Sociological Analysis of the Presidential Election of 2012 from a Structural Functionalist Perspective and a Conflict Perspective.
Sociological Analysis of the Presidential Election of 2012 from a Structural Functionalist Perspective and a Conflict Perspective.
As the presidential election draws closer, we could vividly view our society from social conflict and structural functionalist perspectives. The democratic process helps us to ask why do we accept and embrace democracy, how does it influence our social patterns and functions; and how does democracy really work for the stability of our society. In this essay, I will analyze the presidential election of 2012 using sociological perspective with emphasis on manifest and latent functions, class, race and gender conflicts.
It is a known fact that democracy and demography are like Siamese twins that cannot be separated. These demographics include gender, race, age, disability, wealth, employment status, and locations. Politicians have used, and still using, these elements to know which group is the best to appease. On gender issue, the two prominent political parties, Democratic and the Republican Parties, know that “females voters make up 52% of the US electorate” (Bloomberg News). These women tend to vote for any political party that caters to their needs. Also, race is part of political consideration. The African-Americans, Asian-Americans, the Hispanics and White are different voting blocs which the politicians must woo. According to the online Hispanic News, “the recent release of National Census data confirms that “50 million Latinos are part of the American electorate”. Not only the Hispanics are increasing in population, the African American grew by 1.6% in 2010 while the Asian-American are recently declared, by CNN, as the “fastest growing minority in the US”. Another demographic to be considered is age. Steven Thomma and William Douglas of McClatchy Newspaper said, “Statistics show that older white and rich voters are more reliable electorates than the young voters; they tend to vote Republican Party”. The question now is how all
As the presidential election draws closer, we could vividly view our society from social conflict and structural functionalist perspectives. The democratic process helps us to ask why do we accept and embrace democracy, how does it influence our social patterns and functions; and how does democracy really work for the stability of our society. In this essay, I will analyze the presidential election of 2012 using sociological perspective with emphasis on manifest and latent functions, class, race and gender conflicts.
It is a known fact that democracy and demography are like Siamese twins that cannot be separated. These demographics include gender, race, age, disability, wealth, employment status, and locations. Politicians have used, and still using, these elements to know which group is the best to appease. On gender issue, the two prominent political parties, Democratic and the Republican Parties, know that “females voters make up 52% of the US electorate” (Bloomberg News). These women tend to vote for any political party that caters to their needs. Also, race is part of political consideration. The African-Americans, Asian-Americans, the Hispanics and White are different voting blocs which the politicians must woo. According to the online Hispanic News, “the recent release of National Census data confirms that “50 million Latinos are part of the American electorate”. Not only the Hispanics are increasing in population, the African American grew by 1.6% in 2010 while the Asian-American are recently declared, by CNN, as the “fastest growing minority in the US”. Another demographic to be considered is age. Steven Thomma and William Douglas of McClatchy Newspaper said, “Statistics show that older white and rich voters are more reliable electorates than the young voters; they tend to vote Republican Party”. The question now is how all
References: Bloomberg News: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-04-12/ann-romney-takes-stage-as-mother-without-pay-in-campaign-debate.html CNN News: http://inamerica.blogs.cnn.com/2012/05/17/census-2011-data-confirm-trend-of-population-diversity/ McClatchy News: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2010/11/22/104144/the-2010-electorate-old-white.html Real Clear Politics: http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2012/02/03/why_romneys_rich_gaffes_will_cost_him_113014-3.html Us Catholic News: http://www.uscatholic.org/culture/immigration/2012/01/houses-divided-how-new-immigration-laws-separate-families La Progress: http://www.laprogressive.com/women-decide-2012/