Black American Academic Performance and Access to the Democratic Process 11 October 2020 A thesis presented to the Faculty of Saybrook University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts (M.A.) in Transformative Social Change by Michael P. Perazzetti Abstract: The purpose of this thesis is to initiate a diagnosis and critique of the democratic process with an emphasis upon its relationship to… Read More
Photos and Video from the Last Residential Conference at Saybrook Univeristy 18 June 2017 I am very late in posting these but it’s been a hectic and eventful year. The photos are from the trip down, along the beautiful Highway 1 in Monterey, California. More than a few decades ago, I took two other trips down Highway 1 from Monterey to San Diego, a much longer trip that lasted… Read More
Creating a Workshop Prospectus for Nonviolent Social Change Training 31 May 2017 Introduction The hope for the following is different from a traditional nonviolence workshop in that it incorporates a rough reflexive teaching curriculum to allow participants to critically analyze themselves as well as past state violence and the potential for future state violence that they may encounter, and a reflexive history lesson that explores the possibilities… Read More
The Columbus, GA Community Arts and Music Collective: Preparations for the Long Haul 6 May 2017 Introduction In previous papers, the creation and planning of the Columbus, GA Arts and Music community initiative has been explored in depth. In this paper, the long-term existence of this project will be explored through the following areas: sustainability, maintaining gains achieved, approaches to support well-being, and acknowledging and celebrating gains and victories. While this… Read More
Social System Transformation: An Application of Reflexivity to the Planning of an Education Curriculum 26 April 2017 Introduction This essay attempts to explain a social system transformation, but the history behind it is also a personal one. While my impressions of the educational system in the United States are based on my personal experience and observations, others have written much more eloquently on the subject from years in the profession, John Taylor… Read More
Planning a Community Arts and Music Collective in Columbus, GA 19 April 2017 Introduction Members of the Columbus, GA community continue to inform me that an arts and music collective is vitally needed. Yet, some of them continue to cite examples of independent music and arts businesses (independent from the mainstream cultural institutions in Columbus and the surrounding community) that have failed in the recent and distant past. … Read More
A Life Worthy of Human Dignity: Requirements, Values, and Assumptions 4 April 2017 Introduction A life worthy of human dignity. The statement is at once impassioned, relative, and worthy of an ethics analysis. The elements that make each of our lives worth living may be different for each of us, but all of them are connected in ways that extend beyond the analysis of this paper. Nussbaum (2011)… Read More
An Analysis and Critique of Fromm’s Sane Society, the Dalai Lama’s Ethics, and an Alternative Approach 21 March 2017 [Note: After speaking with my professor last night (15 June 2017), I realize I was extremely harsh with Fromm’s text, and it may be something I should revisit in the future. Additionally, I apparently made sweeping generalizations that have no basis in the text, so when you read this, please keep that in mind. I… Read More
An Overview and Analysis of The Feminism and Nonviolence Study Group 9 March 2017 Introduction While it is probably safe to theorize that violence has been an inherent characteristic of the human race, it is then also safe to assume that nonviolence did not make its human debut via Gandhi, Thoreau, Tolstoy, King or a myriad of others (Wikipedia, 2017). While Gandhi’s borrowed principles are valid for the analysis… Read More
The Portrait of a Global Citizen 6 March 2017 Introduction Certainly, to begin describing a global citizen of the United States would require mandatory overseas residency in one to three countries over the course of two years for every citizen of the United States to help them gain a perspective of the world’s stages and not the current views of a portion of native-born… Read More
An Undeveloped Opportunity: Initiating a Community Arts and Music Collective in Columbus, GA 26 February 2017 Introduction Columbus, Georgia is a city of abundant opportunities for the future and a city with a profusion of missed opportunities in the past. While this is obviously the case with economic and career options, exploring the city also reveals few opportunities for artistic self-expression for anyone. There are occasions to view traveling artistic culture… Read More
The Scientific Revolutions of Thomas Kuhn: Paradigm Shifts Explained 19 February 2017 Introduction What is a paradigm shift within a scientific revolution or indeed outside of a scientific revolution? If I take an extremely liberal viewpoint, the recent political regime change in the United States was a paradigm shift. But that would be stretching the definition to its breaking point as many have abused the term for… Read More
The Ethics of Disagreement: The Abortion Issue 13 February 2017 Introduction You already have an opinion about abortion. Even I do. I chose such a difficult topic to force myself into the difficult position of analyzing a subject from positions that I don’t ordinarily consider. The journey won’t be easy and I may fail, but this will be the beginnings of a dialogue that I… Read More
Creating a Healthy Community Arts and Music Initiative in Columbus, GA 22 December 2016 Introduction With the goal of finding a local healthy arts and music community initiative, I went looking for local programs because there has been at least one in every city I have lived, and because I am personally more interested in and committed to music than most other cultural activities. Unfortunately, I was not able… Read More
Media Propaganda: What Are the Key Issues Examined by Feminist Theorists Relating to Unintentional Sexist Propaganda? 13 December 2016 Abstract There is a substantial amount of feminist research on sexism in language and various forms of media sexism (children’s literature, print, radio, and television advertising and programming, and motion pictures). However, after an extensive search for studies linking language and media sexism to unintentional propaganda that occurs in small groups and one-on-one, nothing… Read More
How Do Italians View Creativity: A Critical Analysis 11 December 2016 Abstract Most people consider Italian creativity to be art, sculpture, music and literature. While these are valid, they exclude the creativity of everyday, industry, innovation, science, and education. This analysis will utilize a humanistic psychology perspective that investigates creativity of the everyday through industrial and business innovation, urban life, science, and education. This analysis will… Read More
Reflections on Wallerstein, Sanchez-Merki, and Dow’s Freirian praxis in health education and community organizing: A case study of an adolescent prevention program 11 December 2016 Any initiative that actively engages adolescents to take control of their lives by illustrating how they can actively and positively participate in their social environment instead of being a victim of it, is powerful. Wallerstein, Sanchez-Merki & Dow (2006) explore a program that utilized at its heart Freirian empowerment education methods and Ronald Rogers (1984… Read More
Quantitative and Qualitative Research Mini-Proposals 10 December 2016 Quantitative Research Design Introduction Area of Interest and Statement of the Issue. My primary area of research interest is the influence of sexism in media propaganda upon the self-esteem of Black American teen girls and young women. Queries into propaganda research and the influence on gender and racist stereotypes have revealed no direct studies of… Read More
Reflections on Pritzker’s Writing and creativity and Richards’ Frank Barron and the study of creativity 3 December 2016 For a long time, I’ve had my own hypotheses regarding creativity, writing, and imagination, and Pritzker (2011) discusses some of them. What’s immediately intriguing in the citation of large-scale biographical studies is that the writers that were analyzed were likely to be voracious readers and came from homes as very unhappy. This explains a lot… Read More