Name: higerta bali
Section: Undergraduate Research
Professional Email: melibregu@hotmail.it
Professional Status: Undergraduate Student
Institution: faculty of history and philology
Scheduling Preference: Saturday Morning
Proposal Type: Roundtable
Panel Title:  UNITED STATES OF AMERICA IN THE MIDDLE EAST XXI.
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Co-author info: Prof. Meljana Bregu
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Paper Title: UNITED STATES OF AMERICA IN THE MIDDLE EAST XXI.
Abstract:
In this project we will address one of the most important but more difficult topics in the field of international relations, that of the United States leadership in the global political system in a world whose systemic system appears to be, sooner or later, will change. Nowadays, predictions about the fall of American power are widespread. The 2008 economic crisis, combined with the continued economic growth of China, India and Russia, as well as the further enlargement of the European Union, seems to be bringing about irreversible change in terms of the global economic power and the structure of the system today's international relations. The US from the isolationist and neutral politics that had characterized it since its foundation until the end of the nineteenth century in an internationalist, its international engagement and leadership in the international arena, which began in the last decade of the nineteenth century, with World War I, World War II, and then with economic aid and interference all over the world. The work for the preparation of this research paper consisted in the overlay of materials and data through numerous writings, studies, newspaper articles, reports of various international instuctions, materials obtained from the internet. Exploitation literature has been largely in Albanian and English. Much of the work has been built on the study of various books written by the most authoritative authors of the USA. The empirical analysis has been extended to the main indicators of the degree of strength of United States of America. Various variables have been attempted to maintain the same approach and comparative approach by making theoretical illustration work more credible. The analysis I made of events and real facts in the international developments of the twentieth century and in the first decade of the 21st century convinced me that the basic research hypothesis of this study receives an affirmative answer, which means that the United States is and will continue to remain for a foreseeable future, the only country that can truly assume the responsibilities and leadership to maintain peace, security and stability in the world, in the conditions of the old and new threats that threaten these the global public good. With the logic and the current and expected pace of development, there is still no serious indication that America will have serious rivals that would endanger its status as the hegemonic power of the globe and, consequently, its role of global leadership.

Name: Geoffrey Broadbent
Section: Undergraduate Research
Professional Email: broadbgp15@bonaventure.edu
Professional Status: Undergraduate Student
Institution: St. Bonaventure University
Scheduling Preference: Saturday Morning
Proposal Type: Paper
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Paper Title:  The Great American Rip-Off? A Look at the Paradoxical Nature of US Healthcare
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A paradox exists within the United States healthcare system. We spend more than any other developed nation on health, but we have poorer health outcomes than similar nations. Oftentimes the structure of our system is deemed inefficient and incapable of providing quality care. Canada is used to justify this explanation, as their healthcare system is a single-payer system that provides quality care at a significantly lower cost. However, Germany also has multi-payer system and performs better on measures of population health. Universal access to healthcare is a glaring discrepancy between the United States healthcare system and those in place in Canada and Germany, but with the passage of the Affordable Care Act and nearly 20 million Americans gaining health insurance there has been little improvement on measurable health outcomes. Finally, while healthcare costs have continued to balloon over the past decade, spending on social welfare programs has stagnated. It is possible that poor housing, employment, and nutrition is responsible for the seemingly poor performance of the American healthcare system, leading to my preliminary hypothesis that levels of social spending explains variation in health outcomes. This research is different from previous research examining a link between health outcomes and social expenditures because it includes analysis of quality of care measures ensuring that discrepancies in health outcomes among the cases is not influenced by poor care. Initially, a qualitative analysis utilizing descriptive statistics will be performed using most similar system logic. Data from the most recent OECD and WHO reports is compiled for 2015. Health outcomes are measured through the traditional population health standards life expectancy, infant mortality, maternal mortality, and potential life years lost. Health expenditure will be represented as a percent of GDP per capita and included both public and private spending on acute and preventative care. Social expenditures is measured similarly to health expenditures as a percent of GDP per capita and including both public and private spending. Quality of care is measured by looking at available resources in terms of human capital as well as medical technology combined with measures for patient satisfaction and utilization of care. My preliminary findings show that while the United States does spend significantly more on healthcare than Canada and Germany, the same cannot be said for social expenditures. Germany far outspends, but Canada is similar to the United States. However, a look at the ratio of health to social expenditures in the United States shows a noteworthy imbalance not seen in Germany or Canada. Study of quality of care measures confirms that participants in the American healthcare system are receiving comparable levels of care to those in the Canadian and German systems suggesting that perhaps disproportionate spending on healthcare instead of social welfare programs is causing lower health outcomes for Americans. Based on the results of the qualitative analysis, the preliminary hypothesis may be adjusted and then tested using regression analysis. The same measures will be used for this analysis and will be run using data from all OECD members.

Name: Israel Chora
Section: Undergraduate Research
Professional Email: Israelchora@ucsb.edu
Professional Status: Undergraduate Student
Institution: University of California Santa Barbara
Scheduling Preference: No Preference
Proposal Type: Paper
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Paper Title:  The Majority-Minority State: An Examination of Latinx Political Engagement
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The Latinx population is the largest ethnic group in California (Pew Research Center, 2014). This population experiences low educational attainment and earned income (Gutierrez and Zavalla, 2009). These inequalities have a negative effect on civic engagement and political efficacy (Brady, Verba Schlozman, 1995). This paper explores how material inequality, parental socialization and resources such as available time, affect Latinx youth civic engagement. To investigate this phenomenon we conducted an in-person survey targeting youth in the Santa Barbara-Isla Vista areas. Preliminary results show that material inequality and parental socialization are key to understanding low Latinx political engagement.

Name: Brianna Durkee-Pabon
Section: Undergraduate Research
Professional Email: bredurkee@gmail.com
Professional Status: Undergraduate Student
Institution: Marist College
Scheduling Preference: Saturday Morning
Proposal Type: Paper
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Paper Title:  My Body, Their Choice: The Privilege of Bodily Autonomy in the United States
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This research seeks to establish a link between privilege and bodily autonomy rights in the United States. The concept of bodily autonomy; my body, my choice, is seen as a human right. Yet, individual bodily decision making powers vary for some classes on a situational basis. This research explores how limitations on bodily decision making disproportionately impacts individuals across various classes in relation to privilege. When laws have more control over individuals’ bodies than individuals have themselves the equal protections given by the fourteenth amendment are jeopardized. Individuals reproductive autonomy is coming under attack by state and federal government; with two Supreme Court seats being filled by conservative judges, decisions like Roe v. Wade are at risk of being overturned and could result in more restrictive autonomy rights for various classes individuals. Understanding which individuals are protected under the current law and what protections are given under the law is the first step in addressing this fundamental problem. This paper will analyze different examples of bodily and reproductive autonomy such as; male circumcision, organ donation, piercings, eugenics, abortion and other related subtopics. To answer my research question, I plan to analyzed both federal and state policies, as well as court cases and rulings to examine the protections for different classes of individuals in relation to bodily autonomy. Data on different classes of individuals such as; gender, race, sexuality, age and social class were collected to examine the influence of privilege on bodily autonomy rights, as well as, the disproportionate variance in protections under the law. Despite fourteenth amendment protections; that are in place to ensure individuals the right to make their own bodily decisions, laboratories of democracy still allow for fragmentation in state laws and limitations to exist and prevent select groups of individuals from having full bodily decision making powers. A case study on reproductive autonomy and denial of bodily autonomy in cases pertaining to reproductive rights will further reinforce that under certain laws individuals do not have full control over their bodies. I predict that women and trans-individuals, racial minorities, minors, low income and incarcerated individuals will have the least amount of bodily decision making power under the law. Whereas, individuals who possess male, white, age or social privilege will have more bodily decision making powers under the law. Through the analysis of fragmentation and limitations placed on bodily autonomy across state lines it was concluded that not all classes have equal decision making power under the law. Additionally, individuals in states with less limitations on bodily autonomy is correlated with individuals across different classes receiving more equal bodily decision making power. With these results, we can conclude that a Federal statute allowing all individuals full bodily autonomy would eliminate fragmentation in state laws and provide equal decision making rights for individuals.

Name: Samuel Ennis
Section: Undergraduate Research
Professional Email: sennis@anselm.edu
Professional Status: Undergraduate Student
Institution: Saint Anselm College
Scheduling Preference: No Preference
Proposal Type: Paper
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Paper Title:  Extra! Extra! Read All About It: An Analysis of the Heterogeneous Influence Newspaper Endorsements Had on Voters in the 2016 Presidential Election
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In the 2016 Presidential Election, Hillary Clinton received 57 of the top 100 newspaper endorsements to Donald Trump's two. Garry Johnson received four. In 2012, Barack Obama received 44 to Mitt Romney's 34. Do these endorsements matter or affect voters decisions of whom to vote for? While many scholars find newspaper endorsements to matter, I find this to be an oversimplification of the role they play. Using the American National Election Study, I compare the relationship between The New York Times, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post and their endorsement or lack thereof on voters choice of whom to vote for in the 2016 and 2012 Presidential Elections. I find that in some cases, newspaper endorsements do matter. What party and what newspaper greatly impact that effectiveness. I also find that despite 2016 being an unusual year for newspaper endorsements, it does not stand out compared to 2012 in terms of effectiveness. I go on to find that whether an endorsement is surprise or not does not impact the effectiveness and that traditional factors that predict who someone votes for are not stronger than newspaper endorsements. Finally, there appears to be an additive effective with newspaper endorsements. Newspaper endorsements are still relevant, but their effectiveness varies by a number of factors.

Name: Ghazi Ghazi
Section: Undergraduate Research
Professional Email: ghazi@Oakland.edu
Professional Status: Undergraduate Student
Institution: Oakland University
Scheduling Preference: Saturday Morning
Proposal Type: Paper
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Paper Title:  An Arendtian Interpretation of the Anfal Campaign
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The Anfal campaign took place during the final phases of the Iran-Iraq War from 1986 to 1989 and led to the destruction of more than 100 villages and the disappearance of more than 182,000 men and women (CHAK 2007, 5). Iraqi authorities were later revealed to have been directly involved in organizing acts of genocide. This paper uses Hannah Arendt’s reflections on genocide, especially in “Eichmann in Jerusalem,” to make sense of how such acts were possible against the Kurds in Iraq. Keywords: Iraq, Kurdish, genocide, Anfal, Iran, war

Name: Nancy Hernandez
Section: Undergraduate Research
Professional Email: nhernandez148@toromail.csudh.edu
Professional Status: Undergraduate Student
Institution: California State University, Dominguez Hills
Scheduling Preference: No Preference
Proposal Type: Paper
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Paper Title:  Campaign Contributions and Judicial Elections: Evidence from Louisiana Supreme Court
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Many observers have been concerned about campaign contributions and their influence in politics. This study intends to contribute to this area of research; however, the focus is on judicial behavior. Past research has indicated that money influences judges, so this research draws from past studies to observe whether campaign contributions influence the voting behavior of elected state supreme court judges. By examining cases from the Louisiana Supreme Court from 2015 to 2018, it is argued that donations from attorneys and law firms do influence a judge’s decision in a case. When attorneys who have contributed to a judge’s political campaign appear before the judge in court, those attorneys are more likely to receive the judge’s vote in favor of their client. A statistical regression is conducted with judges’ decisions as the dependent variable and the attorneys’ contributions to the judges as the key independent variable. The findings draw into question the voting behavior of Louisiana’s Supreme Court.

Name: Cameron Lapine
Section: Undergraduate Research
Professional Email: clapine@anselm.edu
Professional Status: Undergraduate Student
Institution: Saint Anselm College
Scheduling Preference: No Preference
Proposal Type: Paper
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Paper Title: Betting Against the House: An Empirical Analysis of the Reasons Behind the Introduction and Expansion of Commercial Casino Gambling by Ballot Initiative
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Why do some states choose to introduce or expand commercial casino gambling by ballot initiative while other states do not? Traditional reasons behind the introduction of gambling are the religious composition of the state, the fiscal condition of the state, the existence and prevalence of Native American Gaming facilities, the partisan identification of voters in the state, and the positions of local elites on the topic but research into these causes has not been applied to commercial casino gambling. I analyzed 21 ballot initiatives on the introduction or expansion of commercial casino gambling in 11 states between 2004 and 2012 to see how these traditional reasons, as well as a metric of diffusion theory, relate to commercial casino gambling ballot initiatives. None of the traditional reasons have a statistically significant relationship towards commercial casino gambling referenda, although the unemployment rate in the state comes very close to being statistically significant, nor does diffusion theory. This indicates that commercial casino gambling does not operate within the same parameters as other ballot initiatives and requires further research to better explain voters’ behavior.

Name: Remy Linback
Section: Undergraduate Research
Professional Email: rlinback@gm.slc.edu
Professional Status: Undergraduate Student
Institution: Sarah Lawrence College
Scheduling Preference: Friday Morning
Proposal Type: Paper
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Paper Title:  Inconsistencies and Intolerance in French Secularism
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Laïcité, or France’s unique brand of secularism, has been the subject of much controversy as of late, and the basis of an important debate between the French right and left. On the left, many argue that laïcité has been distorted and no longer represents the same ideal that it once did. These individuals point to the discrimination against Maghrebi immigrants and Muslim French, and contrast this ill treatment with the alleged original ideals of laïcité: freedom of conscience and expression. On the other hand, many on the right argue that even laïcité’s most modern incarnation is liberal because it actually isn’t hostile to religion; rather, laws outlawing certain religious garb or symbols in public are actually protecting public peace and preventing proselytism. In my paper, I present a third perspective: I argue that laïcité’s discriminatory and assimilationist character has always been its truest form. Laïcité is often defended on the basis of its alleged neutrality in the pursuit of encouraging cooperation and harmonious coexistence among a “universal” French citizenry; the mutual adherence to this principle, and respect for republican ideals such as equality and freedom, have been advanced as key to French citizenship. Despite the supposed universality of the secular state, it has justified discriminatory policies targeting religious minorities and women since the 18th century. Rather than fostering an egalitarian and impartial public sphere, I show how laïcité has in fact been used to validate Christian norms and reinforce the politicization of religion. Although the term “laïcité” only emerged in the 20th century, it represents a long history of tension between public and private life, and a flawed form of republican universalism exacerbated by a multicultural population.

Name: Madison Mangels
Section: Undergraduate Research
Professional Email: mmangels@anselm.edu
Professional Status: Undergraduate Student
Institution: Saint Anselm College New Hampshire Institute of Politics
Scheduling Preference: No Preference
Proposal Type: Paper
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Paper Title:  #Echo-Chambers, @CrossCuttingConversations, and Political Affiliation: An Empirical Analysis of Political Homophily on Twitter
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Social media has the capacity to allow people of varying political ideologies to exchange opinions on events in what are known as cross-cutting conversations. However, people do not do this. Twitter has become a place where users put themselves into echo-chambers to isolate themselves from dissimilar political beliefs. This paper seeks to determine whether conservatives or liberals are more likely to put themselves into echo-chambers on Twitter as well as why this occurs. I will also look into whether self-identifying or researcher-identified ideologues are more likely to put themselves into echo-chambers. I will also offer explanations as to why conservatives or liberals might put themselves into echo-chambers. An analysis of a random sample of political tweets was collected and the authors of the tweets were coded into a database based on ideology, identification type, tweet language, and the number of partisan accounts they followed. The results of this study determined that conservatives were more likely than liberals to put themselves into echo-chambers on Twitter. One reason conservatives are likely to put themselves into echo-chambers is due to their psychological behavior and levels of openness to information, which differs greatly from the political behavior of liberals. Political polarization on social media sites is a growing concern in a country that is becoming increasingly politically divided and has the potential to sway voters and impact users’ perceptions of the relationship between their opinions and the facts.

Name: Shankara Narayanan
Section: Undergraduate Research
Professional Email: shankara.narayanan@uconn.edu
Professional Status: Undergraduate Student
Institution: University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT
Scheduling Preference: Saturday Morning
Proposal Type: Paper
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Paper Title:  American Imperium: The Rise and Decline of U.S. Global Power
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America claims the mantle of the world’s first superpower, using its military, trade, and liberal-capitalist ideology to pursue its international agenda. Suffering a financial collapse, facing domestic division and inequality, and with the “War on Terror” entering its seventeenth year, pundits and leaders worldwide increasingly believe America’s global power is declining. Simultaneously, the great powers of the world are asserting themselves. China’s expansion includes strategic integration with Africa and Asia, and domination of its regional waters—challenging America’s Asian primacy. Similarly, Russia’s revanchism manifests itself in Eastern European and Middle Eastern affairs. China and Russia fill the “Eurasian Heartland” of Sir Halford Mackinder. His 1904 Heartland Thesis holds that powers occupying the “Eurasian Heartland”—stretching from Eastern Europe to the Altai Mountains—threaten global security. Heartland powers from the Mongolian Empire to the Soviet Union expanded using land-power, coming into conflict with European sea-power, and recently American sea-power. The Soviet Union was America’s Cold War Heartland rival, while China may be America’s Heartland rival of the 21st century. This paper addresses the influence of Heartland Theory on U.S. Cold War strategy, and its applicability to the post-Cold War displacement of the U.S. by Eurasian rivals. It evaluates Cold War strategy by analyzing Mackinder’s influence on George F. Kennan, Henry Kissinger, and Zbigniew Brzezinski, grounded in an examination of Mackinder’s publications. Widely recognized as architects of U.S. Cold War strategy, Kennan, Kissinger, and Brzezinski utilized Heartland Theory to further American Cold War objectives. Their articles, books, memos, and briefs demonstrate independent recognitions of Mackinder’s theories separated by decades—a geostrategic continuity in U.S. Cold War foreign policy. Additionally, the paper synthesizes works from several schools of U.S. diplomatic history, juxtaposing Heartland Theory with revisionist and triumphalist arguments to better understand the merits of characterizing U.S. foreign policy using Heartland Theory. Regardless of whether U.S. foreign policy exploited markets or constructed “liberal order”, the strategy employed drew from Mackinder’s geography. Lastly, the paper applies Mackinder’s Heartland Thesis to modern power politics, analyzing Russia and China as 21st century Heartland powers. Despite their dual occupation of the Eurasian Heartland, China appears to be the classic Heartland power based on recent scholarly publications and the strategic publications of the U.S. government. Its naval buildup, however, twists Mackinder’s theories. A Heartland power possessing maritime capabilities, he argued, proves the greatest threat to global security. Analyzing Heartland theory raises further questions. At its core, Mackinder’s thesis posits that a nation first control vital trade routes and regions plentiful in economic resources, harnessing them to develop military capabilities and consolidate territory to then become a great power. Have the economically vital regions of the world changed? Mackinder focused on the potential of railways criss-crossing the Heartland to revolutionize power politics. However, the importance of modern trade routes in the Middle East and the waters of South and East Asia—such as the Suez Canal, Strait of Hormuz, and Strait of Malacca—suggest that 21st century great power competition may revolve around new geographic points.

Name: Jordan Pagan
Section: Undergraduate Research
Professional Email: Jordan.pagan@wagner.edu
Professional Status: Undergraduate Student
Institution: Wagner Colllege
Scheduling Preference: No Preference
Proposal Type: Paper
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Paper Title:  New York City Economic Land Use & Transit: Fixing our Subway, Financing our Future
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A paper discussing the issues plaguing the New York City Subway, the history behind the problems and a potential solution. The fix is in privatizing the Subway, similarly to how Japan has done; they now boast one of the most efficient and super modern transit systems in the world. By juxtaposing the development of New York City property and land, and the impact of having an effective transit line in those areas has, the correlation between the two is this: the better the Subway, the area around it tends to advance further socioeconomically and culturally. Thus, if we can modernize and expand our Subway, we will effectively propel our neighborhoods into an upsurge, increasing quality of life for millions of New York City residents.

Name: Courtney Rivera
Section: Undergraduate Research
Professional Email: sliszcl01@mail.buffalostate.edu
Professional Status: Graduate Student
Institution: SUNY Buffalo State
Scheduling Preference: Friday Morning
Proposal Type: Paper
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Paper Title: Discovery 
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Research Question: My question is about Civil Procedure and the basics of law from the complaint until discovery or court. The basis for all research will surround the question are the current rules for discovery just to both parties and does one party seem to have more success? The basis of my research is researching the legal process to be better equipped for law school. H1: Current procedure for the discovery is bias to the Defendant because lack of resources (money, legal knowledge) for a defendant to properly conduct discovery. This leads to a upper hand for plaintiff lawyers. And a outcome which is indemnifying to a defendant because of over indulgence of information. Disclosure eliminates any privacy in the litigation. H2: The discovery process instated will increase the chance a defendant will settle for avoidance of costly discovery. and the chance the defendant will accept the settlement will greatly increase but the settlement is usually unfair and relatively lower when defendant is of lower income. Dependent Variables: Bias in the Discovery process, court proceedings. Intimidation to defendant’s to settle before discovery. Independent Variables: Torts, Civil procedure, civil procedure reforms.

Name: Lee Scaralia
Section: Undergraduate Research
Professional Email: lscarali@fandm.edu
Professional Status: Undergraduate Student
Institution: Franklin & Marshall College
Scheduling Preference: No Preference
Proposal Type: Paper
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Paper Title:  Making Sense of U.S. Populism
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How do political campaigns construct, deploy, and leverage political identities through electoral cycles? This ongoing ethnographic and interview project is concerned with the way "insiders" and "outsiders" are created among those working on the Jess King for Congress 2018 campaign, including paid staff, volunteers, formal interns, and prospective voters. Under the guidance of Dr. Biko Koenig, I interned with the campaign from June 2018 through the election to gain and "insider's" perspective-- and to understand the work that this political identity performs in the context of an electoral campaign. Preliminary findings include: as a left-populist, Jess King united people as insiders on her campaign regardless of previous political party association; that there is some difference between intern and volunteer identity that is encouraged by the titles assigned by campaign staff, but is more strictly enforced by interns and volunteers themselves; that the only initiation to the campaign truly necessary for many voters is one informative phone call by another volunteer. The paper examines the construction of these identities alongside other electoral and political tactics designed to activate and excite voters within the context of Trump populism.

Name: Carly Van Syckle
Section: Undergraduate Research
Professional Email: cvansyckle@albany.edu
Professional Status: Undergraduate Student
Institution: University at Albany SUNY
Scheduling Preference: Friday Afternoon
Proposal Type: Paper
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Paper Title:  The Lasting Effects of Institutionalized Discrimination
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The problem of police brutality has become commonplace in countries such as the United States, South Africa, and Brazil. By examining these three countries using the most different systems design, it can be found that there are differences in the countries' locations, GDPs, and HDIs. The key independent variable that each of the three countries had in common was a history of institutionalized discrimination. In the United States, slavery led to the Jim Crow Era, which paved the way for the mass incarceration of minorities, allowing for high amounts of police brutality. Slavery in South Africa turned into the discriminatory political system known as apartheid, enabling police forces to act in violent manners. And in Brazil, the history of slavery and discrimination present in the form of laws contributed to current discrimination in the form of police brutality. If countries have a history of institutionalized discrimination, they are likely to have high police brutality present. As a result of these findings, changes should be implemented to educate law enforcement on the history of discrimination and its possible link to police brutality in order to ensure that history doesn’t repeat itself as discrimination in the form of excessive police brutality.