week 12 - race, ethnicity, gender and sexual orientation

Question 1

audit study

Answer 1

• a method of testing for discrimination in which hundreds or thousands of people apply for a position, item, or service.
• applicants are similar in all respects except the one thing tested for discrimination.

Question 2

biggest audit study

Answer 2

The U.S HUD conducted a huge audit study, sending over 8,000 people from different races to housing providers to inquire about rental or purchase.

Question 3

examples of sex-selective abortion and LGBTQ legislation

Answer 3

sex-selective abortion
- female embryos are less likely to be naturally carried to term.

LGBTQ legislation:
- variation is extreme.
- in some countries, gay people enjoy complete equality under the law.
- in other countries, homosexuality is punishable by death.

Question 4

descriptive representation

Answer 4

could help lessen discrimination.

Question 5

a key element of representation is

Answer 5

it is “descriptive”: does the representative resemble, or share experiences with the represented?

Question 6

a society with perfect descriptive representation would have

Answer 6

legislators that mirror the ethno-racial, gender, and LGBTQ distribution in the electorate.

Question 7

how to ensure descriptive representation

Answer 7

The use of reserved seats or quota or for certain ethnic and racial groups and/or for women can enhance descriptive representation.

Question 8

reserved seats

Answer 8

certain legislative seats for reserved for ethnic racial minorities and/or women.

Question 9

quotas

Answer 9

• the law requires parties to nominate a certain percentage of ethnic racial minorities and/or women candidates.
• for party lists: a certain percentage of slots must be set aside for women, and women cannot all be relegated to the bottom of the list.

Question 10

why do quotas work in developing and least developed countries?

Answer 10

the countries start with a lower baseline level of female rep than more developed countries, there is more room for an increase.

Question 11

what are reserved seats and quotas used for

Answer 11

Reserved seats used for ethnic/racial minorities, quotas for women’s representation.

Question 12

results of more women in parliament

Answer 12

• It leads to the adoption and increased scope of maternity leave and childcare policies and a decrease in maternal mortality,
• Leads to quicker resolution of militarized conflicts.
  -Is associated with more health spending and less military spending.

Question 13

what matters more than the ideology of the party in power

Answer 13

women’s political presence matters more

Question 14

arguments against quota and reserved seats

Answer 14

could be counter-democratic – people should not be forced to vote for a certain candidate based on gender/race.