Qualitative Research Project on Advocacy Group

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Qualitative Research Project on Advocacy Group 

Maijoua Vang

Department of Sociology

California State University, Fresno

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Introduction

The organization that I am conducting a research on is about a youth journalist group fighting to bring awareness about social injustices in the community. It consists of youth members over eighteen years of age. Some of the social issues that the group write about is homelessness, environmental problems, and health issues. The group attends events such as school board meetings and city council district meetings to advocate on needs and raise their voice against unfair proposals. They are constantly producing articles to publish their website along with one newspaper publication every year.

Throughout this research project, I was able to observe the group in the span of two weeks for one hour and 30 minutes each week. As I observed the group's interactions, I was able to get a glimpse of their behaviors and interactions as a member of the group.  What I found is that there are three different types of roles in this organization in which different behaviors are expose when an individual is in the frontstage and backstage.  Another very important concept is that the group depends on each other a lot for advice and engagement to complete a task.

After observing the group in the span of two weeks, I was able to get an idea of what the group is about now and what they do. I was able to observe the member's actions and have an idea of whom I would like to interview. Although I was a member many years ago, there are new faces, new staffs, and changes to the group. I interviewed a total of three members of this youth group. Each interview was conducted individually. Through this interview, I asked questions regarding the background of the group, roles, preparation, and other research concepts. 

After the interviews, I analyzed all the other content of written documentations written from members of the group. Other articles consist of social issues that are affecting the community, state, and even the country. All of these documents were public content, available to anyone in the public.

Literature Review

Symbolic Interaction

Interactions is important to develop social relationships. The concepts relating to social interaction that will be address is roles, performance, definition of the situation, frontstage and backstage, and team.

Symbolic interaction theory consists of how the individual interacts with others based on meanings assigned to roles (Dillion, 274). Interactions usually consist of language, symbols, and actions. Language helps one establish the self. There are many factors that helps an individual learn how to interact in their social surroundings. The person's location can determine how one behaves. Another factor is the population in the social surrounding. An individual learns how to perform certain behaviors from past experiences. An individual has multiple roles, thus requiring the need to have multiple behaviors. Individuals practice the proper actions through the backstage practice. Performances lead to reactions from people. The reactions of an audience determine the definition of the situation. The definition of the situation is constantly changing depending on interactions occurring in the social environment.

Self

The self is a complex identity. In the psychological view of the self, the self contains components such as their beliefs, traits, and other personal values (Sandstorm, et.al, 96). Thus, resulting in how an individual behaves depending on the beliefs they value. In a sociological content, the purpose of a self is for social purpose. The self is constantly progressing through interactions with others. The self is always changing because of the different roles that an individual belongs too.

In the social process, the self contains the I and then me phase. In the me phase, the self is an object. It learns about behaviors, expectations, and norms from experiences in previous social relationships and interactions. If the still is not socially interacting with another person, the self-engages with itself (Dillion, 275). It reflects on its experiences and interactions on how others think of them. It reflects on how the self can be more engaged, respond, or act next time. As for the I phase, the self is a subject and engages in action with others.

Another component that reflects on the self-interacts with others is through the looking glass self. The looking glass self is how an individual portrays themselves depending on how they think others see them (Dillon, 276). To being with, the self looks at how they appear to the eyes of others. Then, the self thinks of how others judge them. Lastly, the self creates judgments of itself through others. This can affect the way the self-interacts with certain individuals.

An interview question is, what kind of behaviors and expectations did you acquire to become a youth journalist? An observation question is, what are some expectations and behaviors of a youth journalist?

Roles

A concept that explains the need to behave a certain way depends on the role of an individual. Everyone has a few roles at the minimum. Dillion addresses how there are three different occurrences that will occur as part of the role concept. For a society to be a society, there needs to be different roles (Dillion, 282). If there are no roles, then there is no identity to a person. Society already created expectations of behaviors for each role. For a society to function, there needs to be different interactions between people (Dillion, 282). Someone with a different role needs to respond to your role. Lastly, the third occurrence is that there is never a time where an individual is not performing a role.

Society expects an individual to perform role taking. Role taking is the expected behavior of a role. However, the reality is that anything can be change. People do not always follow rules or norms. Role making is the result of modifying or innovating the expected behaviors that society implemented. When role making occurs, there is disruption in social roles (Goffman, 1959: 188-189), (Dillion, 283). When role making occurs, relationships can weaken due to violation of social expectations.

People have few to many roles. Since there are different roles an individual reacts to, there is role exits. When you leave the house, you are leaving the role at home. Moreover, you are converting to a different role depending on your next destination. There are some roles that are forever, and some are temporary.

An interview question is, what are your expected behaviors as a youth journalist? An observation question is, how do I know what to look for in the expected behaviors of a youth journalist?

Performance/Definition of the Situation

Performance is conducting the expected behavior of a role to society (Dillion, 297). It is the ideal way of how society works. Therefore, performing in front of an audience is important. People will judge an individual on how they act. As the performer, you can control your actions. The audience would be more convince if the performance was as expected. The goal of the performer is to leave a good impression on the audience. Often, this means participating in role taking. To determine if a performance was conducted well, the reaction of the audience will symbolize how the performance.

Performances leads to defining the situation of the moment. According to Goffman, the definition of a situation is basically impression management (Dillion, 285). The impression of the audience is important to the performers so they can understand how well or bad their performance is. It gives people the knowledge of what is expected of them in a certain role. The definition of a situation can change all the time. As the performer, one can control how the audience reacts. There are different actions that can give the performer a clue that the performance is either great or bad. The actions expressing a great performance contains claps, engagement, and attention. For as the actions expressing a bad performance are eye rolling, quietness, and yawns. When the interviewee interprets that the interview is getting boring, the interviewee can incorporate stories of them to get the conversation more interesting.

Interview question are what you do to make an interview more interesting, what do you incorporate in your article to gain more readers, and how do you know if your audience enjoys your performance.  An observation question is, how do I determine if the youth journalist needs to change their performance?

Frontstage and Backstage

Goffman focused on the importance of people performing. There are two important concepts in which Goffman explains to help an individual perform and prepare. These two regions are the front stage and backstage. The region is an area with boundaries (Dillion, 289). Each stage has boundaries on what should occur there.

The front stage consists of an individual acting in front of the audience (Dillion, 289). This is where the person acts out their role. For example, a professor is in their front stage when he teaches in front of the students. He is expected to know the material, be respectful, make eye contact, and listen. Along with the performance of an individual, there is also the expectation of a certain content to be displayed by the individual. The front stage consists of one having to act professionally.

An example of an interview question is, how do you perform as a youth journalist in front of others at an event? An example of an observation question is, when can I see front stage performance by a youth journalist?

As for the backstage, it is when people can prepare for the performance (Dillion, 289). One can act unfriendly, there is no need for professionalism because people do not see you. It is during this stage where one can scream, act out, and express themselves in a way they will not in front of the audience. It is in the backstage where people can define the situation. This stage consists of leaders teaching the followers. Followers are taught how to think, act, react, and talk to a situation. The backstage is known as the place where an individual is free from society and no judgements are made.

An interview question is, how do you prepare to interview guests at an event? An observation question is, where would I see youth journalist prepare for an event?

Team/Teamwork

There are many activities from research to work that requires teamwork for the structure to work. Goffman incorporates impression management to work in teams. Some hospital staffs are in the front stage assisting customers. The performance is crucial for patients in hospice care since end of life is a reality.  In the backstage, medical professionals can express their emotions and prepare to go to the front stage. Teamwork occurs in both stages. In the backstage, medical professionals work together to determine the next appropriate actions, approaching problems, reflecting, and constant learning (Cain, 671). In frontstage, teamwork is required to assist a patient. It takes nurses, doctors, social workers, and other professionals to accommodate a patient.  

Teamwork is not only about working with one another, but also trusting each other. Trusting coworkers in the backstage leads to better performance in the frontstage (Cain, 672). Teamwork not only gets the job done faster, but more accurate as well. When one is unsure, that individual can turn to their peers for assistance. Sometimes little communication is needed for an effective team. Some teams work together for so long that they may not need to communicate verbally all the time. There could be gestures representing certain tasks. The backstage is where teams can express jokes to not think about a death or avoid emotional reactions. Teamwork is crucial for interactions.

An interview question is, how does teamwork function in this organization? An observation question is, how does teamwork look like in this group?

To conclude, interactions is important for relationships, society, and learning. Through reflection, teamwork, expectations, interpretation, action, and preparation, an individual can better work on expressing oneself.

 

Ethnography Summary

Ethnography research consists of researchers observing participants of a group in their natural environment. The setting is the area in where you observe the participants in their natural surroundings. The most accessible settings include public areas. However, often public areas don't display the most interesting behaviors. Therefore, researchers often study groups that are in their own private place. In any kind of setting, there could be a chance that people may not be showing their true values and beliefs because of the idea of front stage act. With research, there comes a financial cost often associated with time or transportation. Therefore, a researcher should conduct a research that interests them.

Once the researcher gets into the setting of the group, it is important to create roles because who you are depends on how you act. A role that a researcher should not play includes being a spy. As an observer, it is important to be open minded as you go into the setting of your group. Research is not just about watching your group, but also sharing about you too and answering questions if your participants ask. Research consists of being a balance. Not being open minded can result in not having a positive relationship with your participants. When you balance out the relationship, you can be seen as an apprentice which is seen in a positive way. An apprentice is seen as someone who wants to learn and to be lifted upwards. This helps you gain more knowledge and leave the group on a positive note.

While conducting observations, the researcher should write short notes of the environment, participants, behaviors, and actions. It is important to look for differences and same patterns. After observations, a researcher should write out their notes as soon as possible so that they do not forget important details. The field notes should consist of thick descriptions to where the reader can imagine themselves there. The field notes should be in order of events and jotting down the time can help directly explain what went on at certain points.

Interview Summary

Furthermore, research interviews are crucial for qualitative research is research interviews. The research interviews focus on the interviewee's biography and experiences on a topic. The researcher often picks a topic that they are interested about in which is often not studied yet or has a historical background that prompts the interest to research. Once a topic is pick, they develop open ended questions. These questions will give the researcher more detail information. Another way to get details is to probe throughout the interview. When researchers want to study humans, they are required to submit their paperwork regarding topic, questions, proposals, potential harm, and other information to the Institutional Review Board (IRB). The purpose of the IRB is so that people are not harm during the research process.

To find participants, the research should look for organizations that could possibly be involved with the topic, pass flyers, or use social media. Some ways to interview the participant is through the use of technology, phone calls, and the old fashion way of face to face meeting. When it's time to set appointments, the researcher must be considerate of the best location, time, and date for their interviewee. Before an interview, the researcher needs to prepare all necessary documents and devices. An interviewer must inform the interviewee about confidentiality, informed consent form, recording, any potential harm, ability to stop the interview, and that there are not wrong answers. There should not be any leading questions which could make the participant feel uncomfortable or pressure.

The interview is more than just getting information from the participant, but also a social interaction between the research and participant. Therefore, it is important to develop a connection or rapport with the participants so that they will trust you. When they trust you, they are more comfortable with telling their story to you. If emotions are trigger during the interview, the research must stop and give the participant a break. Once the interview comes to an end, it is important to debrief with your participant. Go over the project and ask for any concerns or questions.

After the interview, it is important to transcribe the interview. With the advancement in technology, there are sites to help transcribe. However, they are not always accurate. Therefore, the research should go over the transcript for accuracy. Then, the researcher can put all the field notes togethers. Field notes consist of information like the place of interview, notes of common reactions, or anything relevant to the interview.

Content Analysis Summary

The data about your research topic may not only be found through interviews, but also through multiple sources such as articles, social media, and pictures. These other data contents can be of important use for a research project. To find content relevant to your topic through old documents, narrow down what your topic is about. Looking through historical documents may require some flexibility due to limited content about a subject. Some topics will have more historical information than others. However, the content of historical documentations is rich because it offers a perspective that may be totally different from the research you have acquired.

As for searching through newer content such as advertisements and magazines, can require some additional research and awareness. Often advertisements and magazines are propaganda meaning bias and appealing information to the media. However, these sources are good for topics such as studying how the culture of a society is presented. Another great resource is images which can explain life that may not have been recorded through documentation. However, the images could also under present a group because it could be a creation or product of an act. Moreover, images are important for it shows important features like location and action of that group.

After having all your data, it is time to evaluate your data to make sure it is the correct information. Analyzing will require a lot of rereading your data. Analyzing data gives answers and explanations about your topic. As you interpret your contents, it's crucial to go back and focus on the purpose of what you want to gain from your research. As you are analyzing your data, look for repetition in themes, actions, behaviors, and meaningful actions. Put this information into categories and label them accordingly to what it represents. These categories or also known as codes will help create a framework of the data you collected. These frameworks are used to make connections and interpretations of what the data means. After analyzing the data collected, it is time to validate what the data supports. This is where the researcher explains what they found in their research by explaining the significance of what their data represents.

Ethnography Paper- Methods

            The group meets once a week from 3:30pm to 5:00 pm. I was able to observe the group for two weeks. I was part of this group about five years ago. I am aware of some activities that can happen, but I do know that every day is a different day with different activities. I am playing the role of a Martian, an outsider joining the group for the full purpose of observing. Going into the meetings, I have to be open minded. I am there specifically for the purpose of observing. I will be looking out for the key informant who is the program coordinator. She will be guiding me and opening the doors to my observations. There is a lot of different interactions that occurs during one meeting. Therefore, I was able to obtain a lot of information. I observed for two conceptive meetings. The first meeting was on Wednesday, March 27 for one hour and 30 minutes which occurred in meeting room call the Donkey Kong. The next meeting was the following week on Wednesday, April 03 also for one hour and 30 minutes in a different room call the Halo.

            My observation consists of a lot of thick description on environment, participants, and interactions. I wrote my notes on a small notebook. When my hands hurt from writing, I would voice record myself explaining what was going on. I described the area of a room detailing size, shape, walls, chairs, and other things in the room so that the reader is able to picture oneself there. Through my observations, I was able to explain the different roles of the organization by the interactions. During the meeting in a close room, I observe how members act and prepare behind the screen. They are taught to introduce themselves before observing in a private setting like an office. In the front stage, they speak to others in a respectful attitude. Another concept I focused on is the definition of the situation to explain what was going on. Lastly, a very important concept that this group relies on is teamwork. The need for teamwork is so important to learn how to create videos, take pictures, and even brainstorm ideas.

            After the observations, I transcribe my notes. I listened to the few voice recordings of myself taking notes and wrote out the transcript. I put my short notes into sentences. To be able to categorize my observations with the concepts, I used the program call NVivo11 which helps analyze data. Through the use of NVivo11, I was able to put observations into the different concepts they fall in. I made a query which is an image showing the words that appears the most. The most common word was Amy, who is the made-up name of the program manager. She plays a big role in teaching and directing the group.

Analysis

Thick Description

The purpose of thick description is to give the reader a visualize of the place the writer is at as if the reader was there. Thick description is important because it can help explain behaviors of certain people or groups. During my observations, I try to be as detail as I can in hopes of catching patterns and other important contributing factors to the group. On March 27, 2019, it was my first observation of the group. I jot down thick description of the room for the first meeting I observed,

"The building is a newly remodel three level building in downtown Fresno. There is a coffee shop, meeting rooms, receptionist on the first floor, and business rooms. The group was in one of the meeting room call Donkey Kong Room located on first floor. The room was a long rectangle space with an oval shaped table and some white comfortable chairs with padding. There was a big flat screen TV in the front of the room with cords to connect to different devices such as a laptop. An Apple laptop was connected to the TV. "

 

I found myself sidetracked with the environment. It was a brand-new building and it was just so colorful and different with paintings and art everywhere. When I sat on the chairs, they were so comfortable and cushioned up. I just wanted to lean back. I observed some members leaning back in their chairs also. Being the guest, I did not want to be rude. Therefore, I sat up straight.

Right when I enter the room of the meeting, there was so much interactions going on. I observed,

"Upon arrival, the members were passing a jug of water around. They were pouring water into their plastic cups. There were so many snacks on the table. There were individual chips such as Lays, Cheetos, Cheez It, Scobie Doos, and Oreos. There were bigger packs of snacks such as trader Joe's cookies, popcorn, and animal crackers as well. "

 

 

All the members were chit chatting and snacking. As for the program manager was delighted with a smile on her face. Her red lipstick was noticeable with her big smile. It was a noisy environment with so much going on all at once. However, I was still able to have a conversation with the program manager while all the noises were going on.

When the group I observed walk down to the basement floor to the office of the group, I looked around to see what else was down there. All of the rooms had so much windows. I just followed the group till the stop at a door. This stop was one of the four doors to the entrance of their office. The office is shared with another nonprofit organization. I observed the entrance entering the room,

"Upon entrance of the door to the office, there was a table with some jolly ranchers, a fake plant, pens, magazines of the organization, and some stickers from the organization. The inside of the building also has walls that are white boards. It was one of the staff's birthday from the cake drawing and the phrase HAPPY BIRTHDAY GEORGE. Names have been changed. All the youth members are encouraged to draw or write on the walls. The room was not a normal rectangle or square shape. It was shape like the letter L with an additional horizontal section at the end of the L. "

 

Frontstage

Throughout my observation, I observed a lot of front stage interactions. Front stage is when an individual behaves in the expect behaviors of their position. Often, the frontstage consists of having to act professionally. It requires practice or even training for an individual to perform the behavior they are required too.

Through my observation, I was able to observe one of the members conducting her front stage. When we were in the basement floor, the collaborating program's supervisor was working at his desk in the office.  One of the member name Rain,

"inform him what she the assignment was and asked for permission to record him and for him to pretend he is on his laptop. In addition, Rain asked the supervisor to act serious and to focus on the laptop. "

 

Rain was performing her front stage as a youth reporter by telling the supervisor about her project. She asked the supervisor for his permission if she could record him. In addition, rain also told him what he needed to do.

Later on, during that meeting, I observed another act of a different member performing his role as a youth reporter as well. However, his performance was different because people have different ways of introductions. In addition, the member did not tell the worker how to act like what Rain did. The observation went like this,

"one member of the group introduced himself to the worker as a member of the group. He is conducting this type of video call a B-Roll. He asked the worker if he could videotape her making Amy's tea. He tells her that the video is just for practice purposes. "

 

It is important for the member to introduce himself and his role to her. In research, I learn the importance of informing the participant about telling about yourself also. It has to be a balance. In addition, he told her that the video is just for practice implying that nothing will be done to it.

A different position of front stage I observed was the worker at the coffee place. After making the drink, I observed,

"She covers the plastic cup with the lid and puts a straw on top of the lid in a horizontal position. She walks to the front of the counter and calls out Amy's name. Amy walks up to the counter and grabbed her drink and thank the worker. The worker said in return, you are welcome and have a good day. "

 

As a worker in customer service, it is important to leave a greeting at the end as well. In this instance, the worker told Amy to have a good day. By giving good customer service, the customers feel welcome and would have a higher chance of coming back.

Roles

Roles are the position that someone is in resulting to their actions and behaviors. People play roles all the time. Often, an individual has more than a few roles. In the group I observed, Amy who is the role manager who sits in the front with her laptop in front of her. Not only is she in charge of navigating the slide show, she is speaking and giving information to the group. I observed,

"Amy announced the upcoming events. There is the Art Hop event tomorrow, on April 4, 2019 in Downtown Fresno. One of the member's art is going to be showcase. Amy asked if any member needs a ride there. Then, the next upcoming event is on Saturday, April 06 at Avocado Lake. It is a park clean up and BBQ from 10:00am-2:00pm. Once again, Amy asked if anyone is going and will need a ride. "

Not only is there only one person in charge in the group, another role that is in charge of the program is the program coordinator name John. John also has a laptop with him. He talks to the group as well informing them what is going on. I observed,

"the next slide has the question "How far do young adults go to live in California?" John added, not to just live in California. But to live comfortably in California. John clicks the laptop for the next slide. John is in charge of this next section of the presentation. He is explaining about a grant received by the group. The group received a grant from a statewide collaboration along with another two media groups in California. In the next slide, lists the different topics that the group will focus on.

To begin with, John explains the first topic, which is education. He goes to the white board and writes down Topics for Youth Without a Roof and puts education under the title. He stands there to write all the topics that will be brainstorm throughout the meeting. "

 

Another observation is the worker at the coffee shop who plays different roles in her job. Her front stage behaviors consist of greeting the customers. She plays the role of a cashier. I observed,

"Amy is waiting in line at the counter. As the person in front of her finish ordering, it was Amy's turn. The worker smiled at Amy and greeted with a "Good afternoon; how can I help you today? "Amy told the worker her order of tea that she wanted. "

 

As a cashier, she is the one dealing with the customer. She takes the order and deals with the money transaction.  Often this role consists of greeting and giving the customer a smile.

Teamwork

Teamwork consists of two or more members in a group contributing to a task to get it done. Teamwork occurs in both front stage and backstage. In the front stage, where the acting is occurring, the team could all be assisting a customer at once. As for the backstage, it is where the preparation occurs. The team could help prepare to go out to the job or even just sit together and reflect. In the group I observed, teamwork is very important. It needs more than one person to get the task done. I observed,

"The group I observed had three females and one male. To being with, one member used her iPhone to record B-Rolls. Her name will be change to Alexa. Alexa videotaped the rest of the group sitting on a blue couch watching the Ellen show. She video tape from left to right direction. She slowly moves the phone but struggles with the slow movement and kept shaking her hand. She was frustrated with the shaking of her hands. She retakes the video three times. As she gets near the other three members, she walks closer towards them trying to get a closer view of the member's faces. "

In this example, the other three members are acting as if they are watching TV to help the fourth member record a scene.

An example of teamwork occurring in the backstage is the group brainstorming topics for the grant stories regarding the topic of rising cost of living in California. Without the members haring stories of what they heard, the team won't have topics developed. I observed,

"After going over these topics, the group brainstorms other topics that they can report on. The topics include: bisexual stigmas, housing costs around universities, trauma exposure, free mental health screenings for college students, mental health struggles-shock of college, high unemployment for college graduates, staying at home for college instead of going out of town to avoid debt, and jobs instead of college after high school. Alexa mentions how her college has a free mental health screening day. When they do have these days, the lines are long. She thinks they need more of these days. Rain mentions how students gets jobs to save money for college just to not go since college is still so expensive. "

 

Another frontstage teamwork I observed consists of the members working together to create a scene for the last member to practice filming. Teamwork is very important for the team because the work they do is safer in groups and more can be done. Having other members can help give the person I action create a better video.  I observed,

"The side belonging to the group had a tall table with two chairs. There was a small one seat sofa. Therefore, two of the group members sat on the table and another sat on the sofa. The one sitting on the sofa was reading a magazine. The two-member sitting on the tall table were engaging in a conversation. The last member, Jane videotaped this scene from right to left direction. "

 

Definition of the Situation

The definition of the situation is the meaning of a performance. The audience's impression on your action is important because it can help determine how well you conducted your part. Through my observation, I observed interactions that helped define the situation. One observation was,

"Rain did the video from right to left direction. The first try, she video tape from her chest height which was way too high to see the supervisor on his desk. Therefore, she took another clip and put the phone lower to her waist area to video tape. It was not comfortable. Therefore, Rain got down on one knee to be of similar length to the desk of the supervisor to get a better view and clip. "

 

The definition of this situation was that Rain was struggling to take a video at different heights. She tries a few times to adjust the level of the video recording to her comfort. When she dropped to one knee, I defined her situation as comfortable with a good angle of her performer acting. Even later when the video was play in front of the group, Amy pointed out that it was good that Rain adjusted the level of her recording to match the actor.

Another observation includes,

"Alexa conducted another B-Roll by using the floor as a support service to hold up the camera. Ray who is the male member in the group walks by with the dog. It took a few trials because the dog would wander in another direction. "

 

From the front view, you can see Alexa holding the camera onto the ground. But if you were to look at Alexa from the back view, all you see is her sitting down. Someone who would have saw her from her back view would define the situation as weird. They would think what is that grown lady doing sitting on the ground in the middle of the hallway. However, the definition of Alexa from the front view shows something totally different. The definition of Alexa using standing her phone horizontally on the ground was to use the ground to give her recording an even layout. Someone who has no information of what Alexa was doing would think of the situation of her putting her phone on the ground as a total different observation.

During the one of the meeting, we watched all the videos taken by every member. During the video and after the video, Amy would critique on what went well or could have been better. I observed a good critique on one of the videos made by the other group. It went like this,

"One of the videos shows the other group's video. One of the members videotaped while the other three walked down the stairs. The video tapper recorded far enough where you see all the members walking down the stairs until their heads were no longer showing. After watching the video, Amy mentions the importance of videotaping by having an enter frame and an exit frame. This was a great example of showing exit frame. Amy gave a thumbs up to the member who was recording this clip. "

 

In America, the thumbs up symbolizes something good, well done. For this situation, the member got a thumbs up for doing a good job with her recording. As for other countries, the thumbs up symbols mean something else. In some countries, the thumbs up symbol means the same as the middle finger in America. In this instance, Amy giving the thumbs up means that the member did a great job with videotaping show the participants leave together. It helps the video look better.

Conclusion

            Throughout this observation, I was able to get a glimpse of what goes on in the group now. As a guest, I felt very comfortable. The group was inviting, collaborative, and outspoken. In the first meeting, I observed the group leaving the backstage to go out into public to do a project. This project was focus on creating a type of video call B-Rolls. In the second meeting, I observed the group working together brainstorming ideas for a project. In both meetings, I was able to write thick descriptions and eventually analyze my observations into concepts that best fits. This observation will help my audience get a visualize of the importance of this group.

Interview Paper-Methods

            I attended the last thirty minutes of a meeting where I was able to once again introduce myself and my project. From there, I asked for volunteers to interview. One of the volunteers was someone I hoped to interview because I saw his passion and engagement in the group from the previous meetings. I will name him Ray. There was also another volunteer who happened to be with the organization for five years. Therefore, I thought he would be a great participant as well. From the pass meetings that I attended; he was unable to attend so I did not get much insight about him interactions in the group. I will name this second participant is Peter. The third participant has been a member for about a year and his name will be Brayden. After the meeting ended, I was able to interview Ray and Peter individually.

Before the interview, I greeted each participant and had a few words exchange about myself. After that, I explained the purpose of the interview again and that the interview would be recorded. I showed and explain the consent form to my participant. I asked my participant to sign the two consent forms if he agreed to them. I informed my participant that he keeps a consent form and I would keep the other. Then, I showed each participant my list of questions. After my participants acknowledges everything, I began the interview with each participant. This was the process I conducted with all three of my interviews.

            Although there was a list of questions, I did not go in the same order with the questions. It just depends on what the participant had to say. However, I did ask all the concept questions to each participant. The different concepts I used consists of roles, frontstage, backstage, performance, and self. After each interview, I transcribed the interviews. I used the website TEMI to transcribe two of the interviews. I had to listen to the interview and edit the transcripts at the same time. Some parts were transcribed totally wrong. For the most part, the transcripts were correct. After transcribing all the interviews, I put them together on one document to analyzed into nodes on NVIVO 11. In NVIVO 11, I was able to put quotes that pertain to a certain concept into that node. After completing all the nodes, I created word clouds for the whole transcript.

A challenged I faced was not being able to interview someone who I thought would be a great candidate. She has been part of the group for about eight years now. At the beginning, we communicated through text. At first, she seemed super interested. We had agreed to meet at the Fresno State library. She texted me that she may be running late that day. An hour pass, and there was no sign of her. No more texts came from her. I didn't want to text her again because I hate feeling like I'm disturbing her. I didn't want to be annoying for texting her after she said that she was running late. As a Fresno State student, I was able to rent a study room for only two hours a day. Time was running up so I just left a kind text saying that maybe we can meet another day. An hour later, she replied saying that she would be at the meeting the next day. We could do the interview there. When I went to the meeting the next day, she was not there. I contacted her if she was still interested and that we could meet another day. I never got a text back from her. When I was a part of the group, she was one of my peers. I figured she would have the most experience because the new program staffs are new to the program for about two years. It was disappointing, but research continues.

            Overall, my interviews went very well. I think I got a good chunk of information about the group. I was able to probe a lot. I think probing is one of my better strength. These interviews have helped me with my interview skills as well as understand the group I choose. Although all the participants I interviewed were youth journalists, they each gave me some different insight of their experiences in the organization.

Analysis

Roles

            One of the nodes I created was roles. Roles are important in each group because they help determine the required behaviors and actions of that individual. Every group has multiple roles because there are different statuses. In this group, there are youth journalists, program coordinator, and program manager. For these interviews, I focused on the youth members who all played a similar role in the group. Brayden explained his role as,

"So, I attend the weekly meetings. At these meetings, we do workshops. K they will like to show us examples and then we go out and do it. I do write articles too. That's mostly what everyone does. Usually we try to go to as many Art Hop events as we can."

 

            There are members who have been in the group longer than others. As mentioned, I interviewed Peter who has been a member of the group for five years. In addition, he mentioned that he is much older than other members. He is in his mid-twenties. Therefore, he feels like his roles are a bit different compare to the members who are in high school and early adulthood. He mentions his role as,

            "They vary. I like my role to kind of, now as I'm getting older in the program, I kind of just attending meetings a lot more and I like to get my feedback and I like to be a part of the camaraderie of the team because I feel like my opinion in my views on things are always valued here. But my role has varied over the years. I started off just writing articles about, how I feel and then my community. But it's also brought into an advocacy role where I'll go to events and give speeches and I'll speak about my community on behalf of my community. It's traveling, like you'll go to Sacramento or you'll go out of the state and, represent the youth group that we're a part of and have to carry yourself with a professionalism, a level of professionalism because we're representing where we're from and we're representing this group that has kind of taught us so much and it kind of guided us in a really good direction. "

 

            Lastly, the other participant is Ray who is very active in the group. In addition, he is older like the age of Peter. The roles he mentioned he conducts is as follow,

"My roles, it's like as I got a little bit older I try to, you know, just providing insight, just be supportive, you know, and I tried to just, I try to be an example by like constantly staying busy and constantly showing people like, Hey, if you put in that effort, you're going to get good results. Like I'm constantly trying to like, do these stories all the time. So just kind of lead by example. Not really a necessarily like, you know as like a mentor, but just to me, I do it."

           

            The roles of a youth member are similar in terms or writing articles, reporting, and attending community events. Sometimes some members are more engage than others. Those who have been there longer has obviously been more involve in events and writings. Not everyone can attend meetings every week. Therefore, those who can attend can take away more knowledge from the organization.

Self

            Often people join groups that they are passionate about. The self is known as a complex identity often containing components relating to an individual's beliefs and values. Often a person behaves depending on their values and beliefs. Since the self is always evolving, it grows and learn from experiences. When a person joins a group, so much can happen to the self. The self will learn to like or dislike the group. For those who realize the group is not for them, they take away a learning experience of not enjoying that group. In the future, that individual won't waste their time with other groups like it. For those who like a certain group, they learn as they continue their journey in that group.

              For Brayden, he had an interest in photography. His friend who told him about the group mentioned the group working with writing, videos, pictures, and another media work. Therefore, he wanted to join to hopefully acquire new skills and tips in photography. He mentions his self as a youth journalist as follow,

 "For me, being a youth journalist means to be able to show others my creative side. To show people what I am passionate about like photography and helping others. I usually take photos at these events. It is one of my hobbies that I just love to do. Just being able to showcase my skills is great feeling. Someday I want my pictures to end up in museums. I am passionate about helping others, so I like attending community or health fairs to see what other programs are out there for my community. I can spread the word about these programs to family or friends who may be struggling. "

 

            As for Peter, he mentions how he accidentally came across someone at an event who was in the group. As a new resident of Fresno, he was searching for something that he could relate too. He said it was like this moment was fate. Peter sees himself as,

"Yeah, it's just like it's a positive way for me to express, you know, like, um, like a perspective other than the typical older male, you know, like it, it gives it like a younger fresh perspective on things that are just not relevant. You know, like I said, like city council meetings that I've been to, uh, you know, it gives, it gives a better representation for younger people and people of color. "

 

            Lastly, there is Ray who accidentally came across this group when he was in another group. He mentioned his previous group had collaborated with the Justice Fighters to paint a mural on a small business grocery store in West Fresno. At the time, he didn't care much for the organization so he part ways. Eventually he met Peter again and Peter informed Ray that he should return to the group. When Ray part ways with the group, he faced some challenges and that inspired him to come back to the group. He describes himself as,

"So, to be, to be a youth journalist means to be kind of unafraid to speak your mind, to take chances and risks because there's a whole world out there that we're as young people still discovering. And there's a lot of stories to be told. And picking and choosing the right stories to tell. And the story is to avoid and learning along the way. Just how to hold your craft as far as a storyteller or journalists. "

 

Backstage

            Behind the scene, every group has to prepare to satisfy the duties and purpose of their group. Preparation occurs in the backstage, behind close curtains. It happens when the public do not see it. Often the backstage means the office of that organization. In this group, the office is in the Bitwise Building. Often, the meetings took place in a conference room in the building. The building has many conference rooms and different organization offices.

            Since not all members make it to every meeting, I asked each member what their experience of preparation is like. Brayden who has the least number of years in the group mentioned,

"Basically, the workshops prepare us. We learn how to take pictures, take videos and then edit it later. We learn how to talk in front of others. We get to practice with our peers on speech. I see it as being professional because we represent our group. "

           

            To further get a more detailed answer, I probed about what he meant by acting professional. Brayden replied,

"So just like a job, you dress nicer than usual. It's not required but I like to do that. I think it's about presentation. Just like wait till your turn to talk. Be nice and respectful of others. Talk in a nice loud tone. Not too loud, but you know, not too low where the person you are talking can't hear you."

 

            For Peter, who is there longer, his experience of preparation is way different. For Peter's experience, the way he learned to prepare to be a youth journalist is,

"Um, well like I said, they know the, the preparation comes in the form of trainings and the camaraderie it, it builds for me personally, it like how saint build confidence, you know, I've noticed a big change in confidence since I've started hanging around the kNOw. like I was very, you know, I still lacked self-confidence cause it's, it's a tough subject for people suffer from mental health issues but I'm just their camaraderie and an invitation and lovingness. Just as a really giving me confidence and confidence as we know is one of the best things that can help you do anything basically. "

 

            Although Peter has been with the organization for a long time, he still has that feeling of self-confidence. Sometimes it does not matter how many times he has done interviews or wrote articles; it is always a learning experience. The preparation is never ending for Peter.

            As for Ray, his experience of feeling prepared through the support of the staffs in the program. He mentions how sometimes he feels unprepared; he looks backs at what he has done and realized that he is prepared. He mentions,

"I realized just how prepared I have been and how much they prepped me in situations that I didn't think I'd be able to handle. Something as simple as being in a room full of like 20 people and I'll talking about a really heavy topic and being able to understand and being able to communicate properly in those kinds of environments. I feel like it's prepared. It's prepared me. And also, how do I say, you don't always know what you're getting yourself into, but this program kind of along the way you're learning, oh, this is what I learned, and this is, it's kind of like an epiphany moment a lot. Like, oh wait, I do know how to do this. I've done this, I've been prepared for this. And it's kind of just, it kind of hits you in the moment. Like, oh man, I didn't think I was as prepared as I am now. "

 

Frontstage

            As mention, every group prepares in the backstage. Preparation is needed so that an individual can present themselves to the public. The presentation of an individual in the public is known as the frontstage. This is also where the role is being played. As a youth journalist who has been with the group for a longer period, Peter explains his frontstage as,

"I try to just keep it professional and I let my face and who I am, cause I uh, you know, like loving little than not, but like come on, you're still consider a youth journalist. But like, you know, like a, as a good journalist, like I let my face be the either, hey I'm a youth journalist, but I left, I try to let my words and like how I present myself. Like, um, you know, I tried to dress, you know, decently. You don't always have to, but um, I like to let my words, you know, like be the final factor of like, hey this guy knows what he's talking about him, you know, he's well informed him. And then, but also my face still says like my face says it all that I am a youth journalist. "

 

            Although every participant has the same role as a youth journalist, everyone presents themselves differently. There are just different ways of people doing things. Ray explains himself in the frontstage as,

"I just present myself as me. I like to think I'm very just on the surface. I think of like very with my emotions and who I am, and I just let people know who I am, what I like to do. And I'm just a normal person from a community that isn't always as privileged as other communities. And I'm just here because I feel like it's my, my human duty to kind of provide and help my community and leave it a better place to when I was born into. "

 

            For Brayden, his introduction is a bit different too. He gives a broad explanation of informing others about his role, purpose, and organization. Therefore, I wanted a more detailed introduction of himself. Ray gives the following,

"My name is Ray. I am a youth journalist from The kNOw Youth Media. We are a youth journalist group in Fresno. We write about topics that interests us and we attend events like this one to report on the purpose and importance of the event. We are here today to see what this event is about and report on it. This interview is for the purpose of my article that I am going to write on this event. Is it okay if I interview you? "

 

            From the three interviews, all members inform the public about their roles which is very important. Often people want to know the purpose of your interview. Like what I learned in class, you have to give your participant information about yourself also. It should be a balance interview. Not only the participant giving you information about themselves.

Teamwork

            Teamwork is the action of at least two people working together to achieve a task. Teamwork occurs in all settings, including the backstage. Often, you as a person in the public can see teamwork occur in the frontstage. But there is also the backstage where the preparation occurs. There are many ways in which teamwork can occur from brainstorming to setting up. For the Justice Fighters, there is a lot of group work. While interviewing Peter, he gives an example of how teamwork can lead to an awesome result. He mentions,

"Well like, you know, like couple times would do photo projects and I remembered last, we're doing a video project actually last time and I'm, I came with a good idea and I had another person come in and like, I mean, like a really cool, we deal with, uh, you know, like, and then we all started like, it started off with my idea, then we all started like chipping in and then it became like this really dope video that if it wasn't for all of us pitching our ideas, it would have happened, you know? So, like I would say teamwork, he was just, uh, you know, just helping us to yield the best results."

 

            As for the interview with Ray, he mentions how teamwork is mostly about the group is about. To produce good outcomes, you need individuals putting in ideas and feedback. Feedback helps with what is going good and bad. Reporting is such a big role in the media. When you say something wrong, it can trigger a lot of reactions that may be negative. As a reporter, when you do something wrong, the whole group will look bad. Articles consists of many edits. Sometimes one person may miss a word spelled wrong. Ray said,

"Well, I think teamwork pays a big role in who we are just in general. I think without teamwork, I don't think any of us would be able to say we are our time as far as what are now teamwork is, is I think the most important part of what we do because we're stronger as a unit and when we support each other and help each other, we can get so much further than we can alone. And I think teamwork is teamwork is, is probably one of the strongest values that they hold here at this group."

 

            Then Brayden elaborates more on how the group is all about teamwork. He mentions how teamwork is very important in this group. It is the reason why the group is able to function and complete their tasks. Teamwork occurs in the backstage in the meetings and events. To get detailed examples of how teamwork occurs in a project, I asked Brayden for an example. He said,                    

"Yea, so like we do like video shots. So, we get divided into groups. Each member takes turn shooting a video. The other members like get in the video and act something out sometimes. Or if a member needs help video shooting, someone helps the member do it. "

 

Performance

            The performance is the act that is conducted by an individual in the frontstage. There are many ways to identify on how well or bad your act was. One way is the impression that your audience leaves. Facial impression can help determine what the audience feels. If a reporter asks a question and the participant does not understand it, the participant would have a confused look. Since the group conducts interviews and writes articles, I asked questions regarding how they know if their audience enjoys their piece and how they know if their presentation was not the best. Peter mentions,

"We post them on our website and our website allows people to log on and leave comments so you can get the feedback there. We also share our posts on Instagram and Twitter and Facebook. So, we get good feedback from the community there and it's real open a lot. A lot of times we get really positive feedback, but then you'll get some negative feedback and it's important to kind of not take that too seriously because if they don't know you personally, don't take it personal, but it's a, it's a really good feedback community as far as uh, what people are giving you comments on your work and then they really encouraging you to keep going."

           

            Furthermore, feedback can help a member determine what could have been better. Brayden talks about how social media is the way for public to give feedback. However, feedback is given from the group members and staff also. After a project or experiment is complete, the group gathers back together to show everyone their part. As they observe each experiment, the group can give input and how their project turned out. Brayden explains,

                       

"Usually we have it edited by Kody and them. They give me feedback. Sometimes I have my peers from the group or other friends read it. We have the papers posted up too. So, people can commit whatever they want. Sometimes I get nice feedback and sometimes it's not. Honestly, I'm a bad writer. I'm not that great so most of the time I sense like my papers not that great. For interviews, I think most of the time it is okay. It's bad if I forget what I am going to ask next. I feel like if I did not get a lot of information from my interview, it's a bad interview to me. I can't really use it."

 

            Lastly, Ray mentions how he knows when his performance is not the best. He mentions there are times he could have said or ask a certain question. From these experiences, he learns from it and use it for next time. Ray said,

"I think you can kind of just feel when you've done something, not correct or when you feel you could've done it better. I never liked to use the term bad. I always like to say like, you could have done better at that, but there are times where I felt I didn't do my best and I, and I didn't like what I wrote or, I need to learn how to fix that next time and do better or I need to learn how to word things better sometimes."

 

            Performance is important because it is a representation of yourself. Sometimes you can feel yourself not doing such a good job with your performance like what Ray mention. Other times, people inform you like the public who can leave comments on the articles that the youth journalists write.

Content Analysis - Methods

            All of my documents were found through the website of my group. In addition, a few articles were on the social media websites of the organization. I found it relatively easy to access my articles. The only difficult part was actually going through the articles to see which ones the best fit into my nodes were. I copied the article onto a Word document where I was able to insert into NVivo. I used NVivo to code the different notes for my paper. The nodes consist of collective action frame, diagnosis, prognosis, motivation, and identity. Each of these nodes help me better understand my group. I was able to get a deeper understanding of the injustice that the group is trying to fight against.

Analysis

Collective Action Frames

            To begin with, the first node I used is collective action frames. Collective action frames are the group trying to persuade you to believe in what they do. It is the group explaining how they can get an outsider to see the world through how they see it. They are trying to tell an outsider what the problem is. The collective action frames help the outsiders understand the purpose of the group's work. One the website of the group, a part of the statement regarding their history is a good example of collective action frame about the group. It states,

"Through our program, we create opportunities for our youth participants, who in turn create long-term positive change in their communities. Our approach weaves youth development and youth media innovation to produce our biannual youth publication, multimedia projects, and community forums. "

 

            This statement from part of their history frames the group as a youth organization to help them have a voice through for their community. One way for their youth to express themselves is through the publication of articles the youth produce that is publish on their newspaper as well as socical media websites. The statement frames the group as a great program for youth to make good changes in their community. This statement can help get people to be involve in their group. Involvement is something that collective action framing tries to persuade the public.  Furthermore, the group explains more about the bigger organizations that the youth group is under. The piece mentions,

"The kNOw exists through the generous support of The California Endowment, which is funding a 10-year, $1 billion program called Building Healthy Communities. 14 communities across the state are taking action to make where they live healthier. They're doing this by improving employment opportunities, education, housing, neighborhood safety, unhealthy environmental conditions, access to healthy foods and more. The goal: to create places where children are healthy, safe and ready to learn. Ultimately, they are aiming at nothing less than a revolution in the way all of us think about and support health for all Californians.

The California Endowment is a foundation committed to improving the health of all Californians, especially those in underserved communities. They've made thousands of grants since 1996, and the most important thing they've learned is that our health doesn't begin in a doctor's office. Where we live has an enormous impact on our health. Being able to breathe clean air, to send our kids to school without fear of violence, to have a convenient place to buy fresh foods, to live near a park where we can walk and play – these are the things that prevent us from getting sick in the first place. We are a proud partner of Fresno Building Healthy Communities."  

 

This statement informs the reader that the group cares about the welfare of people living in California. This group contributes to help the problems in our community such as cleaning the air and the need for parks. They do advocacy for the community which is needed to bring changes.

This group also writes articles on important issues that youth or others in the community have done to contribute to a better healthier community. An article written by the program coordinator is about a teenager who invented a device to detect the air quality. This piece is an example of the group framing what else the group does to further inform the public on issues in the community. One of the issues is the horrible bad air quality in West Fresno area where many companies are built. In the piece, the male name Kieshaun mentions how,

"If it smells that bad, what is it doing to our bodies? "As he pondered that question, he noticed something about many residents of Southwest Fresno, including himself. They all suffered from respiratory issues such as asthma and lung disease, as well as cardiovascular disease, due to the bad air quality and pollution that surrounds the area. For the past year and a half, White, along with his mentor Marcel Woodruff from Fresno Boys and Men of Color, have been working hard on a project that measures pollutants in both North and South Fresno to show that there are higher levels of pollution affecting people's health in South Fresno than in North Fresno."

 

From this article, the curiosity of a young man led to a great development. This is what the group is about. As you come upon an issue impacting the welfare of your community, what can you do to make a difference.

Diagnosis

            The diagnosis frame helps focus on the injustice in which the group is fighting. My group is a youth journalist group fighting all kinds of social injustice in the Fresno community and within the state of California. There are times where they raise awareness about problems that may affect the nation or even the world. They are trying to solve a lot of problems. Some social inequality issues that they discuss about is LGBTQ community, bad air quality, DACA, immigration, homelessness, racism, and gender inequality. A recent article is about how prisons are taking away our youth, especially the men of color. It mentions,

"since 1980, California had built just one University and 22 prisons. During this time, I also found out that, on an annual basis, California had spent $9,100 per student in the public-school system and $62,300 per inmate – which is funded through tax dollars.

locking up bad guys who happened to be black or brown, but that the industry is consistently targeting a specific population with the intention of making a fortune for privately owned entities. "

            The system is corrupted in which instead of funding education programs and creating more universities, we create prisons for our future generations. When there are prisons that are for profit, the only way to make money is to keep more criminals in. Even if that means the crime is a theft or drug passion crime. Most of all, it swallows our men of color. Not the white men, the black and brown men. They are the ones receiving long sentences to benefit the system. Prison is free labor, it's slavery. This is just one of the thousands of problems that needs to be fix. This is why this group works so hard to bring awareness to the public.

            Another topic written by a member herself is about her experience of bullying in school. It seems like the cases on bullying has only increased within the years. All over social media and news media some an instance of bullying and a lack of help from school districts. She wrote,

"I told the school counselor. Two days later, we were both called to the office and we were spoken to, separately. The other girl convinced the counselor that the bullying was over, and he believed her. He told me it was all resolved, and sent me on my way. But it wasn't over. The name calling and taunting kept up. I felt helpless since the school administration didn't seem interested in or able to fix it. Eventually, the other girl and I got into a fight. We were both suspended and shortly thereafter the school year came to a close."

            Students come to school to learn. They are supposed to be protected and feel safe. But what happens when students do not feel safe. They do not want to come to school to avoid fights and other altercations. They put their education on hold. In this instance, this reporter transferred school which worked for her. However, not all students are able to transfer school. Even her mom tried to get involved. Yet it seemed impossible to make an appointment with the counselor. It is issues like this impacting our children and their well-being that motivates writers to share their stories.

            Moreover, there are more problems in the school system that needs to be fix. For Fresno, a city with a rich diversity of cultures, it is not surprising to encounter people speaking other languages. For some parents, they don't have much or any English language speaking knowledge. A group of refugees who came to America due to helping America in Vietnam War is the Hmong. For many Hmong families in Fresno, there is a language barrier conflicting them to help their children in school. The article mentions,

"A lack of Hmong speakers on school faculties and staffs, said the parents, is a major cause of the poor, or nonexistent, communication between schools and Hmong families. Without designated translators or people who can step in to fill the gap informally, parents said they felt they often miss out on large parts of their children's education, such as not being able to attend parent teacher conference meetings, or missing general announcements made by the school."

 

            Parents want the best for their children to succeed academically. For some students, they are first generation students creating more barriers to success. The students who are unaware of how to apply for college. Parents may not fully understand financial aid, loans, and other college information. They may be unaware of back to school, field trips, events at the school, or how to help their children with homework. When there is no translator to explain not parents what is going on, how are they supposed to help their children. This is an extra barrier. You would think that a school district would be smart enough to provide these services. This is another example of how advocating is needed in the school systems.

Prognosis

            The prognosis is the solution to help solve the problem. They try to draw people into their group. They want people to join their group. This is about what the group is doing and what they are accomplishing. The prognosis is all the accomplishments that the group has done. In my group, they write about these issues to further inform the public. They go to events to advocate on behalf of social problems. For example, an article written from the program coordinator is about the need for parks in Fresno. The article explained that Fresno lacked park maintenace and lack the number of parks. Therefore,

"Fresno for Parks is a coalition of Fresno residents and community leaders who advocate for safer and cleaner parks for all Fresnans. They are committed to finding a solution to improve the current status of parks, trails and facilities, while creating parks in neighborhoods that lack access to them.       

The group is currently working on an initiative that aims to let voters choose a 3/8-cent sales tax in the City of Fresno on the November ballot, with funding primarily dedicated to clean and safe parks. The measure would raise approximately $37.5 million annually for 30 years, costing an average of only $39 per household."

          The article included all the places in Fresno where a citizen could go and sign the petition. The lack of park is a big problem in Fresno. Especially in certain parts of town like West Fresno where parks are dirty and filled with homeless encampments. Thus, resulting in children and families unable to enjoy some quality time outside to stay active.

          Another topic that the group advocate on is the need to vote. Young adults are one of the smallest turn out group for voting. Yet, they like to complain when gas prices go up because a bill becomes law. Although people think that their vote does not count in the presidential election, which is true at times. Their votes matter in state elections. Just like how recently the gas act passed in California and now gas prices are around $4.00 a gallon. A youth member mentions the importance of voting by saying,

" To be an active voter means to take part in all elections, not only the presidential election. If you wish to change your community for the better, to improve not only your life but the lives of others, or advocate for a cause you strongly believe in, then voting is the way to go. With the midterm election only days away, it is important you act now. If you don't speak out and voice your concerns or vote on what matters to you, then you can't complain."

Furthermore, another issue big issue affecting not just people in the Fresno area, but the whole word is global warming. Global warming is at its worse. Many animals are going into extinction. The ice in the Antarctic are melting at a fast rate. A member of the youth group who is concern about this issue wrote an article regarding how young people can help take care for the environment. It is our future, so we must care for it. The article mentions,

"The cars of a big city like Fresno greatly contribute to the poor air quality in our area. Another great contributor to our air quality is the valley's geography. Fresno is surrounded by mountains that cause smog to accumulate here.

There are many ways in which young adults can help take care of the environment. They can ride a bike, take a bus, and even carpool to prevent the air from being so polluted. Young adults can go outdoor and spend time with nature. If they come across trash, they can help pick it up. In addition, they should be aware to not litter. "

 

There are many problems in the community. Whether they are school, environment, government, or community related, there are solutions. With solutions, can come new changes to help better the world for us all.

Motivation

            The motivation is the group informing others why they should care about an issue. The motivation explains why the group does what they do. It explains their mission statement. This is an encouragement to inform others why they too should act into their own hands. Behind every project, is a reason why someone is doing it. Even if that reasons means to get a grade for their school project. One of the articles discusses about the STOP ordinance, it mentions,

"STOP (Safe Transfer of Objects to Pedestrians), a proposed ordinance by Council President Steve Brandau to fine drivers who give donations to panhandlers at intersections. The ordinance would fine drivers who give any kind of donation from money to food and blankets to pedestrians standing at marked intersections. There would be a 200-yard policy where the driver could pull over and give the donation without penalty. The fines collected, which range from $75 for the first offense, $150 for a second offense and $300 for each subsequent within 6 months, would be reinvested in traffic safety improvements. "

 

            Although the supporting council members argue that this ordinance is for safety concerns, is that the truth. What if the truth was it is trying to prevent kind people from helping the poor? It is proposals like this that stirs the fire in people. It brings them together to fight for a cause. People going to the city council meeting to discuss their feelings and inform councilmembers that the fight does not end.

            Furthermore, other issues concerning the members is the environment. Over the years, lakes and rivers have been shrinking. This is due to the drought that California has been in for years. Due to a lack of rain, there has been a shortage of water. In addition, the decision to share the San Joaquin River with the ocean and farming has resulted in the river getting smaller. Members urge the important of saving our rivers not just for us, but for future generations as well. They mention,

"Many people hear the rhetoric of "fish verses farm," but to actually see and experience the river, and to see families enjoy it, makes it difficult to argue against it. It offers the health benefits of getting outdoors and being active, along with the pride of an improved quality of life through a developed river with trails, parks and activity around it. The world would be a lesser place if we lost mighty rivers such as this one."

 

            Moreover, another issue that motivates the members to keep writing and to spread the information is schools failing students of color. The rate of color of students getting suspended or excelled is much higher than the white students or other race groups. Especially the African America group is definitely a lot bigger. Sometimes, the reasons for the suspension or expulsion is ridiculous. The article mentions,

"Last year California's schools suspended more than 240,000 students, mainly for being defiant. "Defiant" is a term that gets used and abused in our schools. Respect must be earned and, in the event that someone – in this case a teacher or staff member – isn't helping you or treating a student with respect, then that student should have the rights to express his/her disliking of that treatment within reason.

For example, if a teacher were to yell at and/or violate a student's personal space, once it goes to administration, it's no longer a two-sided story. It's the teacher's word over the student's.

Nine times out of 10, the teacher's word wins. So, students believe they're powerless against their teachers and this only encourages them to continue to act out. "

 

Identity

            The identity is about the members that are part of the group. There are some similar characteristics that people in the group share. For instance, my group shares the same characteristics of wanting to advocate for a better and healthier community. Each member in this group is unique in their own way. They have their own identity. Often, members in this group joined the group because they face some type of inequality in their life. The members in this group consists of high school students to young adults. Each one of them has their own story. However, each of them through writing, explain their identity that led them to become a member of the group. The history of the page mention,

"Through our program, we create opportunities for our youth participants, who in turn create long-term positive change in their communities. Our approach weaves youth development and youth media innovation to produce our biannual youth publication, multimedia projects, and community forums. "

 

          In the social media platform, there is also another quote summarizing what a youth member is about in the group. It is similar to the previous quote. However, this one is more detailed in what members of the groups can get out of here. Besides being part of the group to learn about writing, journalism, and other media techniques, there is the part of support here. Anyone is welcome to come and feel welcome and not get judge. The article says,

"We are a youth-led media program with a mission to bring young people in Fresno together to do, learn, and create media as a way to help youth tell their stories, express their ideas, share their concerns, find support, talk about community issues, and most importantly, to build a youth-driven voice in the community. We publish a magazine twice a year and produce videos that get aired on KSEE24. "

 

            Furthermore, to recruit for more members, the group posted flyers with characteristics of some activities that the group does that may interest other people. The flyer consists of the logos of the group along with the contact information of the program manager. It is clear about what someone who would like to write stories can come do there and get paid. The statement on the flyer says as follow,

"Want to tell your story? Interested in media work? Want to get your work published? Contact us now! Get training, get published, get paid!"

 

            This statement on the flyers is short yet concise with the purpose of the group. It explains the advantages of what you can take from the organization. It is not only about expression concerns but learning new techniques and also getting paid.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bibliography

Cain, Cindy L. "Integrating Dark Humor and Compassion: Identities and Presentations of Self in

the Front and Back Regions of Hospice," Journal of Contemporary Ethnography 41.6

(2012): 668-94. Web.

Dillon, Michele. "Introduction to Sociological Theory: Theorists, Concepts, and Their

Applicability to the Twenty-First Century." chapter 8 in Symbolic Interactionism, John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/csufresno/detail.action?docID=1566387.

Sandstorm, Kent, et. al. "The Nature and Significance of the Self." chapter 4 in Symbols

Selves and Social Reality, 2nd ed. 2006.

 

Karner, Tracy Xavia and Carol A. B. Warren. "Discovering Qualitative Methods: Ethnography,

Interviews, Documents, and Images, Third Edition." 2014.