From "Americanizing Ugly Betty" to exploring gender differences in the criminal justice system, Sonoma State University offers two topical lectures this week at noon. Admission is free and all events are open to the media and general public.
Criminology and Criminal Justice professor Barbara Bloom discusses "Applying Gender-Responsive Strategies in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation" at the Social Science Brown Bag lecture series on Tuesday, April 3 at noon in Stevenson 2011.
Bloom discusses her recent study which found that gender- responsive practice could lead to better outcomes for women offenders in institutional and community settings. She proposes six guiding principles of the practice that focus on gender, environment, relationships, services and supervision, socio-economic status, and community.
Bloom discusses the of differences in male and female pathways into criminality, their differential responses to custody and supervision, and other gender-based factors are central to reducing recidivism rates and improving the lives of women offenders and their children.
Patricia Kim-Rajal, professor in the Chicano and Latino Studies Department, presents her research on "Americanizing Betty and Latinizing MTV: How the Mainstream Media Codifies Latino Ethnicity" on Thursday, April 5 at noon in Stevenson 3082.
Kim-Rajal focuses on the changes mainstream television has made in order to "Americanize" Latin American telenovelas and contrasts them with MTV's efforts to "ethnicize" general-audience youth culture for its Latino-specific channel.
Pinpointing those elements that have been marked as either "Latino" or "American" in these programs reveals the specific symbols that define Latinos for those working in U.S. mainstream media.
The presentation also explores the relationship between these changes in commercial television content and the shifting nature of American communities and identities.
For further information, contact Jean Wasp, Media Relations Coordinator, (707) 664-2057.
