Social Sciences Division

The pandemic promised nothing short of the End of Cities, a prophecy foretold by pundits, tweets and headlines, at times with unveiled schadenfreude. Margaret O’Mara, professor of history at the UW, is quoted.

"As researchers of policing and homelessness, we have seen an unmistakable rise in homeless sweeps and encampment crackdowns since the late 1990s. This response to visible poverty results from a collision of forces, both in Canada and the United States: the decline of affordable housing and mental-health services, and local governments’ desires to revitalize business districts, boost tourism and attract high-income residents," write Katherine Beckett, professor of sociology and of law, societies and justice at the UW, and Forrest Stuart of Stanford University.

Kristina Scharp, assistant professor in the Department of Communication, has recieved the 2021 International Communication Association Early Career Scholar Award

In the Honors course "Abolishing Poverty," students untangle the interwoven complexities that lead to impoverishment.

A new sociology course explores self-tracking technology that captures our daily routines.

Aseem Prakash, professor of political science, discusses Amazon's climate pledge.

"In 2016, Donald Trump recruited voters with the highest levels of animosity toward African Americans, assembling a 'schadenfreude' electorate — voters who take pleasure in making the opposition suffer — that continues to dominate the Republican Party, even in the aftermath of the Trump presidency," writes columnist Thomas Edsall. Christopher Parker, professor of political science at the UW, is quoted.

The Harry Bridges Center for Labor Studies has issued a new report, Puget Sound’s Fight for $15: Family Experiences and Policy Impacts of Increasing the Minimum Wage.

Because of the pandemic, high school seniors across Washington experienced a tumultuous end to their secondary education. But while all kinds of students struggled to adjust to virtual learning, student life has been particularly difficult for students in high-poverty districts. This story was written for a UW journalism class by Renee Diaz, Patric Haerle and Faith Noh.

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! This week, attend gallery exhibitions, watch recorded events, and more.

Twenty-seven years to the day after founding Amazon in a Bellevue garage, Jeff Bezos has relinquished control of his company. Bezos’ trusted deputy, Andy Jassy, steps into his new role as Amazon’s CEO Monday. The UW's Margaret O'Mara, professor of history, and Jeff Shulman, professor of marketing, are quoted.

Most Americans who turned to the internet for financial help during the pandemic failed to raise much. Of the more than 175,000 GoFundMe campaigns that were started in the first half of 2020 and that cited COVID-19, 43% received no donations at all and 90% did not reach their stated goal. Nearly a quarter of all funds raised through the platform went to the top 1% of campaigns. Mark Igra, a graduate student in sociology at the UW, is quoted.

Records recently obtained by Oregon Public Broadcasting show Clark County Sheriff’s Office continues to share inmates’ personal information — particularly that of Latinos — with ICE. As recently as February, the jail and federal agents communicated almost daily. The UW’s Angelina Godoy, professor of law, societies and justice and of international studies and director of the Center for Human Rights, is quoted.

"On the last day of its current term, the Supreme Court under the leadership of Chief Justice John Roberts continued its war on voting rights with its decision in Brnovich v. Democratic National Committee ... It is clear that this court will smile upon even the worst vote suppression efforts being undertaken by Republican legislatures in the wake of former President Donald Trump’s false claims that the 2020 election was stolen," writes Scott Lemieux, assistant teaching professor of political science at the UW.

Michael Pearce, a UW doctoral student in statistics, and Adrian Raftery, a professor of sociology, discuss the results of their new study.