power is the ability and capability to directly influence and have control over others. Classes are defined as groups of people who have common traits. Class names range from the upper-upper class (super rich) to the lower class (poverty) (The Art Institute of Pittsburgh Online Division, 2018). For example, 12.3-percent of people in Denver, Colorado are considered to be in poverty (United States Census Bureau, n.d.).
Sociological theories look at poverty in different ways. The functionalism theory, which looks at the benefits of society as a whole, contends that poverty benefits society. The conflict theory, on the other hand, pays close attention to the harm caused by the inequality inherent in the class system (The Art Institute of Pittsburgh Online Division, 2018).
Wealth plays a key role in who is defined as rich and who is defined as poor. In Denver, Colorado, in 2016, the median household income was $61,105 (Data USA, n.d.). Denver follows similar statistics to the United States. Regardless of how the economy is doing, the rich keep getting richer. Since 1980, the average annual income of the bottom half (poor) of Americans (around $16,000) has barely changed. Whereas, the income of the top 1 percent (rich) of Americans (nearly $1.4 million a year) has grown 300 percent. These are the highest levels ever recorded as wealth and income gaps increase (Benokraitis, 2019, p. 140-141). These are staggering statistics that are a true reflection of our economy and inequality of the rich and poor.
Some individuals face privilege while others find themselves denied power and prestige. This circles back to the ideas surrounding social stratification. People who experience wealth, prestige, and power are considered privileged. For example, the CEO of a fortune five hundred company is usually affluent and also enjoys authority and influence. However, in many cases, there are status inconsistencies if a person ranks differently on stratification factors. For example, funeral directors have low prestige yet high incomes. Alternatively, college professors have high prestige yet low incomes (Benokraitis, 2019). In Denver, Colorado, White individuals surpass all other races at 76.6 percent in comparison to 13.4 percent of African American individuals (Data USA, n.d.). This statistic alone defines the privileges White individuals receive versus the oftentimes denied power and prestige African American individuals receive.
The political climate in my community has taken various twists and turns over the decades. Upper-upper middle-class White males have framed the economic and political climate. They hold top political positions in both the state and federal governments, they command control of many senior-level jobs in business and finance, and they heavily influence public opinion through mass media and social media (Benokraitis, 2019). With regard to the presidential elections, over the course of the last several decades Colorado has gone from a predominately Republican state to a Democratic state. Between 1920 and 1988, the state went Democratic only four of the 18 elections. However, in the seven elections since 1988, the Democrats won four time, including the last three elections. It is interesting to note that Colorado’s population increased 90 percent between 1980 and 2015. The majority of this growth occurred in urban areas. Rural areas continue to predominately vote Republican, so it stands to reason that the urban growth is largely Democratic (Hamm, 2018). It is fascinating to learn how the shift in the political climate can change so vastly as the population increases.
Many demographic factors have an impact on voting including: marital status, gender, age, geographic region, race, social class, religion, and ethnicity. People of different races, religions, and cultures living together in the same society is defined as pluralism (Cambridge Dictionary, n.d.). The functionalism theory points out the benefits of pluralism and states that special interest groups and lobbying help more of the population influence the system and prevent any one group from dominating the system. The conflict theory says that a power elite controls the system and this small group of people is influential. The bulk of the power within the system is in their hands. They make key decisions and control the bulk of political resources (The Art Institute of Pittsburgh Online Division, 2018).
Over the past 20 years, women from all racial and ethnic groups continue to vote at higher rates than men in presidential elections. For example, in the most recent presidential election, 58-percent of women and 54-percent of men voted. It is also interesting to note that across all elections age is a factor in increased voting rates. As age increases voting percentages also increase. Voting behavior is also predominately determined by social class. As education increases, the voting rate increases. Racial-ethnic groups have an impact on voting statistics (Benokraitis, 2019). The ethnic composition Denver’s population is: 54-percent White, 30.2-percent Hispanic, 9.2-percent Black, 3.66-percent Asian, and 2.29-percent multi-race (Data USA, n.d.). There are more native-born whites who are eligible to vote; they are also the most likely to register and vote. Minorities, such as African Americans, played a pivotal role in the 2008 and 2012 presidential wins. In contrast, in 2016, 64-percent of Whites versus 53-percent of minorities voted. Among the minority groups, 60-percent of Blacks voted. This was the lowest Black turnout since 2000. (Benokraitis, 2019). Based on these statistics, voting behavior is definitely affected by these demographic factors.
To conclude this gives a clear picture of the place where I live and the people who live here. Denver is a city full of diversity: from rich to poor, those with granted privilege to those denied power and prestige, politics, age, race, gender, economic class, and religion. It is fascinating to learn and understand what truly makes up a city and how it functions on a day-to-day basis.
References
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