SOC 100 Lecture Notes - Lecture 18: Equal Protection Clause
Document Summary
The arena in which societies make collective decisions about priorities and policies. Different cultures have different ways to choose leaders and engage their citizens. Monarchies: headed by a single person who typically inherits the position as a member of a ruling family, traditional/ absolute monarchy: single leader holds unconditional power, constitutional monarchy: run by a democracy with a symbolic royal figurehead. Authoritarian governments: leaders are often self-appointed and exert significant control over the lives of citizens, primarily by restricting civil liberties, run by central ruling parties or the military without popular support from citizens. Any activity that has an intent or effect of influencing government action. Many options for participation: influence government directly by writing or calling representatives, influence government indirectly by voting, campaigning for (or sending money to) particular candidates or issues. In any given year, 2/3 of americans will participate in some form of political activity and half of americans will speak out about a particular issue.
