The National Mall in Washington DC has become an “encyclopaedia of American history,” however conspicuous in its absence, is the history of African American slavery upon which this national artifact was built. Slavery may not be cause for celebration as one of America`s proudest moments, however its history is critical to understanding the history of America and why the deep-seated antagonism between the races continues to exist within its very core. The purpose of the thesis is to focus on this aspect of American history in order to design an appropriate memorial that would satisfy this gap between this history and its recognition on the National Mall. Secondly, the slave memorial intends to honour the victims of slavery who have been largely ignored, trivialized, or misrepresented by the few memorials in Washington that claim to address their memory. A major portion of this thesis constitutes a mapping of the memorials and monuments of Washington DC in an attempt to understand how the capital has come to embody the “national identity” of the United States. The thesis also contains a summarized history of slavery and racial tension in the United States. This material is included in the thesis in order to remind us of the depth and seriousness of the history that the slave memorial must address through its built, architectural form.

The National Mall in Washington DC has become an “encyclopaedia of American history,” however conspicuous in its absence, is the history of African American slavery upon which this national artifact was built. Slavery may not be cause for celebration as one of America`s proudest moments, however its history is critical to understanding the history of America and why the deep-seated antagonism between the races continues to exist within its very core. The purpose of the thesis is to focus on this aspect of American history in order to design an appropriate memorial that would satisfy this gap between this history and its recognition on the National Mall. Secondly, the slave memorial intends to honour the victims of slavery who have been largely ignored, trivialized, or misrepresented by the few memorials in Washington that claim to address their memory. A major portion of this thesis constitutes a mapping of the memorials and monuments of Washington DC in an attempt to understand how the capital has come to embody the “national identity” of the United States. The thesis also contains a summarized history of slavery and racial tension in the United States. This material is included in the thesis in order to remind us of the depth and seriousness of the history that the slave memorial must address through its built, architectural form.

The thesis aims to chart the relations of the EU and NATO through the case of Afghanistan. It examines the role of ISAF in conjunction with PRTs and EUPOL to evaluate the relations between the EU and NATO. The involvement of the ISAF and EUPOL missions from their establishment to evolution and the limitations of both missions in accordance with the management of the US in the &ldquo / War on Terror&rdquo / are examined. The implications of American policies on the missions of both parties are explored, from the first term of Bush to the Obama administration. The thesis argues that while there has been cooperation between the EU and NATO without structural cooperation, thus being ad hoc cooperation, the US has been benefiting from this cooperation from the second term of the Bush administration to the Obama administration, thereby rehabilitating the tense relations between the EU and the US. In the final analysis, it may be said that this cooperation did not result in a success story in the case of Afghanistan.

The purpose of this qualitative framing study is to analyze the dominant frames that were reflected in the news coverage of two separate Presidential speeches marking the proposed cessation of combat operations in Operation Iraqi Freedom. In order to determine which frames emerged in the coverage of each speech, a content analysis of 105 thesiss from 4 national newspapers was conducted. Analysis included the week preceding and the week following each speech in an effort to capture the immediate coverage surrounding each address. The findings suggest that the dominate frames utilized were the economic consequences frame, the responsibility frame and the human interest frame. The use of these three frames demonstrates that the press finds comfort in using previously identified frames in its coverage of key events. While there were specific incidents where press coverage veered from the narrative depicted by each presidential administration, these can be viewed as the exception rather than the norm. Beyond these 105 thesiss, the results of this study cannot be generalized, but they can be viewed as an exemplar of the media's view of these presidential addresses.

Drawing on critical race theory, racial formation theory and the extant literature on the so-called post-racial turn in American life, this research explored the broad question of how young people of color make sense of issues of race and equity in the era of the first Black president. Using a case study design, as well as elements of visual research methods and narrative inquiry, I examined how a group of high school students of color at a predominantly White high school have learned about race and Obama, considering both formal school curricula and out-of school sources. I also sought to understand what significance the students placed on president Obama’s election, including their views on racial progress in the U.S. and their beliefs in the plausibility of a post-racial American era. Through the collection and analysis of interview, classroom observation, and artifact data, my findings suggest that schools can be unfriendly spaces for learning about these topics, but students pick up rich, though scattered, information through out-of-school sources such as family, community, and media. Additionally, students exhibited contradictory beliefs about race in America, with experiences of racial marginalization at school juxtaposed with measured optimism about racial progress in the U.S. Students also expressed personal inspiration in having a Black president and a willingness to hold multiple, competing narratives about race, Barack Obama, and their own lived experiences. These findings suggest a need for history and social studies teachers to provide formal curricular spaces for open discussion about race and President Obama to allow students to discuss and extend their multiple Obama narratives. Researchers must also consider the hybridized racial stories of both students of color and of the 44th president. / text

This study aims to contribute to the understanding of ideology conveyed by lexical items and framing of texts. Since ideology is embedded in language the frames used in newspapers construct a narrow ideological perspective for the readers to interpret subjects and events through. On the basis of editorials from The Washington Post and The Washington Times that cover President Barack Obama, the study examines how the editorials differ in their framing of Obama and which discourses and keywords occur unusually frequently in each newspaper. Findings suggest that when it comes to framing, The Washington Post allows for a relatively balanced perspective on Obama as they both support and criticise him, while The Washington Times overwhelmingly condemns and attacks Obama. A keyword analysis points to unusually frequent discourses on race, conservatives and reforms in The Washington Post, and spending, unemployment and political institutions in The Washington Times. Because of their ideological differences the newspapers construct a reality where the subject, Obama, is presented in very different ways.

En arrivant à la Maison-Blanche en 2008, Barack Obama promettait de s'attaquer de manière décisive aux changements climatiques. En plus de proposer une politique climatique ambitieuse, le nouveau président articulait cette politique de façon originale. En effet, il la présentait comme étant un moyen de satisfaire les intérêts économiques et sécuritaires des États-Unis. Certains auteurs ont suggéré qu'en adoptant une telle conception de la lutte aux changements climatiques, Obama se serait en fait approprié un discours environnemental particulier, celui de la modernisation écologique. Ce discours avance l'idée selon laquelle les enjeux environnementaux et économiques sont compatibles. Bien que l'hypothèse de ces auteurs s'avère intéressante, elle n'a jamais été démontrée de manière rigoureuse dans la littérature scientifique. Ce mémoire cherche à combler ce vide en posant la question suivante : « Dans quelle mesure le discours environnemental tenu par Barack Obama durant son premier mandat à propos des changements climatiques peut-il être apparenté à celui de la modernisation écologique? ». La thèse avancée est que même si durant la campagne présidentielle de 2008 et au début de son mandat son discours environnemental présentait quelques idées centrales de la modernisation écologique, celles-ci apparaissaient de moins en moins souvent dans son discours à partir de 2010, et ce, jusqu'aux élections de 2012. Afin de démontrer cette proposition, une analyse de discours d'un corpus de dix textes a été réalisée. La comparaison des résultats de cet exercice a permis de constater que le discours environnemental d'Obama cadrait effectivement au début de ses quatre années au pouvoir avec la modernisation écologique, mais que celle-ci a ensuite perdu en importance dans les propos de l'occupant de la Maison-Blanche. De plus, vers la fin de son mandat, Obama a embrassé le discours prométhéen, soit un discours qui prétend que la protection de l'environnement ne peut que nuire à la prospérité économique et qu'il faut donc prioriser cette dernière. Enfin, il a été démontré que l'échec du Sénat à adopter l'American Power Act de 2010, les élections de mi-mandat de 2010 ainsi qu'une série de circonstances s'étant produites en 2011 permettraient en partie d'expliquer l'évolution de discours du président. ______________________________________________________________________________ MOTS-CLÉS DE L’AUTEUR : changements climatiques, modernisation écologique, Barack Obama, analyse de discours, États-Unis

This thesis presents the shortcomings of the Fair Use exemption within the Copyright Act through an in depth analysis of the recent Shepard Fairey v. Associated Press surrounding the well-regarded Hope Poster. The thesis critiques the unpredictability of the law, the copyright holder’s growing sense of monopolized ownership over her or his work, the complex facets of art that are overlooked in the court’s legal analysis, and finally, the social justice implications of the Copyright Act. The thesis argues that Fair Use should make room for appropriation art, otherwise successful and progressive artists, such as Shepard Fairey, will be discouraged from creating.

United States President Barack Obama issued an Executive order on November 20, 2014 to implement new law regarding the American immigration system and deportations. The system has long been skewed, and a polarizing issue among both the general public and of those involved in the United States government. Obama, by issuing this decree, created a law on his own due to congressional deadlock in creating and passing immigration reform legislation. However, the constitutionality of his decision to do so has now become highly debated, with many officials and academics across the country asserting their beliefs in his legal ability to issue the order. The ability to create laws is explicitly prescribed to the Legislative branch in the Constitution, but there have been past examples of Executive authority being necessary so as to preserve the Union and allow the government to continue. This thesis will examine the constitutionality of Obama’s Executive decree and the potential precedent that it will set for future Presidents by analyzing it within the context of John Locke, the original proprietor for the rule of law, James Madison, the father of the United States Constitution and separation of powers system, Alexander Hamilton, the forthcoming advocate for an energetic Executive of the Founding Fathers, the Abraham Lincoln presidency, which involved the crisis known as the Civil War, and the George W. Bush presidency, widely known as one of the most polarizing constitutional presidencies in American history. When looking at these past examples it becomes clear that Barack Obama overstepped his place in the government with no existential crisis threatening the nation, therefore setting a dangerous precedent for future Executive’s as well as damaging the force of the separation of powers system.

An ongoing debate surrounds the question of whether digital media can promote participatory democracy. A qualitative case study was conducted on Barack Obama’s campaign social networking site, my.barackobama.com, in order to investigate the ways in which the website promotes or discourages participatory democracy. For a rich analysis, the case study drew on various relevant theoretical perspectives, including the concepts of participatory democracy and digital democracy. The case study included a content analysis of the website and interviews with members of groups on the site. The study found that my.barackobama.com promoted political knowledge and non-electoral participation, but failed to promote political discussion and community. Consequently, the recommendations highlighted the importance of an online public sphere. The findings of this case study add to the research literature about the political use of digital media, and they also add new information about Barack Obama’s digital media strategies.