Michelle Rodriguez
Dr. Kubal
Sociology 176
March 9, 2013
Word Count: 1,779
Participant Observation: March Fourth on March 4th
The qualitative research method I used this week was participant observation. The event that I participated in was the March Forth on March 4th event held on the Fresno State campus from 12:00PM-3:00PM. I used the comprehensive principle, when taking notes and documenting what I observed and heard. The variable I used, which pertained to the participant observation I did, was “RPRTST3” which states, “Would you or would you not do any of the following to protest against a government action you strongly opposed? B. Go on a protest march or demonstration." I ran my dependent variable with the independent variable “race." In the results, I found that 20.2% of whites, 30.6% of blacks and 23.5% of people who responded as other would definitely protest against a government action. I think the reason for this is that people of color are the ones who continue to be oppressed the most, thus they are more likely to act in things that affect them. I feel that students might also fall into this category, to a certain extent, as they too are forgotten due to their lack of voting. I feel though that this is slowly changing for the better, which this march could have helped in changing attitudes. My participation in this event was from 2:00-3:00PM, which was the time set for the march. During my participation, I took notes on my phone, keeping the comprehensive principle in mind.
The space in which the march took place, which I completely walked, was very vast. The march starting point was at the free speech area at Fresno State. There were about fifty to sixty people who took part in it. When the people had gathered, Dr. Kubal rallied us to get together, and then we began our march. We walk from the free speech area, past the fountain, toward the Joyal Administration building. We kept walking toward Shaw and Maple Ave. When we got to the intersection, headed left, and we kept on walking the sidewalk until we got to entrance, located to our left. We walked back toward campus through the parking lot, coming out by the Smittcamp Alumni House, before turning left toward the Joyal building. Once, we were past those building, we turned right, walking in between the Peters business building at the Conley art building. Next, we took a left when we got to the end of the business building and kept walking until we got to the corner, where we turned left before crossing the street. We walked in between the Science I and Science II buildings. We continued down that route until we reached the Social Science building, where we then turned left. We finished our march by walking in between the Family and Food building and the library, by the peace garden, where we came to a halt at the place where we began. So, the space was very vast, that of the Fresno State University campus. It was a very open and spacious that took place outside. Due to its location, the sun was shining very bright, making it hot for the people marching.
The objects I observed were many. At the free speech area, there were refreshments for those who were going to participate in the march, or for those who wanted some. During the march, some of the things that I jotted down were, of course the people who were involved in the march, people who were not in the march, the signs that I and others were holding, and backpacks/bags. Other objects that I saw were tables, set up for people interested in the various issues people were marching about, and booths set up by different organizations on campus, and buildings all throughout the march. Furthermore, there were traffic signs, cars, and parking lots, as we continued to march all throughout campus. The cell phone's people held, were important objects, as people used them document their experience.
The actors who took part in the march were students. They were evenly divided in terms of sex and were young around 18-24, and it looked to be pretty ethnically diverse, although there were several older adults who participated. Most of the students whom I recognized were from Dr. Kubal’s class. There were two faculty members who participated, Dr. Kubal, who organized the event and Dr. Jendian was also in attendance, showing his support by being in the entire march. The attire of the students was casual. Most of the students were wearing jeans, T-shirts, or dresses. They also carried either backpacks or bags with them, as, they either had come from a class or were headed to one afterwards. I was part of the march. I am a Mexican, 22-year-old female. The reason I came out was due to the announcement made in my sociology 176 class, by Dr. Kubal as well as the announcement posted on blackboard. He offered 40 extra credit points to those who participated in the march and wrote their papers on it. Due to the semi-convenience (I missed one of my classes), I decided to attend.
The activity that we all participated in was the march forth for march 4th march around campus. Other than the main activity, which was marching, the other activity everyone partook in was holding a sign we had an interest showing. The signs that people held were all very distinct, they were on several issues the students felt important to make and have at the march. The different issues that were covered were about animal rights, fossil-fuel divestment, student fees, prison realignment, sweatshops, food insecurity at Fresno State, and justice/peace/equality. I was holding a sign that stated, “Save the Planet” with a drawing of the earth on one side. On the other side is stated that students should be against the use of fossil fuel. There were many signs that highlighted many issues, one of my favorites stated, “Hungry for Justice." Other signs I really liked said things like, “CSU Apparel should be Sweat-Free” and “Students Against Rising Tuition." Another activity within the larger one was of people taking pictures of the march. Through this observation, I noticed that toward the end of the march, we were not all together and there were gaps in our line.
The time in which the march, the part which I and about fifty to sixty other people participated in began around 2:00PM and ended around 3:00PM. The march began with student roaming around, trying to figure out what to do, while others were grabbing signs. It didn’t really become ordered until Dr. Kubal gave instructions. It was then when people began to bunch up together so that we could begin the march. The majority of the time was spent walking around the campus, showcasing the different issues on the signs. I feel the time could have been better timed, as many students were in class, which meant our audience was rather limited. The march ended as we came back to the starting point, leaving our signs on the platform of the free speech area. Most of us ended the march by signing the sign-in sheet, in order to receive our extra credit.
The goal of those who participated in the march, was to complete the march and for a lot of us to receive the extra credit that was offered. My personal goal was to receive the extra credit being offered, as I have already participated in marches, and thus know the importance of them. I feel this is a great event for students who have not had the opportunity to partake in a march. It shows people that issues might be pushed forward on official’s agendas. The march should have highlighted this important idea (unless it was done earlier, and I just missed it). The march allowed students to showcase important issues that are happening locally and nationally. It allowed students to partake in their right to free speech while bringing awareness to issues that are of concern to many. The only reason that the march might not have occurred would have been if a person in authority tried to stop us from marching. I don’t feel this would have happened as we were not disturbing anyone, and we stayed on the sidewalks.
The emotions of the event were pretty mellow. I didn’t feel any strong emotions from the students, which showed their displeasure for the issues. I was rather excited to take part in the march, but towards the middle, I was rather bored. I didn’t really feel that we had a bid impact on the campus or other people. Furthermore, there was no call to action (that I know of) which would allow people to get involved in issues they found particularly interesting. I think some people found the experience to be enjoyable though, which is good as it might prompt them and make them more willing to partake in these types of events. The only time that it was rather fun was when we were walking down Shaw and got a couple of beeps from the cars, which got people to cheer. I wish that we had something to chant, or that there was more order, as I think it might have helped fuel people’s interests and emotions.
The discussions that occurred during the march were pretty quiet. There were many casual conversations, some that had to do with the march and others that were not. I heard people talk about the different courses they have, and the homework they still needed to complete. I overheard others say things like, “It’s sooo hot”, “When is graduation”, “What is ASI doing”, and funnily enough “This was my exercise for the day”. I personally had several conversations with the people next to me. One conversation I had was about the lack of involvement from other organizations on campus. I feel it would have been better if I saw more collaboration. Another conversation I had was about ASI, I told a fellow student, “I hope I get to go to the meeting that’s coming up”.
Something that I could have improved on was taking more notes and in having conversations with more than three people. I feel I could have gotten more information from other students on the march. Overall it was rather interesting, and it was nice to see that a faculty member came to support the march. Furthermore, it was awesome to hang out with people that I knew and discuss important things that are happening on campus. It allowed us to communicate about different events that we can participate in, especially the ASI issue and the meeting that was coming up.
SDA 3.5: Tables
General Social Survey Cumulative Datafile 1972-2012
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Mar 09, 2014 (Sun 07:07 PM PDT)
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