EXCELSIOR, Issue 4

EXCELSIOR ROOSEVELT INSTITUTE @ GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY Issue 4 // 2016

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Disclaimer The views and opinions expressed in the articles that form this publication are those of their respective authors and do not necessarily reflect the position of Georgetown University. The authors of the articles retain full rights of their writings and are free to disseminate them as they see fit, including but not limited to reproductions in print and websites. GURI does not endorse, warrant, or otherwise take responsibility for the contents of the articles.

Anashua Dutta Editor-in-Chief // 2015-2016

Letter from the Editor As I sat down to write this letter, I found myself struggling to identify a common theme tying together the policy pieces featured in the fourth edition of EXCELSIOR. Roosevelt@Georgetown members made policy recommendations on topics ranging from prison reform to immigrants’ rights to affordable housing right here in D.C. Our incredible peers at King’s College London contributed pieces which provide a first-hand look at the pressing issues facing the United Kingdom and the European Union. I soon realized that though the recommendations in this publication differ widely in terms of content, they all share a commitment to using policy as a tool to achieve greater inclusivity and justice in our local, regional, and global communities.

I cannot go any further without extending my thanks to the team of individuals that contributed to EXCELSIOR: to my editorial board, Anna Nesterova and Sabrina Romulo, for their tireless efforts editing and designing and for their patience with me as I attempt-

ed to navigate InDesign; to Sharanya, for her constant support throughout the publication process; to the Roosevelt community for their willingness to translate brilliant ideas into thoughtful policy; and to our readers, for playing their parts in extending our policy conversation from this journal’s pages to the world around them.

It is more important than ever that we take our place in the ongoing debates about the issues confronting our communities at this time when divisive rhetoric and feelings of uncertainty are manifesting themselves in our national consciousness. Reading these policy pieces, I am optimistic and enthusiastic about seeing many of these recommendations translated into action. I hope you are too.

Sharanya Sriram President // 2015-2016

A Word from the President “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” – Eleanor Roosevelt The Roosevelt Institute @ Georgetown University plays a unique role in shaping policy dialogue on campus and nationwide.

Through our dynamic policy centers, we produce fresh and relevant ideas regarding the pressing domestic policy issues of the day. I have had the incredible opportunity of leading this committed group of individuals in analytical discussions and idea generation revolving around the 2016 presidential election, where policy stances and proposals really come to the forefront of American politics.

As a growing organization, Roosevelt @ Georgetown is constantly seeking ways to expand our community influence, both through policy and advocacy. This year, we have initialized various impact projects – extensions of members’ policy ideas, shaped to be implemented in local and domestic legislation. Through Roosevelt, I am constantly impressed by the power

of the college student’s mind; the innovative ideas, policies, and projects born from our discussions are inspiring and bode well for domestic politics in the coming years.

I want to extend congratulations to Anashua and her editorial board for successfully completing a beautiful edition of EXCELSIOR. I thank the entire Roosevelt board for their commitment and dedication to writing, editing, and composing this policy journal. Finally, I am excited to announce that we have inaugurated our partnership with peers at the King’s College London’s Think Tank. We are excited to present their innovative policy ideas in this issue.

I am so proud of Roosevelt @ Georgetown’s fourth edition of EXCELSIOR, and I look forward to seeing the organization expand in the future.

Thank you for supporting EXCELSIOR; we sincerely hope you enjoy the publication.

SE&DIPLOMACY DEFENSE&DI DEFENSE&DIPLOMACY DEF

IPLOMAcy Defense&diplo FENSE&DIPLOMAcy Defens

Defense & Diplomacy

Migrant Laborers in the GCC: Preventing A Modern Day Slave-Trade

Laura Pedersen (SFS‘19)

The rapidly growing economies of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) are heavily dependent on Southeast Asian migrant laborers, and while this relationship can ideally be mutually beneficial, a lack of government regulation often leads to abuse of laborers. The international community should therefore foster a system that protects Southeast Asian migrant laborers working in the Middle East to create a system that benefits both parties The GCC is composed of the oil-rich gulf states of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. The area includes some of the wealthiest states in the world which possess large service sectors and undergo constant infrastructure developments as a result of this wealth.

However, these projects are entirely dependent upon migrant laborers, with an estimated 15 million migrant laborers in a region that only has a population of 51 million.š These 15 million migrant laborers make up approximately two-thirds of the labor force throughout the Gulf, rendering GCC states economically dependent upon foreign laborers.

Local governments do little to protect the laborers and many laborers often find themselves without any resources as they are drawn into harmful working conditions. While many governments have claimed to enact reforms to protect workers, the reality is that laborers still have no guarantees for work protection, safe living conditions, minimum wages,

freedom of movement, or days off from work. These conditions are coupled with the mentality that migrant laborers are subhumans. For example, domestic workers in Saudi Arabia work on average 63.7 hours a week and Dubai’s reports for the number of deaths at construction sites are assumed to be grossly underestimated – a fallacious calculation which provides no domestic incentives to change the system. As a result, changes to the system must be initiated by the international community rather than by the governments of GCC states.

The goal of this policy recommendation is to transform the relationship between the Gulf economies and the migrant laborers into one that is beneficial to both parties. The Gulf’s dependence on migrant laborers dictates that removing these laborers would destroy the economy. Additionally, for laborers that end up in beneficial work relationships, the higher income can drastically improve the living conditions and education supplied to the family, thereby allowing the family to break out of the poverty cycle that usually forces individuals into becoming migrant laborers.

The policy has three tiers: First, origin countries must create agencies to foster awareness about the working climate in the GCC states. Following this, the international community should urge civil society actors to establish non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in GCC states which would provide resources to migrant laborers. In the long run, these NGOs could foster governmental reform of working conditions for migrant laborers in the Gulf region.

The initial step involves working with domestic governments to inform potential migrant laborers about the labor conditions in GCC countries. Many laborers enter the GCC states expecting well-paid jobs and higher standards of living relative to their countries of origin, but are instead settled in labor camps and placed in labor-intensive industries.4

By providing information to origin countries about the risks of employment in the Gulf, laborers will better understand the risks of accepting employment in the GCC. These information campaigns would also provide the potential laborers with basic information about what to do should they find themselves in unsafe working conditions.

Labor camps, used to house migrant laborers, often house 6 to 8 adults per bedroom, with no guaranteed access to sanitation or air conditioning.6 Two-thirds of the labor force in Gulf countries is composed of migrant laborers.

More than 600,000 laborers are assumed to be in forced labor situations throughout the Middle East.7

Additionally, countries’ individual embassies should provide information to laborers and help keep track of foreign nationals placed in the Gulf to ensure that laborers are safe and have adequate resources for maintaining safe and healthy lives.

The second step in this policy is the establishment of a labor union or an NGO in the Gulf which advocates for laborers’ rights and provides necessary resources, assistance, and mentoring. One such framework that is already in place is the Smart Life Foundation in Dubai.This organization pairs Indian nationals in low-paying laborer positions with Indian nationals in high-paying skilled positions. The organization attempts to provide necessary knowledge and training to the migrant labors through these kinds of partnerships. The organization also raises awareness among the Dubai community as a whole about the migrant laborers.5 If this initiative received support from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the acknowledgement would send a strong message to the international community and the Gulf governments that they could no longer mistreat laborers. In addition, the establishment of this kind of organization would help laborers to develop other skills to advance beyond labor-intensive jobs.

As these initiatives, both in origin countries and in the Gulf countries, take effect, they should ideally show the Gulf governments that increasing the protection of laborers does not hurt the domestic economy of the Gulf states.

Rather, basic economic principles state that increasing the laborers’ protection and living standard will increase both the efficiency of the laborers and the quality of their products, thus benefitting Gulf economies.

As the Gulf governments come to these realizations, the third step could theoretically be implemented. The third step is therefore a long-term goal in which international pressure and existing nonprofits in GCC states should encourage the eventual overhaul of the current Kafala system, the labor sponsoring system in the Gulf, that dictates the lives and rights of migrant laborers in the GCC.8 9 While the overall implementation and changes in this policy will take a long time to fully realize, the initial steps of providing additional resources and providing transparency about working conditions to potential laborers

should help provide immediate and short term resolutions to the current issue. However, to truly fix the human rights problem in the GCC states, and prevent a potential present day slave trade between the Southeast Asian Nations and the Gulf states, the Gulf governments must eventually intervene.

1

Rahman, Anisur. “Migration and Human Rights in the Gulf.” Middle East Institute. February 02, 2010.

2

“Domestic Workers in the Gulf.” Domestic Workers in the Gulf.

3

“V. Exploitation of Migrant Construction Workers.” Building Towers, Cheating Workers: Exploitation of

Migrant Construction Workers in the United Arab Emirates.

4

Kibria, Nazli. “Working Hard for the Money: Bangladesh Faces Challenges of Large-Scale Labor Migration.”

Migrationpolicy.org. August 09, 2011.

5

“SmartLife.” SmartLife.

6

Gardner, Andrew. “Labor Camps in the Gulf States.” Middle East Institute. February 02, 2010.

7

“End the Kafala System.” End the Kafala System.

8

Khan, Azfar. “Why It’s Time to End Kafala.” The Guardian. February 26, 2014.

9

Motaparthy, Priyanka. “Understanding Kafala: An Archaic Law At Cross Purposes With Modern Development.”

Migrants Rights. March 11, 2015.

84

Defense & Diplomacy

Increased Forward Deployment: A Solution to Naval Overstretch With a shrinking fleet and growing regional demands, the United States Navy faces a readiness crisis. Absent massive new investment, the Navy should forward-deploy more assets to mitigate its readiness and presence problem.

Sam Seitz (SFS ‘19)

During the Cold War, the United States boasted a 600 ship navy, 100 of which were actively deployed.1 The Navy was sufficiently large to ensure that it could sustain a global presence and rapidly deploy to trouble spots while still maintaining enough ships to train sailors. After the Cold War ended in the early 1990s, however, American policymakers precipitously cut the size of the fleet to cash in on the “peace dividend.”2 Under this spending cut, the U.S. government accrued significant savings while the Navy shrank to pre-World War I levels.

Recently, policymakers have become aware of this shortfall. Many American warships carry significantly more firepower due to Defense Secretary Ashton Carter’s push for increased capabilities on each ship.3 Nevertheless, a ship can only be in one place at any given time.

While increased weapons range and lethality certainly ameliorates the shortfalls in American naval capabilities, these reforms are not sufficient. Increasing arms on American warships still leaves American power-projection capabilities in jeopardy.4 The most straightforward solution is to increase the size of the fleet, but with the current budget outlays and the immense costs of defense entitlement programs, it is far from clear that the Navy’s fleet size can return to sustainable levels. Moreover, even if the Navy is able to buy new ships at a desirable rate , it will still require more than a decade to acquire a naval force of sufficient size.5 The best interim solution, therefore, is to increase the number of forward-deployed vessels. It is easier and more practical to maintain a global naval presence with more ships already in theater. Specifically, the U.S. should forward-deploy a carrier-strike group to Europe and add another forward-deployed strike group to the 7th Fleet in Japan. This model would double the number of forward-deployed carriers to Japan and increase U.S. presence in Europe, allowing for faster response times to Russian provocations and crises in the Levant while also freeing up CVNs for use in the 5th Fleet.6 While other potential solutions exist, they all possess significant drawbacks. Simply maintaining the current force posture while increasing deployment windows risks overstretching the military and increasing attrition rates by demanding too much from sailors and marines. Indeed, a recent survey indicated that 49.8% of enlisted sailors and 65.5% of officers believed the current deployment tempo was unsustainable, with many questioning how much longer they would be able to serve given the long periods of time they were required to spend away from home.7 The Navy could also attempt to mitigate its readiness problem by decreasing its global presence. This would be unwise because it would increase crisis response time, discredit the U.S. in front of its allies, and decrease the length of operational periods due to increased transit and training time.8 Another proposed suggestion is to expand the use of rotational crews which would entail one crew operating a ship while another crew trains on land. This would facilitate a more continuous American presence while minimizing crew burn-out. However, rotational crews require two crews, which doubles personnel costs and allow only limited maintenance while the

crews switch from land to sea.

Ultimately, the forward-deployment model proposed in this report bests addresses current readiness shortfalls by increasing operational tempo, providing forward-based maintenance facilities and personnel, and decreasing sailors’ time away from their families, thus increasing retention rates of experienced naval personnel.

Implementing this change would require a number of steps. First, the Navy would have to invest in increased port capacity in Rota, Spain and Yokosuka, Japan to accommodate the increased fleet presence.9 Second, the U.S. would have to forward-deploy two more carrier strike groups. The Navy would thus have to decide which two carriers to forward deploy, basing this decision on other force requirements and strategic considerations. Finally, the Navy would need to coordinate with the Spanish and Japanese navies which would be hosting the extra American naval presence.

Pushing for this type of deployment reform is difficult at the individual level due to the Department of Defense (DOD)’s exclusive control over deployment patterns. However, the idea of reforming carrier strike group basing is not new.13 Many individuals, academics, and think tanks have proposed some degree of change in the carrier basing strategy. Therefore, the best approach for creating change is to highlight and publicize the litany of reports and studies that argue for change. The DOD is often slow to reform, but many defense leaders are receptive to the academic community’s recommendations. Change does not require massive lobbying or group movement; it instead requires that key decision-makers in the DOD read and appreciate the many reports urging a change in the American carrier basing strategy. While getting decision-makers to listen may not be easy, the centralized nature of American military posture and strategy allows reforms to follow quickly after decisions are made.

The U.S. Navy’s fleet will reach its maximum size of 321 (under the most optimistic assumptions) ships in 2028 before declining below 300 ships by 205010 The current fleet size is leading to readiness issues and lower morale11 Current budget outlays prevent significant growth of the fleet12 Stationing a carrier strike group in Rota and an extra strike group in Yokosuka ameliorates current naval overstretch and readiness problems, increases global U.S. naval presence, and increases naval retention rates

1

Abramson, Rudy. “Reagan Renews Vow for 600-Ship Navy: ‘Way to Prevent War Is to Be Prepared for It,’ He Tells Academy Class,” Los Angeles

Times. May 23, 1985.

2

Saunders, Norman C. “Defense spending in the 1990s – the effects of deeper cuts.” Monthly Labor Review. October 1990.

3

Rowden, Thomas, Peter Gumataotao, and Peter Fanta. “’Distributed Lethality.’” USNI Proceedings. January 2015.

4

Stephen G. Brooks, G. John Ikenberry, and William C. Wohlforth. “Don’t Come Home, America: The Case against Retrenchment.” International

Security 37, no. 3. 2012, p. 7-51.

5

“An Analysis of the Navy’s Fiscal Year 2016 Century Shipbuilding Plan.” Congressional Budget Office. October 2015. p. 3.

6

The 5th Fleet is responsible for naval forces in the Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Arabian Sea, and parts of the Indian Ocean.

7

“Preserving the Navy’s Forward Presence with a Smaller Fleet.” Congressional Budget Office. March 2015. p. 11.

8

Clark, Bryan and Jesse Slowman. “Deploying Beyond Their Means: America’s Navy and Marine Corps at a Tipping Point.” Center for Strategic

and Budgetary Assessment. November 18, 2015.

9

The base of America’s European destroyer squadron and 7th Fleet respectively.

10

“An Analysis of the Navy’s Fiscal Year 2016 Century Shipbuilding Plan.” p. 3

11

“Preserving the Navy’s Forward Presence with a Smaller Fleet.” p. 11

12

LaGrone, Sam. “FY 2017 Budget: Tight Navy Budget in Line With Pentagon Drive for High End Warfighting Power But Brings Increased Risk.”

USNI News. February 9, 2016.

13

See, for example, Cavas, Cristopher P. “Two USN Carriers in Japan?” Defense News. November 19, 2015. and Oliver, J.D. “CHANGING THE

PEACETIME DEPLOYMENT OF AIRCRAFT CARRIERS.” U.S. Naval War College. March 10, 1993.

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT

Laura Pedersen

What first drew you to the Defense and Diplomacy policy center?

I have always been very interested in international issues, so that’s where the interest in diplomacy came from. But I was also very interested in security issues.

I used to live in the Middle East, and coming here I always knew that defense was very important. Honestly, I was drawn to the policy center because I wanted to discuss issues of defense but my article ended up being more about diplomacy in the end.

Where in the Middle East did you live?

I used to live in Bahrain, which is a tiny island country between Qatar and Saudi Arabia. It went through the Arab Spring which was my first exposure to security issues. There were a couple of terrorist attacks close to where I lived but not in Bahrain itself, so that’s what made me a lot more vigilant and a lot more aware of how big of a deal security is.

Tell me a little bit about yourself.

I am in the School of Foreign Service, and I am 99% sure I am going to be pursuing an Arab Studies certificate with an Arabic minor, because I can potentially see myself working in that region. I am still just a freshman so I have not declared a major yet, but I am either going to be doing STIA with a concentration on security studies, or IPEC, and just combining some security aspects with some political and economic aspects. I haven’t quite figured out how to tie everything together yet, but something with the Middle East, for sure.

What are you involved with on campus besides GURI? I am part of the Georgetown Journal for Cybersecurity, where I am working on military matters. I am also doing the Century Scholars Program for the SFS centennial, where I am a part of the podcast team that is interviewing various professors on campus. I am also a member of the Georgetown Club Triathlon Team.

So shifting the focus to your article, which is about protecting the rights of labor migrants in the Gulf; what prompted you to tackle this topic?

When I was in middle school in Bahrain, we took a field trip to one of the migrant labor camps and we brought a lot of commodities and luxuries they wouldn’t normally have access to. And being in seventh grade I didn’t really have any understanding about economics or economic development, but I remember leaving the place thinking that there were a lot of unjust things and unfair things about their situation. I could already then sense there was something wrong about it. And then throughout high school, I started realizing just how big of an issue and how big of a deal it was. Around my junior year of high school I really began getting interested in the field, which was a little before things really blew 96

up with the Qatar World Cup, so that’s how I got into it. It’s a very important issue because with the Gulf’s current economic situation, it’s something that could become an even bigger issue.

Why do you think the Gulf states have been so reluctant to change their relationships with labor migrants?

I think it’s hard, but I think it lies a lot with economics. The region has been growing so rapidly and the labor force has to keep up. It also has to do a lot with the fact that they do have access to a lot of migrant laborers. When you’re in a position where you can pay the people who work for you a dollar or two a day, and you don’t have to worry that much about their safety or protection, it’s very easy to get rich. I don’t want to criticize the region too much, but I think a lot of people have gotten used to their luxury lifestyles, and a lot of people don’t want to do any dirty labor because cheap labor is so easily accessible. I think that once the ball gets rolling it’s very difficult to stop, and the government doesn’t want to end it because it’s economically beneficial.

A lot of your article is about how the international community needs to reach out and apply some kind of pressure to the Gulf states. How would you reconcile these human rights issues with Western unwillingness to put their oil allies in an uncomfortable position?

That’s why it’s so hard, and I did try to address that in my article. Initial change should not be coming from Western nations, because I don’t think there’s much at stake for them. While I do think Western nations have become more interested about the issue with the Qatar World Cup human rights violations, the initial change needs to come from the Southeast Asian nations themselves, starting before their migrant laborers even come over to the Gulf. In my article, I was trying to take on a position that minimizes economic losses to Gulf states, but really, I think that as more and more people start caring about the issues, countries are going to start slowly protecting their citizens.

I like how you stress that change needs to come from both the origin countries, like the Southeast Asian countries, and the destination countries.

How can the origin countries retain their workers? Is that something the government should do or is that something NGOs should be focusing on?

You know, it’s really difficult, because there are also benefits for the migrant laborers and they’re earning significantly more abroad and sending remittances back, so I don’t think the [origin] governments really want to stop the practice either. I feel like it has to be a combination of NGOs and the countries’ own governments. In my article, I proposed that the effort should come from embassies and at-home education programs. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a lot of education, but just getting out the proper information is important.

Migrants are entering the Gulf with the wrong expectations, so this effort could help them form more realistic expectations before they leave.

So in the future, do you think you’ll be working on this issue? Where do you see yourself in ten years?

I actually have no idea. I have fallen in love with economics since I came to Georgetown, so I am leaning towards IPEC, which would allow me to focus on these issues with economic development that I am interested in. I am not sure if this issue is something I specifically want to work on, but I think it is relevant and important and I am interested in economic development in the region. Maybe something with public policy or foreign service. That could change so easily though.

As a freshman, what have you thought of Georgetown so far? Do you think it is allowing you to further your passions?

Georgetown has definitely far exceeded my expectations. I am not 100% sure what I expected it to be, but I really wanted to go here for an international experience, and it’s been really helpful in helping me realize what my true interests are. I think it was easy coming in thinking, “well, I liked microeconomics in high school,” but I think Georgetown has been very beneficial in showing me the kinds of things I can actually see myself going into professionally. I think it’s experiences like this, with writing policy pieces for the Roosevelt Institute, along with my coursework,that have made Georgetown a very positive experience for me.

ANNA NESTEROVA TIMMY REYNOLDS

Defense & Diplomacy

US-Chinese Military Relations in Asian Maritime Areas: Preventing Conflict Escalation The U.S. and Chinese militaries have clashed in recent years due to territorial disputes in Asian maritime areas. The two militaries should deepen bilateral ties and formalize rules of engagement to prevent conflict escalation between two superpowers.

Joseph Cifrino (COL ‘18)

In the past several years, China has become increasingly assertive of its maritime claims in the South China Sea. It views this territory as its ancient lands and pursues these claims at the expense of its neighbors, some of whom are U.S. allies. The Chinese “ten dash line” that covers almost all of the South China Sea denotes China’s stated claims.1 Most recently, China has begun creating airstrips on disputed landmasses2 and dredging sand to turn small reefs into islands capable of hosting airfields.3 These actions are not internationally recognized and give China greater rights over the landmasses’ surrounding waters. This reality that islands can claim more water than submerged reefs is codified under the United Nations Convention on the Laws

of the Sea (UNCLOS).4 The “ten dash line” also increases China’s military presence in vital sea-lanes. To protest these actions, the U.S. sailed the warship U.S.S. Lassen within twelve nautical miles of a Chinese-claimed island to push back against Chinese claims and promote freedom of navigation in the area, reassuring U.S. allies that they would have support against Chinese acts of aggression.5 The U.S. and China have laid out procedures for military to military (mil-mil) contact to prevent conflict in routine encounters and establish ties between military officials to build rapport among the two parties.6 However, China’s claims have not decreased in strength and Chinese officials refuse to reverse their actions.

U.S. economic interdependence with China, billions of dollars in trade shipped through the South China Sea annually, and continued growth in Chinese military spending highlight the need for continued cooperation and the dire consequences of military conflict.7 8 Chinese positions on these issues have not softened, and the U.S. has repeatedly stated its willingness to defend freedom of navigation and non-violent resolution of Asian land disputes with military action.9 Military encounters will likely occur in the years to come. Forming stronger bilateral ties and institutionalizing rules of engagement (RoEs) are the best methods to prevent unwanted conflict escalation between our militaries.

The consequences of military conflict with China would be extremely harmful to U.S. interests regionally and globally by disturbing global trade routes, reducing freedom of water navigation, and generally infringing upon U.S. interests in Asia.10

Given China’s military modernization and increasingly sophisticated defenses under an anti-access/area denial (A2/ AD) program against a potential U.S. attack,11 coupled with concerns about the American ability to counter these advances,12 actions designed to prevent conflict are prudent.

Improving military and political relations with China will reduce the risk of devastating regional shocks in trade supply and

There are many nations who dispute ownership of islands in the South China Sea, including China, Taiwan, the Philippines, and Vietnam.

China’s military spending is officially the second highest in the world at around $145 billion in 2015, an increase of 10.2% from last year.13 In the conflict between China and Japan over disputed islands, the U.S. has stated that those islands fall under its security agreement with Japan.14 U.S. interests in the region consist of protecting freedom of navigation and respect for international law and does not claim any islands.15

political-economic harm to the U.S. Political and economic harm to the U.S. is a real possibility as China and the U.S. are economically interdependent on each other and China has shown the ability to use cyber attacks against important U.S. targets. The recent strengthening of inter-military relations between the two countries through reciprocated officer exchanges as well as joint training exercises in humanitarian crisis interventions and military exercises are a model going forward in improving relations and trust between militaries. Further codifying the rules of engagement between the two forces such as the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) reached in 2014 and Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea (CUES) through bilateral negotiations decreases the risk of conflict by regulating behavior in military encounters where uncertainty about acceptable engagement increases risks of escalation.

Increasing such measures through a bilateral approach recognizes that U.S.Chinese relations should be managed bilaterally. The fundamental issues include the the access China is willing to allow the U.S. military within its EEZ and debates over the U.S. role in the South China Sea islands dispute.

Multilateralism is inappropriate for this conflict due to China’s conflicts with its neighbors over similar issues. The importance of strengthening bilateral RoEs more attuned to the specific dynamics of US-Chinese military dynamics also support a bilateral approach over multilateralism.

The President, as Commander-in-Chief of the U.S.armed forces, should call for bilateral strategy meetings between American and Chinese political leaders to agree on specific proposals, strengthen RoEs to include more areas of military encounters, and issue goals to each state’s respective Department of Defense. The Secretary of Defense, whose military authority is second only to the President, will play a major role in carrying out these goals and negotiating with China. The President should direct appropriate officials to discuss conflictavoiding measures in military encounters and maintain the regular contacts established by the 1998 Military Maritime Consultative Agreement. Congress should review the Administration’s compliance with this legislation and consider legislation protecting or promoting mil-mil contacts even if tensions rise.

Once these steps occur, continued reciprocity between militaries will hopefully create a greater willingness to compromise and avoid provocation, while the RoEs will minimize chances of uncertainty leading to accidents or the exploitation by either side of ambiguous RoEs to justify provocative actions. While such steps cannot solve the fundamental question about the U.S. military’s access to the Chinese EEZ or Chinese claims to disputed islands, they may increase goodwill between civilian and military leaders of both nations that reduce the risks of provocation and escalation into military conflict. Cooperation in general is key to this approach and should be pursued when not harmful to U.S. interests.

1

Kazianis, Harry. “China’s Ten Red Lines in the South China Sea.” The Diplomat, July 1, 2014.

2

Denyer, Simon. “See China’s Rapid-Island Building Strategy in Action.” The Washington Post, July 1, 2014.

3

Marcus, Jonathan. “US-China Tensions Increase over Beijing’s ‘Great Wall of Sand.’” BBC News, May 29, 2015.

4

Philips, Keri. “Is this a rock or an island? The tiny differences that could define a region.” Australian Broadcasting

Corporation, December 10, 2013.

5

Cooper, Helene and Jane Perlez, “White House Moves to Reassure Allies With South China Sea Patrol, But

Quietly,” The New York Times, October 27, 2015.

6

Tiezzi, Shannon. “Surprise: US-China Military Ties are Actually Improving.” The Diplomat, June 27, 2014.

7

Watkins, Derek. “What China Has Been Building in the South China Sea.” The New York Times, October 27, 2015.

8

Bitzinger, Richard. “China’s Double Digit Defense Growth: What it Means for a Peaceful Rise.” Foreign Affairs,

March 19, 2015.

9

O’Rourke, Ronald. “Maritime Territorial and Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) Disputes Involving China: Issues for

Congress.” Congressional Research Service, September 18, 2015.

10

Glaser, Bonnie S. “Armed Clash in the South China Sea: Contingency Planning Memorandum No. 14.” Council

on Foreign Relations.

11

McCarthy, Christopher “Anti-Access/Area Denial: The Evolution of Modern Warfare.” U.S. Naval War College.

12

Heginbotham, Eric. “Tallying the U.S.-China Military Scorecard: Relative Capabilities and the Evolving

Balance of Power, 1996-2017.” RAND Corporation, 2015.

13

Bitzinger, Richard. “China’s Double Digit Defense Growth.”

14

McCurry, Justin. “Obama Says US Will Defend Japan in Island Dispute with China.” The Guardian, April 24, 2014.

15

O’Rourke, Ronald.“Maritime Territorial and Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) Disputes.”

84

Defense & Diplomacy

Heritage Language Education: Closing the National Security Gap The United States faces a critical deficit in qualified individuals who can speak foreign languages, threatening the U.S.’s ability to protect itself. The U.S. must implement heritage language (HL) classes in primary and secondary schools to ensure the development of a population with the cultural and linguistic knowledge to assist in national defense.

Brendan Keenan (COL ‘18)

The U.S. maintains a unique set of responsibilities in the world derived from its status as the sole global superpower. Consequently, the U.S. faces threats from around the world and needs to be able to project its power accordingly.

To meet this challenge, the U.S. needs to be able to harness its diversity.

With a heterogeneous population composed of numerous ethnic and national groups, the U.S. could engage with different parts of the world through people who are personally connected to those areas.

The U.S.’s ability to harness that diversity is currently being challenged by a lack of qualified individuals who speak the languages relevant to contemporary security demands. A lack of Arabic speakers means there are less individuals monitoring Islamic State (IS) media and a shortage of Ukrainian speakers reduces the U.S.’s ability to interact with personnel in Crimea. This dearth of critical language speakers is the most recent manifestation of the United States’ historic suspicion of anything considered ‘foreign.’1 This deficit has been compounded by decreasing levels of students enrolled in foreign language classes in the period between 2006 and 2013.2 Foreign language education in the U.S. has also faced increased competition from technology fields.

Many primary and secondary schools have begun permitting students to take coding classes in place of a foreign language.3 This situation will perpetuate and potentially worsen the dwindling number of foreign language learners in the U.S. A potential solution to this issue draws upon the U.S.’ population diversity by redesigning and popularizing domestic heritage language education. A HL refers to any ancestral language including those that are either: indigenous, like Cherokee; colonial, like French; or immigrant, like Arabic.4 Using census data, the Federal Department of Education’s National Heritage Language Resource Center should offer targeted categorical grants to schools with significant proportions of students who come from a home where the primary language spoken is not English in order to design and implement HL education programs.

HL learners (HLLs) are an endangered community as a family typically loses its HL within three generations after immigrating to the U.S. as children are assimilated into America’s monolingual culture.5

Previous attempts to address this loss by placing HLLs in foreign language classes has failed. Foreign language classrooms’ rigid pedagogy has been found to disengage HLLs, who typically have significant colloquial exposure to the language.6 The lack of cultural education in language classes has also contributed to atrophied cultural competency among HL students.7 In order to address the language deficit, a federal grant system to design and implement curricula with an HL focus should be introduced to increase HLL engagement. Communities like the Somalis of Cedar-Riverside, Minnesota could supplement their language education and combat assimilation forces that would otherwise teach children to suppress their HL in favor of learning solely English.8 9 Furthermore, linguists have suggested that a more diverse pool of languages and language speakers in the U.S. would prevent rashly undercutting language education that could be of future benefit to national security.10 Therefore, developing HL programs will ensure the U.S. maintains a linguistic talent pool that extends beyond popular critical languages commonly taught in American schools like Arabic or Chinese. Short of other rationale, the U.S. must draw upon its HL population to fill real gaps in both its national security and bureaucratic roles. Studies have found shortages of professionals with the language proficiency to carry out a wide range of federal government roles, especially in intelligence and translation.11 With decreases in foreign language education, the number of unqualified federal employees will likely continue to grow.

Given the difficulties associated with implementing education reform, it is advisable that this policy first be tested through a pilot program. In order to maximize the benefit of HLLs, specific instructional methods are needed.12 Therefore, the Department of Education should offer this categorical grant in two parts. The first part would finance the development of a HL curriculum by professional linguists while the second grant would be used to

implement the design in primary and elementary schools to ensure participants begin studying the HL before they can fully assimilating into the mono-English American culture. Furthermore, by targeting specific areas like Cedar-Riverside with the pilot HL grants, the community will be able to augment the effects of the classroom education since they can provide additional high quality language input.

While this grant cannot mandate participating students find work in the national security community, the grant should also set aside a limited amount of funding to disseminate knowledge about Foreign Language Proficiency Pay (FLPP)—under which qualified language speakers receive merit-based bonuses for language knowledge—and government hiring opportunities to the community.13 Using the pilot program as a launching pad, census data should be used to determine specific HL communities after which Congress must appropriate money to the Department of Education to fund similar HL grants and advertise them to primary and elementary schools in the designated areas.

This method will allow for the federal government to cultivate a replenishing source of citizens with strong linguistic and cultural backgrounds in languages relevant to the nation’s security.

1

Pavlenko, Aneta. “‘Language of the Enemy’: Foreign Language Education and National Identity.” International

Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 2003.

2

“Most Studied Languages in the U.S.” The Modern Language Association of America.

3

Adam, Anna and Helen Mower. “Should Coding be the ‘New Foreign Language’ Requirement?” edutopia, 2013

4

King, Kendall A. and Johanna Ennser-Kananen. “Heritage Languages and Language Policy.” The Encyclopedia of

Applied Linguistics, 2012.

5

Brecht, Richard D. and Catherine W. Ingold. “Tapping a National Resource: Heritage Languages in the United

States.” ERIC Clearinghouse on Languages and Linguistics, 2002.

6

Cummins, Jim. “A Proposal for Action: Strategies for Recognizing Heritage Language Competence as a Learning

Resource within the Mainstream Classroom.” The Modern Language Journal, 2005.

7

Cummins, Jim. “A Proposal for Action.”

8

“Cedar Riverside Neighborhood,” Minnesota Compass, 2013.

9

Cummins. Jim. “A Proposal for Action.”

10

King, Kendall A. and Johanna Ennser-Kananen. “Heritage Languages and Language Policy.” The Encyclopedia

of Applied Linguistics, 2012.

11

Brecht, Richard D. and Catherine W. Ingold. “Tapping a National Resource.”

12

King,Kendall A. and Johanna Ennser-Kananen. “Heritage Languages and Language Policy.”

13

“Foreign Languages.” Defense Intelligence Agency.

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MICdevelopmenteconom T ECONOMIC developme

Economic Development

Speeding up Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor Lackluster ridership and dangerous, outdated infrastructure threaten the future of Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor.1 2 Congress must increase Northeast Corridor funding to increase ridership, and make the corridor safer and faster.

Alexander Feltes (COL ‘18)

Congress has underfunded Amtrak in recent years, cutting its budget by $260 million in 2015 alone.3 As a result, Amtrak has not been able to fix trouble spots along its busiest rail corridor, the Northeast Corridor (NEC) running from Boston to Washington D.C. Amtrak’s own report says its aging infrastructure along the NEC, “will require extensive repair to just keep it running safely and efficiently.”4 The same report notes that increased demand for travel along the NEC will strain the region’s congested highways and airways, making rail travel a critical solution for the future.5 The region that the NEC services accounts for 20% of the nation’s GDP, which means additional congestion may significantly affect regional and national economic productivity.6 Although Amtrak has formulated proposals for the improvement of the region’s rail service, congressional opposition and budget cuts have hampered progress and made many improvements impossible. Thus, as a response to oftendelayed and unimproved service resulting from these budget cuts, Amtrak has seen ridership fall for the past three years.7 Without repairs and upgrades along the NEC, Amtrak’s image and its ridership will not improve. Amtrak should repair or reroute critical points on the NEC including the Baltimore and Potomac Tunnel and the Hudson River tunnels to improve the speed of service for existing trains.

Additionally, Amtrak should upgrade the capacity of its tracks to handle passenger rail speeds in excess of 200 miles per hour within 20 years.

Amtrak will work directly with regional rail providers to make these repairs and upgrades.

This policy differs from proposals by Amtrak which would only repair the existing problem points highlighted above. Although this policy would most likely shorten or eliminate delays, it would not address the long-term increase in demand for transportation along the NEC. Without increased speed and capacity, Amtrak’s NEC operations will not provide a viable alternative to road or air transportation. The policy highlighted above is smaller in scale than a 2010 Amtrak proposal which would cost around $100 billion, but larger than another which was estimated at $60 billion. Increasing the gas tax is a

promising and timely solution to fund this project, as gas prices are currently low and the country is trying to move away from fossil fuel consumption. Thus, increasing the tax on gas and diesel, which has not been done since 1993, could fund this project entirely while not significantly hurting consumer’s pocketbooks.8

Despite the high cost of this project, Amtrak estimates that such a high-speed rail system would allow for more than a 200% increase in ridership – equivalent to over 25 million more annual riders – by 2050, as its Acela service would be eclipsed by faster trains on the NEC.9 Amtrak also estimates that 70% of these new riders will be diverted from air or highway travel, alleviating congestion which could hamper economic productivity in the region.10 Amtrak and other federal transportation partners should lobby Congress to authorize the proposed repairs and improvements highlighted above, as well as the increase in the gas tax to fund them. Amtrak should highlight bridges, tunnels, and track sections in need of repair or replacement in order to improve the speed and consistency of their existing trains, along with the new high-speed trains. A specific NEC high-speed rail fund should be established with the increased gas tax revenue to make sure that future congressional budgetary squabbles do not significantly affect the progress of Amtrak’s improvements. Amtrak should market their faster, more reliable service as an alternative to air or highway travel to induce higher ridership.

To engage support on campus and in the community, appeals for support will be made to commuters and travelers who use the NEC regularly for work or travel, especially students who travel on the line. This will include lobbying representatives and senators on relevant transportation committees and legislators in states with NEC railway stations. Key partners in this effort could include students affected by the changes. Amtrak itself, representatives and senators from states along the NEC who would feel the social and economic effects of a faster, more reliable high-speed rail service, and lobbying organizations such as the National Association of Railroad Passengers. Politicians

A phased increase of 15 cents on the gasoline and diesel taxes could generate $170 billion in federal revenue.11 Amtrak estimates that it will be able to add sixteen million more high speed rail passengers by 2050 if the NEC is repaired and speeds increase above 200 mph.12 Choke points such as the Baltimore and Potomac Tunnel and the Portal Bridge in New Jersey restrict trains to two tracks, slowing trains and acting as significant bottlenecks along the NEC.13

will be critical in publicizing this issue as they have access to new outlets and can point out the absurdity of using 19th century tunnels for 21st century infrastructure. They can highlight the need for change and point to high-speed rail systems around the world as successful examples to follow. They can then utilize their power to convene hearings and pass legislation to authorize spending on Amtrak’s NEC project. In the next six months, Congress can set this process in motion by holding hearings with Amtrak officials to determine their exact needs and the best way to address repairs and improvements going forward.

1

“Amtrak Fact Sheet: Northeast Corridor Sector.” Narprail.org. 2014. Accessed November 10, 2015.

2

Fitzsimmons, Emma, and David Chen. “Aging Infrastructure Plagues Nation’s Busiest Rail Corridor.” The New

York Times, July 26, 2015, N.Y./Region sec. Accessed October 1, 2015.

3

Snell, Kelsey. “House Committee Votes to Cut Funding for Amtrak.” The Washington Post, May 13, 2015, Post

Politics sec. Accessed November 10, 2015.

4

“A Vision for High-Speed Rail in the Northeast Corridor.” Amtrak.com. September 1, 2010. Accessed November

10, 2015.

5 Ibid.

6 Ibid.

7 Ibid.

8

“A Vision for High-Speed Rail in the Northeast Corridor.” Amtrak.com. September 1, 2010.

9

“A Vision for High-Speed Rail in the Northeast Corridor.” Amtrak.com. See note iv.

10 Ibid.

11

Halsey III, Ashley. “15-cent Increase in Federal Gas Tax Proposed.” The Washington Post, December 4, 2013,

Transportation sec.

12

“A Vision for High-Speed Rail in the Northeast Corridor.” Amtrak.com. See note iv.

13

Fitzsimmons, Emma, and David Chen. “Aging Infrastructure Plagues Nation’s Busiest Rail Corridor.” See note ii.

Economic Development

Prison Reform: A Tale of Caged Potential To increase the effectiveness of Pennsylvania’s prison system, convicts should be separated based on crime committed, given access to education, and allowed to apply that education in a practical context.

Jake Moran (SFS ‘19)

Decades of well-intentioned policies with unintended consequences have led to overflows in the United States prison system. The policies date back to 1971 and President Richard Nixon’s “War on Drugs.” Since then, overcrowding has been compounded by mandatory-minimum sentences, which often force judges to give sentences longer than they believe the convicts deserve.1 Better police tactics have also contributed to more people behind bars. The technology and skill inside police departments has increased at a faster rate than the sophistication of criminals, leading to more arrests and more convictions. These factors have led to a Pennsylvania prison population at 106.7% of capacity.2 Recently, with these multi-decade trends, civil rights groups have wondered about prisoners’ basic rights. Activists argue that if a prison is not capable of holding all the prisoners inside of it, the prison can’t treat its prisoners humanely. Perhaps the best evidence for the systemic failure of the correctional facilities is uncontrolled recidivism rates that are disproportionately skewed against racial minorities, the poor, and the undereducated, most of whom are nonviolent offenders. The nonviolent crimes they commit are much less prevalent for those who are employed.

Employment leads to a more law-abiding lifestyle; therefore, the employed are less likely to recidivate.

If inmates return after release, then the institution has failed to perform its duty to deter future crime. Solving the recidivism problem eases overpopulation and repairs the system.

To ease high recidivism rates in Pennsylvania, prisons should separate prisoners into rehabilitation facilities (generally, to be used for nonviolent offenders) and punitive locations, converting existing facilities as needed. The state should provide those in rehabilitation with educational resources, mandating their utilization and bartering shorter sentences for good grades. To counteract the policy’s financial burden, prisoners would work on public works projects, applying the knowledge they learn in the classroom. Given the state’s deteriorating infrastructure, this, if implemented correctly, would increase efficiency for everyday citizens and provide job training for inmates.

The most conservative estimates put the chances of recidivating at 5% less when the prisoner has a GED.3 Other studies show when a prisoner receives some college level education in prison, his chances of recidivating are reduced by 46%.4 Education program implementation leads to fewer returning criminals. Without even necessitating increased tax revenue, a reduction in recidivism of just 2% allows education programs to pay for themselves.5 The added benefits of vocational training outside the prison further allow for reduced recidivism. Critics might wonder about the civil rights of prisoners during the civic engagement portion of their education, but they forget that the work the prisoner’s do will be integrated with the classroom education. Instead of building a bridge out of toothpicks after learning the Pythagorean theorem, the inmates will have a chance to repair an actual bridge. Instead of doing exercises out of a grammar textbook, prisoners can proofread the governor’s speeches. These projects are vehicles for prisoners to gain experience and build resumes.

In 2013, these programs worked to reduce Pennsylvania’s threeyear recidivism rate of 59.9%.6 Given $32,986--the average cost per inmate in Pennsylvania and the 53,101 inmates in the state-a reduction of the population by 1% would save the state more than $17.5 million,7 assuming a linear cost model (which, granted is unlikely).8 The idea is still the same though; the program is not not a handout to prisoners; it’s an investment in the state’s future welfare.

The Pennsylvania legislature should appropriate $300,000 annually to each of its 27 state institutions. These funds should be used strictly for hiring teachers, providing classroom resources, and assuring transportation costs to job sites. The body also should pass statutes reducting in sentences for academic and career success. The legislature should also commission a body to decide which civic engagement projects prisoners should

According to a study by the Rand Corporation, investment of $1 in prison education leads to on average a $4-$5 ROI in the first 3 years after an inmate’s release.9 According to the same study, involvement in academic or vocational training (this policy provides both) lowers odds of recidivism by 43% and raises chances of employment by 13%.10 23% of Pennsylvania’s bridges are structurally deficient, the highest percentage in the nation.11 Current estimates to fix broken water systems in the Chesapeake Watershed hit $1.4 billion. 12

partake in to be most beneficial to supplementing their education, as well as provide returns to society as a whole.

Given the reforming effects that college campuses can have on society, the first step is to reach out to students, starting with those at Pennsylvania colleges like Pennsylvania State University, University of Pennsylvania, and Bucknell University. The students would create a university-wide network to advocate for the policy to whatever established social-justice-oriented organ exists on their campus. After gaining support across Pennsylvania campuses, campus activists need to convince the general population of the program’s feasibility. In modern times, once a support base is established, the best way to expand that base is to make the cause ubiquitous on social media platforms. The next step is to write letters to Representatives in the state legislature and prison reform advocacy groups, such as The Sentencing Project to gauge support from lawmakers and official lobbyists. The level of support that these lawmakers give initially will determine the feasibility and necessity of future action. With enough grassroots support, proponents could organize meetings with local representatives in order to communicate the merits of reform.

1

Connecticut Criminal Justice Research. “What is Causing Prison Overcrowding?” Connecticut Official State

Website.

2

Pennsylvania Department of Corrections. “Monthly Population Report As Of October 31, 2015.” PA.gov

3

Nuttall, John, Linda Hollman and Michele E. Staley. 2003. “The Effect of Earning a GED on Recidivism Rates”.

Journal of Correctional Education 54 (3). Correctional Education Association: 90–94.

4

Contardo, Jeanne B., and Erisman, Wendy. “Learning to Reduce Recidivism: A 50-state analysis of postsecondary

correctional education policy.” The Institute of Higher Education Policy.

5

Westervelt, Eric. Interview with Lois Davis. “Measuring the Power of a Prison Education.” NPR.

6

Pennsylvania Department of Corrections. “Recidivism Report 2013.” National Correctional Industries Association.

7

American Legislative Exchange Council. “Prison Overcrowding: Pennsylvania.” ALEC.

8

Pennsylvania Department of Corrections. “Monthly Population Report As Of October 31, 2015.” PA.gov

9

Rand Corporation. “Educational and Vocational Training in Prisons Reduces Recidivism, Improves Job Outlook.”

RAND. 10

Rand Corporation. “Educational and Vocational Training in Prisons Reduces Recidivism, Improves Job Outlook.”

RAND. 11

Hertzler, Lauren. “Pennsylvania has Highest Percentage of Structurally Deficient Bridges in Country.” Philadelphia

Business Journal

12

PennFuture. “Water: Water and Sewage Infrastructure.” PennFuture.

Economic Development

Unaffordable D.C. Housing: Stunting the Height Act The Height of Buildings Act of 1910 limits D.C.’s skyline to 130 feet and contributes to D.C.’s high housing prices. Congress should abolish the Buildings Act to localize housing regulation, increase housing supply, and promote affordable housing.

Nicholas Zevanove (COL ‘19)

Construction of the 164-foot Cairo Hotel1 and misguided public fears of iron’s fragility led Congress to pass the Height of Buildings Act of 1899.2 This nineteenth-century law arbitrarily limited D.C.’s buildings to 130 feet.3 For over a half-century, U.S. Census data recorded upward trending rent prices within the capital.4 Ranked 6th worst nationally5, D.C.’s rents have priced out low-income families.

Although troubling, D.C.’s housing problems are not unique. Between 2012 and 2013, 2.3 million moved to metropolitan areas.6 Such a rise in urban populations has increased housing demand and prices nationwide.

While demand increases in D.C., the Buildings Act prevents matching increases in housing supply, and rents continue rising.

D.C. can relieve its housing woes by abolishing the Height of Buildings Act.

Revoking the act will not only return decisions on housing restrictions to localities but also decrease housing regulations, allowing an increase in urban housing supply and a decrease in urban rents.

Abolishing the law requires congressional approval. Consequently, supporters of the law’s repeal must initiate a city-wide campaign that can shape public opinion on the issue and turn that public opinion into congressional votes against the act.

By localizing housing regulation, abolishing the height limit accounts for the diverse needs and opinions among D.C.’s neighborhoods. This policy permits each zoning district to decide whether it values aesthetics or affordable housing more, for example. Such versatility remains absent from both the current nationalized zoning process and plans to simply modify the law. In

short, repealing the law acts as a cost-saving policy by allowing communities to choose housing that best meets their needs.

Abolishing the act would promote D.C.’s long-term ability to maintain property and jobs.7” Because D.C. cannot collect taxes on its many federal buildings, revoking the height limit would increase both commercial construction and direly needed tax revenue.8 The abolition of the Buildings Act will certainly not resolve all of D.C.’s housing woes. Nevertheless, it would help alleviate high housing prices without the disastrous economic effects of rents controls. Rent controls result not only in deadweight loss but also increase prices in the overall rental market. A rent control study in San Francisco found that rent prices actually increased 46.3% after controls.9 The same study found that rent controls decreased – rather than increased - ethnic diversity.10 The mere abolition of the Buildings Act would lower housing costs without the same negative consequences of rent controls.

Only Congress can act to repeal the Height of Buildings Act of 1910. In recent years, Congress has debated the dated law without positive results. To finally inspire congressional action against the law, a campaign must mobilize public opinion to sway congressional representatives. Public opinion failed to shape previous congressional debates because public opinion on the law simply didn’t exist at the time. Even today, few D.C. residents understand the reason for their stunted skyline let alone have heard of the Buildings Act. Given the issue’s invisibility, educating the community on the law serves as a campaign’s primary concern. To inform the city and build public opinion, organizers will need to send volunteers into D.C.’s wards to lead community meetings on the issue. By reaching out to D.C.’s wards, these meetings will unite the city’s economically, racially, and socially diverse neighborhoods against the act.

The primary obstacle to abolishing the Height of Buildings Act is the U.S. Congress. As a result, policy action goals remain simple: convince Congress to revoke the act. Accomplishing this requires a three-phase timeline, culminating in a Congressional vote in May.

No building within the District of Columbia can exceed 130 feet in height.11 Since the United States Congress authorized the Height of Buildings Act, the District of Columbia has seen periods during which rents have increased in terms adjusted for inflation by more than 50%.12 New York’s tallest commercial building rises to 1,776 feet13 while one of D.C.’s tallest commercial buildings, One Franklin Square, reaches only 210 feet.14

Phase one, from December to February, will focus on community outreach and education. During this phase, organizers should recruit volunteers – specifically local college students - to visit all of D.C.’s wards and participate in community meetings. Discussing the Height Act at these ward hearings will not only educate the community but also promote dialogue on ways to solve D.C.’s housing woes. Moreover, these meetings will help build a broad-based, city-wide, and socio-economically spanning coalition against the law.

Phase two, from February to April, will add community action. This stage primarily concerns itself with securing Congressional public hearings on the Height of Buildings Act. D.C.’s representative to Congress, Eleanor Holmes Norton, will serve as an indispensable asset and spokesperson in achieving this aim.

The final phase, from April to May, will emphasize community campaigning. With a Congressional hearing and vote approaching, proponents of revoking the Height Act must sway and employ public opinion to shift Congressional opinion. To alter public sentiments, advocates must engage in neighborhood canvasing, begin social media campaigns, and appear on Sunday talk shows. D.C.’s lacking representation in Congress already acts as a highly charged issue within the district. The public campaign to abolish the Height Act should draw upon this enthusiasm by presenting the act as a prime example of this Congressional overreach.

After cultivating public support, advocates should hold events during which their supporters can contact and call Congressional representatives. Most importantly, proponents of revoking the Height of Buildings Act must testify before and lobby Congress.

With Congress out of D.C.’s way, the sky – not 130 feet- is the limit.

1

Sodd, Anthony. “The Cairo: The Apartment Building that Shaped DC’s Diminutive Skyline.” DCInno. February 4, 2014.

2

Goldchain, Michelle. “Examining the Dark Side of Washington, D.C.’s Height Act.” Curbed. Vox Media, July 14, 2015

3

“Legislative Authorities – Height of Buildings Act of 1910,” National Capital Planning Commission. The Federal Planning

Agency for America’s Capital

4

“Historical Census of Housing Tables – Gross Rents,” United States Census Bureau.” U.S. Department of Commerce,

October 31, 2011.

5

“The Best and Worst Cities for Renters.” Forbes. 2012.

6

Westcott, Lucy. “More Americans Moving to Cities, Reversing the Suburban Exodus.” The Wire. March 27, 2014.

7

Koebler, Jason. “Washington D.C. CFO: Bring on the Skyscrapers.” U.S. New and World Report News. July 19, 2012.

8 Ibid.

9

“San Francisco’s Rent Control Study.” California Association of Realtors. C.A.R., July 2003.

10 Ibid.

11

“Legislative Authorities – Height of Buildings Act of 1910.” National Capital Planning Commission. The Federal Planning

Agency for America’s Capital.

12

“Historical Census of Housing Tables – Gross Rents.” United States Census Bureau. U.S. Department of Commerce, October

31, 2011.

13

One World Trade Center.

14

“One Franklin Square.” The Skyscraper Center – The Global Tall Building Database of the CTBUH. Council on Tall Buildings

and Urban Habitat.

Economic Development

Closing the Labour Gaps: Opening up Immigration

Naba Rahman (SFS ‘18)

Navigating the American immigration system is near impossible, necessitating undocumented immigration. Through NAFTA free labour movement, immigrants can fill low-skilled labour gaps while penning their chapter in the American Dream.

The United States is the end destination for roughly 20% of the globe’s immigrants. Promises of economic prosperity and relative stability enticed 41.3 million immigrants towards U.S. borders in 2013. If the U.S. economy is doing well, relative to the economy of the migrant’s country of origin, then migration will increase. More American college-bound students coupled with less labour participation by low-skilled domestic workers has lead to a deficit in low-skilled labour that has been developing since the 1970s. There is a lowskilled labour shortage of 3 million workers.1 Even if every American entering the workforce stopped their education, there would still be a 1.3 million worker shortage.

Currently only 600,000 workers are allowed into the U.S. If the government increased the number of low-skilled labour visas, undocumented immigration would be cut and labor gaps filled.It is precisely this labour gap that migrants are often filling. Because of the lack of a speedy, efficient immigration system, economic disparity drives illegal immigration. There are roughly 11.4 million unauthorized migrants, with 8.4 million employed in our economy. In 2013, there were 9.4 million eligible applications and only about 50,000 get access through work visas. The backlog is traced back to a limit on the number of visas physically available and the US government’s inability to cope with the scale of applicants. And while the shortage is in low-skilled labour, most visas that are processed go to high-skilled labour, increasing illegal immigration and creating a major national labour gap.

The U.S. has a plethora of available low-skilled workers south of our border in Mexico, eager to take advantage of American security and stability.

Establishing a free labor movement union with limited border controls (FLMU) between the U.S., Mexico, and Canada (NAFTA) will allow for a fluid labor system where labor supply can more easily match demand.

In addition, by increasing the number of low-skilled work visas, this can curb the pressure of illegal immigration by creating a controlled, more streamlined immigration system.

The FLMU will be incredibly useful to filling in labor gaps. The U.S. and Canada have very similar labor systems - where the majority of unskilled workers are in the service industry2 - and thus the movement of labor will be able to better match high-skilled candidates with jobs. Mexicans have been the largest immigrant bloc in the US. Only 6% of Mexicans become lawful permanent residents while the general figure for those who receive lawful permanent residence is 16%.3 49% of undocumented immigrants in the U.S. are Mexicans.4 Typically undocumented immigrants take the jobs Americans are not taking. 0.5% of Americans are involved in agriculture while 26% of agriculture workers are undocumented.5 NAFTA created the jobs that these Mexican and Canadian immigrants are trying to pursue yet many potential immigrants are bogged down by the extensive immigration process. Some countries, such as those in the EU, have a system akin to the FLMU, seeing more workers filling labor inefficiencies in member countries. This policy can also quell xenophobic sentiments. If the U.S. adopted this system, migrants would allowed to stay in the U.S. not because of their citizenship but because of their status as workers from neighboring countries.

The next steps should first start with a call to further investigate the effects of a free-labor movement union, Next, NAFTA should be petitioned to create a resolution implementing a free movement labor zone.Then, Congress should be lobbied to approve the NAFTA agreement and to institute an international labor conference between NAFTA countries. Finally, should the congressional route fail, the President should consider issuing an executive order, though should ensure there is popular support for such an action.

There is a mountain of xenophobic sentiment, specifically sparked by the presidential election cycle, that must be overcome in order for this free labor movement union to gain political traction. From a grassroots level, by creating a speaker series and conference lauding the positive effects immigrants have on our labor system and the need for low-skilled labor, support for the movement can be cultivated.

Undocumented immigrants are 5.2% of the American labour force.6 It can take 20 years to gain legal access into the USA, by which point the demand for your skills may be gone.7 This legalization of millions of workers would bring in $2 billion of taxes.8

By creating an email sign up list to send out periodic updates of events, speakers, or rallies, supporters can remain engaged long term. Schools in D.C. should have the opportunity to lobby their home state congressman to take this popular support and extend it into the legislature. Members can also be called to testify in front of Congress in support of the legislation to increase the number of low-skilled work visas, which is congressionally mandated, as well as to push for the free labour movement union.

Education is a also crucial aspect of this movement. Immigrants clearly benefit the economy, a fact that is often twisted to manipulate the general populace.

Through internet media campaigns, this message can be spread. Buying advertisement spots as well as getting media attention to spotlight our events will ensure the movement as a whole can gain momentum. Partners need to be public and private to ensure the support of politicians on Capitol hill, think tanks like the Migration Policy Institute, as well as academic experts. The first month will be dedicated to building up on campus student support-specifically in DC universities. While continuing to solidify the youth support, Capitol Hill support will be achieved through lobbying support within in the next three month, with the help of academics and policy makers alike who side with the concept of Free Labour Movement Unions and increased low-skilled work visas. Once there is enough legislative momentum, the remaining time can be used to bringing the legislation to the floor towards a positive vote.

1

Clemens, Michael. “More Unskilled Workers, Please.” Foreign Policy. Last modified July 8, 2013.

2

”Canada.” CIA World Factbook. Last modified November 19, 2015.

3

Zong, Jie, and Jeanne Batalova. “Mexican Immigrants in the US.” Migration Policy Institute. Last

modified October 9, 2014

4

Krogstad, Jens Manuel, and Jeffrey Passel. “5 Facts about Illegal Immigration in the U.S.” Pew

Research Institute. Last modified November 19, 2015

5

Constable, Pamela. “Majority of Undocumented Immigrants Work in Low-Skill Jobs, Report Finds.”

Washington Post. Last modified March 26, 2015.

6

Goodman, H. A. “Illegal Immigrants Benefit the U.S. Economy.” The Hill. Last modified April 23, 2014.

7

Khimm, Suzy. “How Long Is the Immigration ‘Line’? As Long as 24 Years.” The Washington Post. Last

modified January 31, 2013.

8

“Undocumented Immigrants’ State and Local Tax Contributions.” Institute of Taxation and Economic

Policy. Last modified July 2013

Economic Development

Generating Food Security: Re-implementing a Strategic Grain Reserve The United States should authorize the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) to create and maintain a strategic grain reserve in order to reduce fluctuations of grain prices and insulate United States citizens against a looming food crisis.

Micah Musser (COL ‘19)

Between 1954 and 1985, the federal government authorized the CCC to maintain grain reserves in order to moderate agricultural prices, while from 1977 to 1996 the government also provided storage and management for farmer-owned grain reserves.1 Since these measures expired, U.S. agricultural subsidies have resulted in a stagnant or declining U.S. share of international commodity markets while costing taxpayers billions of dollars.2 Today, as a result of climate change, rising variation in yields of major crops will likely lead to fluctuating food prices, and without global reforms in agriculture, food crises are becoming increasingly likely.3 Furthermore, current U.S. agricultural subsidies paradoxically encourage both conservation and overproduction.4 If the United States wants to be prepared to deal with the realities of climate change and increasing price variation, expansive reforms of agricultural policies are necessary.

This policy directly benefits farmers because maintaining reserves more successfully assures a constant market price of grain compared to maintaining current subsidies. Currently, many subsidies are provided based upon farmers’ land usage decisions; for instance, their decision to grow certain crops or to allow land to lie fallow. A grain reserve, which could provide stable prices without such close governmental oversight, would also reduce the amount of red tape involved for farmers altering their land usage decisions. This could allow farmers to more rapidly respond to market changes by switching crops or implementing new technologies. Additionally, grain reserves, which function as a counter-cyclical payment to farmers, have been shown to have fewer distortionary effects on the market than current subsidies, which primarily emphasize marketing loans (one-time payments that only function when prices are low with no corresponding mechanism to lower significantly inflated prices).5 Unlike most agricultural subsidies, this policy also benefits U.S. residents and the government. For the public, the increased safety guaranteed by a grain

reserve can both prevent the effects of a food crisis and reduce concerns among consumers and investors regarding potential food shortages.

Additionally, historical data and simulations demonstrate that replacing subsidies with a farmer-owned grain reserve could have reduced government spending by $96 billion between 1998 and 2010 while maintaining stable prices, increasing the value of farm exports, and having virtually no impact on net farm income.6 Potential allies for a grain reserve include members of Congress serving on the House Subcommittee on Farm Commodities and Risk Management and the Senate Subcommittee on Commodities, Risk Management, and Trade, all of whom would benefit from a cheaper, more effective alternative to current agricultural subsidies. Furthermore, the ability of grain reserves to increase our national food security is attractive to politicians who emphasize national security. By demonstrating the ability of a counter-cyclical reserve program to provide greater freedom to farmers and discourage land overuse (by restraining rapidly rising prices), a coalition could be formed of agricultural and environmental interest groups in order to lobby Congress for the policy. If each group voiced support for the proposal in Congress, it could quickly become a popular bipartisan issue for incorporation into the next Farm Bill.

During the period of a farmer-owned grain reserve (1977– 1996), grain prices trended downward in real dollars and price variability decreased.7 A farmer-owned grain reserve can drastically cut government expenditures without resulting in more variable prices or a decrease in net farm income.8

1

The 2007–08 food crisis was exacerbated by climate change’s impact on agriculture, combined with a lack of preparation for food shortages.9 Food & Water Watch. “Grain Reserves: Common-Sense Farm Policy. Fact Sheet.” May 2014.

2

Murphy, Sophia. “Strategic Grain Reserves In an Era of Volatility.” Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy. October

2009.

3

Kucharik, Christopher J and Navin Ramankutty. “Trends and Variability in U.S. Corn Yields over the Twentieth

Century.” Earth Interactions. 2005.

4

Mayrand, Karel, Stéphanie Dionne, Marc Paquin and Isaak Pageot-LeBel. “The Economic and

Environmental Impacts of Agricultural Subsidies: An Assessment of the 2002 US Farm Bill & Doha Round.”

Paper presented at the Commission on Environmental Cooperation North American Symposium, Montreal, Quebec,

March 2003.

5 Ibid.

6

Schaffer, Harwood D., Chad Hellwinckel, Daryll E. Ray, and Daniel G. De La Torre Ugarte. “An Analysis of a Market-

Driven Inventory System (MDIS).” National Farmers Union - USA (April 2012).

7

Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service Homepage. All prices converted to

1983 equivalent dollar values based upon Consumer Price Index data from the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of

Labor.

8

Schaffer, Harwood D., Chad Hellwinckel, Daryll E. Ray, and Daniel G. De La Torre Ugarte. “An Analysis of a Market-

Driven Inventory System (MDIS).” National Farmers Union - USA. April 2012.

9

Sampson, Kristin. “Why We Need Food Reserves.” Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy. October 2010.

EDUONEDUCATIONEDUCATION NEDUCATIONEDUCATIONedu 96

NEDUCationeducatione ucationeducationeducati

Education

A Generation Left Behind: Diversifying Testing to Promote Innovation

Madison Ferris (COL ‘19)

Beginning at a local level, school districts should introduce externally moderated long-term assignments and decrease standardized testing to promote teacher accountability and mitigate the impact of an individual test on the student, teacher, and school.

Since the well-intentioned No Child Left Behind Act was passed in the United States in 2001, the public education system has devolved into a community based solely on standardized testing. High test anxiety has become increasingly prevalent within the U.S. as a result of high-stakes testing under the Act. Teacher’s salaries, school funding, and community perception are all centered around scores on multiple choice tests that put intense pressure on the students to obtain high scores. This pressure does not foster a desire for learning, but rather a severe need to pass tests that can never truly reflect the understanding of a concept.1 Many teachers are forced to ask their students to memorize facts that will be on spring examinations in lieu of cultivating critical thinking skills due to a short-sighted system. This de-emphasis on comprehension will have detrimental effects on future generations unless the system is redesigned.

For students on the autism spectrum, the high-pressure environment has even more severe results. The high stakes of each single-sitting exam can lead to failed testing even if a student understands the subject in a different environment.

The sensory overload, short time allowance, and directions which are difficult to understand – and often cannot be explained further due to regulation – lead to significantly lower assessment levels than when other methods of evaluation are used.2 The manner in which ideas are conveyed is crucial to the attitude that is developed toward learning and innovating. If a person understands the reason that a system functions a certain way, he is more apt to discover better ways to complete the same task. Thus, the education that has been forced upon the majority of this generation will never be able to satisfy the growing need for

advancement in the modern world.

To combat this degeneration of learning and to make testing more fair for those students with learning disabilities, school districts should begin introducing externally moderated longterm assignments and decrease standardized testing. Under this system, the number of hours of testing would be greatly reduced and replaced with a more individualized research assignment, varying in specific content but with a standardized rubric for consistency. This would take the place of a project which the students would already be assigned. However, a sample of these research assignments after grading would be sent to a committee of teachers for external moderation of the grading itself to maintain equity between teachers in different schools.

In Virginia, current policy does allow for students with learning disabilities to take an alternate test to the Standards of Learning; however, the policy states that a maximum of 1% of test-takers in the state are allowed to earn a passing grade using an alternate test under current education policy.3 This is problematic when, according to a 2012 study by the Center for Disease Control, 1 in 88 students are diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder4 – just one of many types of learning disabilities which affect 12.9% of students.5 Thus, even when accommodations are made, it is still disproportionately difficult to pass the tests that decide so much of their future.

Under the new guidelines proposed, all students would take a modified form of a standardized test with the additional component of the hands-on, creative section. The learning style of specializing through research, which has been successfully carried out by the Montessori Method6 internationally, has resulted in significantly higher cognitive skills.7 The style of moderating a sample of graded assignments has also successfully been used as an element of the International Baccalaureate Program through Internal Assessments.8

Nearly 20% of students in the US are afflicted with severe test anxiety, with nearly 38% of all students afflicted with some form of this anxiety disorder.9 Although 12.9% of students are diagnosed with learning disabilities,10 only 1% of test-takers in the state of Virginia are allowed to advance to the next grade-level through an alternate test – to the Standards of Learning – under the current law.

Students enrolled in programs – such as Montessori – that emphasize individual research and a chance to explore unique interests while in elementary school earned an average GPA 0.13 points higher than their counterparts in similar academically rigorous programs when put in the same high school.

1

Orlin, Ben. “When Memorization Gets in the Way of Learning.” The Atlantic. September 9, 2013.

2

Loftin, Rachel. “Standardized Tests and Students with an Autism Spectrum Disorder.” Indiana University Bloomington. 2003.

3

“Accountability in Virginia Public Schools.” Virginia Department of Education. 2015.

4

Hendricks, Dawn, Carol Schall, Joy Engstrom, and Charles Dillard. “Assessment of Screening, Diagnosis, and Identification of Autism Spectrum

Disorder in Virginia.” Virginia Commonwealth University’s Autism Center for Excellence. 2013.

5

“Table 204.30: Children 3 to 21 Years Old Served under Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Part B, by Type of Disability: Selected

Years, 1976-77 through 2011-12.” National Center for Education Statistics. .

6

“Comparison of Academic Achievement Between Montessori and Traditional Education Programs.” Journal of Research in Childhood Education

20, no. 1 (2005).

7

Samarrai, Fariss. “Montessori Education Provides Better Outcomes Than Traditional Methods, Study Indicates.” UVA Today. September 29, 2006.

8

Marisa de la Torre et al., “Turning Around Low-Performing Schools in Chicago.”

8

Manafo, Mike. “The IB Internal Assessment.” Pennsylvania International Academy. January 2, 2013. Accessed November 12, 2015.

9

Strauss, Valerie. “Test Anxiety: Why It Is Increasing and 3 Ways to Curb It.” Washington Post. February 10, 2013.

10

“Table 204.30: Children 3 to 21 Years Old Served under Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Part B, by Type of Disability: Selected

Years, 1976-77 through 2011-12.” National Center for Education Statistics.

11

“Accountability in Virginia Public Schools.” Virginia Department of Education. 2015.

12

Dohrmann, Kathryn. “Outcomes for Students in a Montessori Program.” May 1, 2003.

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT

Angela Wong

Tell me a little bit about yourself.

I’m in the College, currently undecided, but I’ve always been really interested in education policy. I grew up in New York City in a system that wasn’t really doing the best job. I came to Georgetown because of its proximity to D.C. I really wanted to make a difference in my community because I had gone to high school in a rural area where there weren’t many community service options for students.

So now I’m involved with the D.C. Schools Project where I tutor kids in immigrant communities. Beyond education issues, I’m really interested in history. I really like to run. This grew out of being forced to run in high school because we had to do a sport and none of the other options sounded appealing.

How did you get involved with Roosevelt@Georgetown?

I don’t remember exactly how I heard about it though it was definitely either through CAB Fair or Facebook. What really attracted me to Roosevelt was that they were marketing the club towards freshmen. There was a lot of rhetoric about being able to write policy pieces and get published as a freshman as well as getting the opportunity to work with peers who were interested in diverse issues from education to economics to health-care. I decided to sign up for the education policy center because that was most in line with my interests. I look forward to going to policy center meetings because I get to discuss issues I don’t have in class. People in my center provided many perspectives I’d never considered and even some that I disagreed with.

Tell me a little more about your policy piece—how’d you get the idea?

The topic stemmed from my upbringing, I attended public school in New York City until the end of eighth grade and many of my peers aimed to gain entry to the top public high schools in the city. I started taking standardized exams in third grade, as most kids in this country do, so I got socialized to this kind of atmosphere. Around middle school it became clear that you had to score really well on the SHSAT to get into one of best high schools. My parents enrolled me in tutoring to prepare me for the exam because my middle school wasn’t preparing me enough in terms of basic English and math skills. Going to the tutoring center definitely pulled up my academic level and it was also eye-opening because I got to learn about my peers’ stories. I heard about how much pressure their parents put on them to do well especially since many of them came from working class families whose parents had sacrificed a lot for them to be there.

Though I took the SHSAT, I opted to go to boarding school in Connecticut. When I talked to my friends in New York City, I got the feeling that though we had all received objectively “good” educations, their high school experience was not as fulfilling because of the lack of diversity in these top high schools.My friends at Stuyvesant (in New York City) thought their experience would have been enhanced by more diversity in the school. These comments made me reflect on my experience in elementary and middle school and how ingrained that diversity

was in my education. My middle school was predominantly African-American (95%) but in the top public high schools, this number drops drastically. I went to a boarding school that was predominantly white and I think if the school had greater diversity, I could have adjusted better.

Does every 8th grader have the opportunity to take this test?

Everyone is given the opportunity to take it. However, there’s a small registration fee, and some students lack the means or initiative to do it because they feel unprepared or know that their situation is hopeless. Most students who have gained entrance to the top public schools have had some kind of out-of-school tutoring.

Tell me about your policy idea.

I proposed to use the funds that have already been allocated to schools to create mandatory weekly prep sessions for the SHSAT. These sessions would afford every student the opportunity to prepare for the exam. These programs do exist in some schools but students must either apply to the program or be recommended by a teacher. We need to stop perpetuating the culture of “I’m not good enough” so the city should mandate that every student sit for the SHSAT. What is the biggest obstacle you see facing public education today?

My answer is biased towards my own experiences. I have had teachers who I greatly admire but I have also had teachers who were very clearly in their positions because of the job security or the benefits, and not to help their students. It’s really difficult to have a standard for hiring and evaluating teachers. I think that the teacher’s unions often protect teachers who do not do their jobs. My Physical Education teacher in middle school had been at our school for 20 years and she emphasized to us that she was only there for the pay. There needs to be some way to incentivize teachers who are there because they are passionate about teaching and a way to punish those who are ineffective.

What would someone be surprised to know about you?

I pretty much wear my heart on my sleeve. Though I suppose one thing would be that one of my favorite singers in Carrie Underwood. It’s pretty strange for a New Yorker.

What’s on your bucket list?

There are so many things to do here on the hilltop. I am a part of GSP and I really want to get more involved with that program. In high school, I wrote for the newspaper so I would be interested in writing for one of Georgetown’s publications. I did the Alternative Breaks Program so I want to get more involved

with the CSJ. I want to check out the art museums, see more basketball games, and just get the most out of living in this awesome city. At boarding school, I met friends from all over the world so I would love to do some kind of world trip to visit all of them after graduation. Ideally, I hope to settle here in the United States but right after graduation, it would be cool to have an internship or job abroad so I could explore a new place. I’ve always been very intrigued by traveling so hopefully my job will allow me to do this.

What’s on your Netflix?

House of Cards, Blacklist, Law and Order: SVU. My friends joke that I have a very dark taste in television.My guilty pleasure used to be America’s Next Top Model.

How are you liking your freshman year here?

Overall, it’s been a very good year. There have been a few downs, like late nights in Lau and econ midterms. My one frustration has been the emphasis on highstress lifestyles. I don’t think people pay enough attention to self-care which is a difficult thing to accept. I was intimidated by my professors at first but after I went to office hours, I realized that they are just here to help. I love my classes and how I can meet so many people with different perspectives and approaches to issues I am passionate about.

ANASHUA DUTTA TIMMY REYNOLDS

Education

Diversity in New York City’s Elite Schools: Mandating the SHSAT

In order to expand Black and Latino student enrollment, the New York City Department of Education should mandate that all public school students prepare and sit for the Specialized High School Admissions Test (SHSAT).

Angela Wong (COL ‘19)

As the United States’ largest school district, New York City serves “1.1 million students in over 1,800 schools.”1 It oversees the Specialized High Schools, known for their academic rigor and sole admission criteria—the Specialized High School Admissions Test (SHSAT). In the early 1970’s, school chancellor Harvey Scribner, suspecting cultural bias, “appointed a commission to study the admissions test at all the selective schools.” 2 Responding to Scribner’s actions, Assemblyman Burton Hecht and Senator John Calandra championed the Hecht-Calandra Act of 1972. It declared that admission should be determined “by taking a competitive, objective and scholastic achievement examination,”3 but also permitted a Discovery Program, which offers high-potential, disadvantaged students who do not pass the test opportunities to gain entrance.

Along with the Discovery Program, the DREAM–SHSI, which offers poor students free test preparation, has been implemented.

Black and Latino students are still disproportionately represented, however, for it only serves those who apply and qualify.4 As a whole, though Black and Latino students account for over twothirds of eighth graders, they comprise less than one-tenth of those enrolled at Specialized High Schools.5 The New York City Department of Education should mandate preparation and testing for all public school students. Extended School Day/School Violence Prevention Program grants provide programs that promote achievement and reduce school violence.6 Preparation should take place during this time or after school initiatives funded by government divisions like the Department of Youth and Community Development. 7 Existing initiatives have proven unsuccessful in increasing Black and Latino enrollment in Specialized High Schools. Selective in nature, the DREAM-SHSI does little to promote inclusivity in an inherently competitive selection process. The NAACP filed a complaint with the New York Office for Civil Rights in 2012, citing a 2011 news article which stated that 19% of Black students and 21% of Latino students who participated in a city-funded SHSAT prep course were accepted, down from 21% and 24%, respectively, to claim that the SHSAT violates Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. 8 9

The proposed plan ensures all students will receive equal opportunities to prepare for the exam.

By mandating that all students prepare for the SHSAT during existing times, the New York City Department of Education does not need to extensively allocate new resources. Schools’ core curriculums will remain untouched, as this initiative takes place outside of the standard school day. Mandating the exam will mean increased costs for the Board of Education but inaction will perpetuate an unequal system.

The New York City Board of Education would be responsible for these changes. However, several key allies will ensure the success of these policies. Civil rights organizations like the NAACP and New York Urban League are strong proponents for education equity.10 Additionally, New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio has publically

1% of enrolled Stuyvesant High School students are black and only 3% are Latino.

Three decades ago, black student enrollment was 13%.12 A study done by NYU Steinhart found that factoring other admissions criteria like grades and attendance would not substantially improve schools’ diversity, “particularly for Black students, whose numbers would actually decrease.”13 From 2005 to 2013, over half of students admitted to specialized high schools came from 5% of the city’s middle schools.14

supported SHSAT reform.11 This proposed policy requires that all Specialized High Schools be open to implementing these policies. Teacher unions and school administrators must also acknowledge the importance of such policies and willingly offer test preparation during existing initiatives.

Reforming the Specialized High School Admissions Test has become a contentious issue, particularly over the past few years. Since its effects are widespread, potential policy changes are openly discussed. It is, thus, less important to sell the idea of reform than it is to distinguish this particular idea from all others. A good first step would be to start a campus club that backs this idea. Students with varied perspectives will work towards developing a cohesive message, one that will guide the next steps forward. In this group, students can write letters to key representatives and organizations, including, but not limited to, the ones previously named. Meeting with these players, if possible, would add greatly to the cause and its credibility. They will give us insight into how these policies should be portrayed to the media and general public. It is imperative that we elect one or two young students to tell their stories. One might tell of his experiences attending a Specialized High School and the other might recall his or her negative encounters with the SHSAT. Over the next few months, reform leaders and teachers should meet to discuss methods and strategies of test preparation. Then, after solidifying many of the plan’s logistics, it should be presented to the NYC Department of Education.

Since the Hecht-Calandra Act is a state law, they should then rally popular support and start petitions. This will both raise awareness about the proposed change and gauge its popularity.

It is imperative that through these actions, activists distinguish their proposal among many others. Additionally, many strongly oppose SHSAT reform.

Supporters must recognize the difficulty in promoting and implementing this policy. Regardless, this policy pushes the discourse in a direction of change.

1

New York City Department of Education, “About Us.” New York City Department of Education, 2015.

2

Mac Donald, “How Gotham’s Elite High Schools Escaped the Leveller’s Ax.” City Journal, 1999.

3

Damon, “The Admissions Process for New York City’s Elite Public Schools Violates Title VI of the Civil Rights Act

of 1964 and Its Implementing Regulations.” NAACP LDF, 2012.

4

Gibson, “DREAM – The Specialized High Schools Institute (DREAM – SHSI).” New York City Department of

Education, 2013.

5

Wong, “How to Solve the Diversity Problem at NYC’s Elite Public Schools.” The Atlantic, 2015.

6

New York State Education Department, “2016-2021 Extended School Day/School Violence Prevention Program

Competitive Grant Application 2016-2021.” New York State Education Department, 2015.

7

Department of Youth and Community Development, “After School.” Department of Youth and Community

Development, 2015.

8

Damon, “The Admissions Process for New York City’s Elite Public Schools Violates Title VI of the Civil Rights Act

of 1964 and Its Implementing Regulations.” NAACP LDF, 2012.

9

Kolodner, “Prep Course Aimed at Diversifying Elite City Schools Fails to Reach Black and Latino Students.” New

York Daily News, 2011.

10

NAACP, “Case: New York City Specialized High School Complaint.” NAACP, 2012.

11

Decker, McIntire, “City Endorses Legislative Push to Diversify Elite High Schools.” Chalkbeat New York City, 2014

12

Bautista, “Asian American Amicus in Support of Administrative Complaint by the NAACP Legal Defense and

Educational Fund.” NAAC, 2012.

13

Weinstein, “Research Alliance Study Simulates Changes to Admissions Criteria for NYC’s Specialized High

Schools.” NYU Steinhart¸ 2015.

14

Darville, “Low Numbers of Black and Hispanic Students Admitted to NYC Specialized High Schools, Data

Shows.” Alternet, 2015.

Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:CrayonLogs.jpg

G’S COLLEGE KING’S COLLEGE

E KING’S COLLEGE KING’S CO

KING’S COLLEGE

Future EU Measures on Youth Intra-EU Labour Mobility This policy paper seeks to fashion a stronger youth employment scheme across Europe by developing intraEU apprenticeships, promoting stronger employment, and ensuring that indirect discrimination is combatted with existing legislation (2000/78/EC).

Alexander Botashev Philosophy First Year

The European Union is facing a prolonged youth unemployment phenomenon.

Unemployment rates range from greater than 23% in 2013 to less than 21% today, with peaks of greater than 40% in some countries, compared to 9% overall unemployment. Furthermore, more than 7 million people in the 15-24 age group are neither employed nor in training. There is often a mismatch between the supply of labour market skills and demand for those skills in the country.

In 2011, 3.0% of U.S. citizens lived in another state the year before while only .3% of Europeans had lived in another EU member state. The European labor mismatch issue must be solved by moving to a system which works to solve the problem of youth unemployment and increases mobility. The current

programme to increase mobility, EURES, has had little impact. Between January 2009 and November 2012 the number of people from Portugal, Spain and Greece that signed up to EURES increased from 60,000 to 300,000. However, only 5,000 jobseekers found work through the programme.

In the face of sustained youth unemployment, paired with mismatches in the labour market, the EU has been pressed to come up with a solution. The Youth Guarantee was endorsed in April 2013. This programme is based on Finnish and Austrian models whose participants boasted an 83.5% success rate in job-finding or placement in an apprenticeship or further education.

The plan has a cost estimated by the ILO to be €21 billion a year. However, the cost of inaction in terms of welfare and other transfer payments is €150 billion a year.

The Guarantee is crucial in solving labour-market deficiencies across the EU, as stated in its mandate, by “making young people aware of job offers, traineeships and apprenticeships and available support in different areas, regions and countries.”

One of the main successes of the Guarantee so far is the use of apprenticeships and traineeships. Private-sector initiatives have seen greater people educated in the field than the public sector, and have surely increased mobility. However, some of the work schemes must be used as “stepping stones” as “zero-hours contracts” in the UK became employment traps and contributed to a more volatile labour market. Thus, the system must be properly monitored to be effective.

To prevent incidences like these, the Directive 2000/78/EC provides an employment equality framework that forms the backbone of the EU’s labour law. The Directive aims to combat discrimination in terms of gender, disability, sexual orientation, religion, and age. This directive serves as a cornerstone for equal worker rights. However, the ‘age’ clause of the legislation is rarely used as a reference, and the wording of the clause is highly ambiguous, allowing indirect discrimination to carry on throughout the EU. A major problem in Clause 6 of the Directive is that the definition of ‘legitimate aim’ is fairly broad and leaves room for indirect discrimination, leading to irregularities in the labour market and further youth unemployment. Thus, extra measures must be taken in order to safeguard workers from age-based discrimination.

The Youth Guarantee should focus more on developed and comprehensive apprenticeship and traineeship schemes while ensuring the workers’ right to equal treatment. This policy seeks to combat the ambiguous nature of Article 6 through the annual National Reform and Stability Programme reports.

By recommending an overseeing element that reinforces Directive 2000/78/EC, the commission will be able to ensure that member states are conforming to the directive correctly and, if not, take punitive measures at their discretion. This will combat indirect discrimination based on age.

The King’s Think Tank proposes two policy recommendations to future measures on youth intra-EU labour mobility: 1. A recommendation in the Youth Guarantee to increase funding across all EU member states to higher quality vocational education and training and intra-EU apprenticeships 2. A provision in the Youth Guarantee that seeks to combat indirect discrimination across the EU in accordance with Council Directive 2000/78/EC by utilising the National Reform and Stability Programme to the EU. According to the Directorate General for Internal Policies, “apprenticeships and training in the private sector seem to create more permanent jobs than those in the public and not-for-profit sectors. More specifically, labour market outcomes for apprentices in company-run apprenticeship schemes are better than for those engaged in apprenticeships or traineeships provided as part of a government scheme in a training centre (school-based apprenticeships).”

The Youth Guarantee programme should, as such, seek to allocate funds to this area of traineeships specifically so to increase mobility across Europe for these schemes as well as educate the workforce to a higher degree By monitoring the output from each individual nation annually the EU will be able to prevent schemes like zero-hours contracts from becoming more than a ‘stepping stone’ in employment and solidify the workings of the Youth Guarantee.

In submitting this form the EU can monitor, oversee and urge Member States to integrate the economic and social objectives when creating flexible and reliable contracts.

1

BBC. (November 2012). Hunting jobs across the Eurozone.

2

Centre for European Policy Studies, Brussel. (October 2014). Making the Most of EU Labour Mobility.

3

European Commission (July 2014). EU measures to tackle youth unemployment.

4

European Commission. (2012). Towards evidence-based youth entrepreneurship policies.

5

European Commission. (2012). Youth Employment.

6

European Parliament. (2015). Differential Treatment of Workers under 25 with a View to their Access to the La

bour Market.

7

UN World Youth Report (2013). Youth and Labour Migration.

Image: https://www.flickr.com/photos/jurvetson/3730751907

KING’S COLLEGE

Tackling Migrant Smuggling: EU Legislation Fit for Purpose?

Olivia Johnson International Politics Third Year Jakob Muratov International Political Economy Third Year

Over the past three years, the European Union (EU) has seen an exponential rise in the smuggling of migrants and asylum seekers into its territory, which has raised both security and human rights concerns. In response, the EU is looking to implement policies that effectively deter criminal smuggling whilst ensuring the rights of smuggled migrants are protected. This Policy Paper will examine the effectiveness of the EU legislation to adequately address migrant smuggling into the EU. This paper will focus specifically on the legislation’s provisions that uphold the rights of migrants and offer financial deterrence mechanisms and will suggest two changes to the existing legislation to improve the EU’s ability to meet its policy objectives.

In the face of rising political and regional insecurity and worsened by selective and lengthy asylum and migration processes, migrant smuggling has become a pressing issue for the EU. The number of people illegally transported into the EU has exponentially risen over the past three years. Many of these migrants enter the EU with the assistance of migrant smugglers. However, entering the EU in this manner, as many smuggled individuals are subject to significant human rights abuses and dangerous conditions.

The illicit nature of migrant smuggling makes it a difficult issue to monitor. The EU and its member states previously lacked the mechanisms to implement a comprehensive response to the issue of migrant smuggling. In response, the European Commission adopted the “European Agenda on Migration” and the “European Agenda on Security” to promote more effective measures to prevent migrant smuggling. These measures were consolidated in the “EU Action Plan against Migrant Smuggling”, which outlined the specific actions that the EU will undertake over the next five years.

These initiatives are intended to provide concrete actions to counter and prevent migrant smuggling, whilst protecting the human rights of migrants. Council Directive 2004/83/EC set out these rights and enacted a common EU policy on asylum. The European Commission has worked to ensure the policy involves actors and institutions at local, regional, national and international level and covers all phases and types of migrant smuggling, and all migratory routes. The Action Plan came into immediate effect in May of 2015.

In reviewing the issue of migrant-smuggling, the King’s Think Tank believes that the EU Action Plan fails to address the issues of appeals for negative decisions in asylum applications and the classification method for confiscating smugglers’ assets. The European Agenda on Security and the European Agenda on Migration do not adequately address the rights of migrants to appeal rejections

of their applications. This obstacle may act as a barrier to genuine humanitarian cases.

Including a provision that reinforces Council Directive 2004/83/EC will ensure that member state authorities are well informed of the legislation focusing on rights of refugees and have a process to regulate cases of administrative error.

Additionally, the Action Plan neglects to address the nature by which member states’ policing and financial authorities can freeze and confiscate migrant smugglers’ assets, thereby potentially allowing national agencies to overstep their jurisdictions. This provision ensures that national authorities have a clear guideline for enforcing their actions.

The King’s Think Tank proposes two policy adjustments to the EU’s Action Plan Against Migrant Smuggling: 1. Include an appeals option in the interior ministries of member states in cases where application for asylums are rejected.

2.

Include an explicit provision to enhance proactive financial investigations to freeze and confiscate migrant smugglers’ assets.

Including a provision for migrants’ rights promotes action taken in accordance with the EU Return Directive (Directive 2008/115/EC). This ensures the Action Plan to use effective return as a deterrent to smuggling is upheld while genuine humanitarian cases are not overlooked. The cost of this provision is low, as it only requires a strengthening of Council Directive 2004/83/EC whereby appeals are almost universally guaranteed, ensuring that genuine cases are not ignored.

The proposed Action plan of depriving smugglers of their profits promotes the EU’s objective of transforming migrant smuggling into a high-risk and low-profit operation. However, the detection mechanism for smugglers’ proceeds lacks substance and does not address how authorities could freeze or confiscate the bank accounts of smugglers’ in EU member states or third countries. By establishing concrete classification methods, financial investigative units like the National Asset Recovery Offices and CARIN (Camden Asset Recovery Inter-Agency Network) can effectively disrupt the smugglers’ business model and increase the cost of operation significantly. This reduces the avenues by which profits are stored and/or laundered, whilst clarifying the enforcement mechanisms for police and financial agencies.

The King’s Think Tank believes these policies will ensure that the EU’s Action Plan approaches migrant smuggling in a holistic manner.

Reinforcing the directives on asylum seekers and their right to appeal promotes the rights of migrants and ensures human rights standards are enforced in the long run within the Action Plan. This confirms the EU’s position as a human rights guarantor and sets the norm for other nations to follow.

Similarly, by clarifying the conditions under which the EU and member state authorities can freeze and confiscate the assets of smugglers, the EU establishes the limits for this procedure, ensuring clarity in the bureaucratic procedure and providing a protection mechanism against the overstep of authorities.

1

BBC News. (2016). Migrant Crisis: Migration to Europe.

2

European Commission. (2015). Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European

Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions, EU Action Plan against migrant smuggling (2015 –

2020).

3

European Court of Justice. (2008). Recital 29, Directive 2008/115/EC, of 16 December 2008, on common standards and

procedures in Member States for returning illegally staying

4

European Court of Justice. (2014). Directive 2014/42/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 3 April 2014 on

the freezing and confiscation of instrumentalities and proceeds of crime in the European Union.

5

The Global Initiative against Transnational Organised Crime. (2014). Smuggled Futures: The dangerous path of the migrant

from Africa to Europe.

6

International Organisation for Migration. (2014). Fatal Journeys - Tracking Lives Lost during Migration.

7

Migration Watch UK. (2009). A Survey of European Asylum Policy and Legislation.

8

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. (2011). Issue Paper: Smuggling of Migrants by Sea.

third-country nationals, OJ L 348 98, 24.12.2008, p. 98–107.

KING’S COLLEGE

E-Democracy and Civic Engagement Sofia Kebede International Politics Third Year

The King’s Think Tank recommends the mandatory inclusion of EU studies through a series of workshops in all member state secondary schools to provide a foundational knowledge of EU institutions and processes and thus enhance greater citizen interest and involvement with the EU. The lack of civic participation is a pressing problem for the functioning of the EU. It represents an obstacle to the channels of democratic participation for European citizens and exposes the issue gap between citizens and institutions in the EU decision-making processes.

The EU recognizes there is a perception that it has a “democratic deficit.”1 This perception is primarily centered on the structure of the EU’s institutions, specifically the European Council, European Parliament and European Commission. These institutions are thought to lack the democratic legitimacy conferred onto their national counterparts through civic involvement.

The EU has undertaken numerous reforms throughout its history to address this perceived lack of democratic legitimacy. Additionally, it has sought to promote civic associations and develop the notion of e-government and e-democracy. In 2009, ministers responsible for eGovernment policy of the EU Member States, the Candidate Countries, and the European Free Trade Area unanimously agreed to introduce the Malmö Ministerial Declaration. This declaration proposed the creation of online public services to make government more accessible for individuals and businesses.

The European Commission’s eGovernment Action Plan 2011-2015 builds on the Malmö Declaration, to help national and European policy instruments work together to support “the transition of eGovernment into a new generation of open, flexible and collaborative seamless eGovernment services at local, regional, national and European level.”2 The European Commission is currently developing the new eGovernment Action Plan 2016-2020, which is expected to address the current and future needs, requirements, and expectations of European citizens and businesses with respect to the delivery of effective, efficient and user-friendly government services in the EU. As outlined in the European Commission’s eGovernment Action Plan, the diffusion of technologies is raising the expectations of citizens and businesses for user-friendly services, greater transparency, and participation in policy- and

decision making. Additionally, the European Civic Forum’s work to promote civic and popular ownership of Europe reflects the EU’s need for the construction of a political community premised on belonging and shared values and rights.

However, these outreach reforms are meaningless when European citizens remain generally ignorant of the EU’s structure, decision-making processes, and potential routes for civic involvement in EU decisions.

Decisions made at the ministerial level must reflect the interests of the European civilians themselves; a transformation which can only come about through the genuine involvement of citizens within the framework of political dialogue and deliberation.

The issue of representation is recognized by civil interest groups themselves. European Civic Forum notes how an attempt to construct “a sense of belonging to [a] common cause” is fundamentally missing within the European region.3 The Pew Research Center noted that there was “declining public trust in the European project” in 2014 triggered by the recent economic crisis, hampering the primary goal of the EU to “establish an evercloser cooperation among nations.”4 The foundation on which European citizens can engage with the EU decision-making processes is missing. The EU’s desire to increase participation and interest in EU affairs rests upon the assumption that citizens are already informed on the basic premises of such a governmental body. However, without the foundation of knowledge, individuals cannot use these mechanisms to their full potential.

This can be achieved through workshops within each member state national curriculum.

This will strengthen civil society and correlate with the EU’s current policies to promote greater integration and repair the “democratic deficit.”

The implementation of a mandatory study of the EU comes at no direct cost to the EU. It is also effectively accessible and meaningful to all member state citizens, providing a basis for all citizens to construct their own political opinions. The policy will facilitate greater governmental accountability and create a sense of European identity.

There are a number of advantages to how this policy could deliver to better the quality of the EU’s work. This initiative would have a positive impact on European politics by necessitating greater accountability and dialogue and would advance political communication and the construction of European identity.

The King’s Think Tank proposes the mandatory study of the EU in secondary school in member states, through a series of a series of workshops within each member state national curriculum. This will build a foundation for civil society actors to strengthen citizen integration with EU governance. This policy also parallels the EU’s current policies which aim to elicit greater citizen involvement and fix the “democratic deficit.”

The King’s Think Tank believes the problem of the lack of civic participation is fundamentally rooted in the general lack of knowledge about the EU. The study of the EU at the secondary school level would not only spark interest in the subject, but would also equip young citizens with basic knowledge about the political-economic body governing much of their lives. Importantly, this would serve as a positive impact on European politics through the building of a European identity and engagement with the EU, and holds great potential as a means to advance greater accountability and political communication.

1

EUR-Lex. (n.d.). EUR-Lex Access to European Union law. Retrieved February 06, 2016.

2

European Commission. (2009). EU ministers: accessible, interacting, and customized online public services in

Europe by 2015. Retrieved February 6, 2016.

3

European Civic Forum. (n.d.). Civic Forum. Retrieved February 7, 2016.

4

Pew Research Center. (2014). Crisis of Confidence in the EU Ending? Retrieved February 5, 2016.

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Equal Justice

Decreasing D.C. Gun Violence: Attaching Breathalyzers to New Guns The District of Columbia can reduce alcohol-induced gun violence by funding the research and development of breathalyzerequipped gun technology, with the eventual goal of taxing guns without breathalyzers to fund gun safety programs.

ANNA PRIMOSCH (COL ‘18)

The U.S. ranks highest in worldwide firearm ownership. The Washington Post estimates that in 2013, America’s 357 million privately owned guns outnumbered its 310 million citizens.1 As gun ownership has swelled, so has gun violence, particularly in the nation’s capital. Homicide in D.C. claimed 162 victims in 2015, increasing 54 percent from 2014.2 Despite widespread public exasperation with persistent gun violence, Congress has struggled to pass comprehensive gun legislation. Wellfunded lobbying groups such as the National Rifle Association have defeated proposed legislation that would have banned the sale of assault weapons or required more stringent background checks on would-be gun owners,already dismissing President Barack Obama’s recently proposed executive action against gun violence.3 Local ordinances have been more effective than national policy in deterring gun violence. In August 2015, the Seattle City Council levied a $25.00 tax per firearm sold in Seattle, which local officials estimate will raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for gun violence prevention.4 Identifying the small, local factors behind gun deaths would help generate more tailored solutions that chip away at larger patterns of gun violence.

One of those factors is substance abuse. Alcohol consumption increases

impulsive behavior and inhibits one’s memory, judgment, and other executive functioning abilities.5 The British Medical Journal estimates that one-third of gun deaths are alcohol-induced, as firearm owners are far more likely to consume alcohol than nonowners.6

D.C. should selectively award research grants to nonprofits and government agencies to develop breathalyzer-equipped gun technology.

If non-equipped firearms were taxed at a higher rate than equipped firearms, the latter would appeal more to price-conscious consumers. This incentivizes manufacturers to attract new customers by adding breathalyzer-equipped guns to their brand.

A strategically placed breathalyzer would prevent the trigger from firing until the person pulling it has demonstrated a blood alcohol content (BAC) under 0.08 percent, the same BAC at which an individual is legally considered too intoxicated to drive.7 Breathalyzers have been effectively used to reduce automobile accidents. All 50 states and the District of Columbia have some type of law requiring individuals convicted of driving under the influence or while intoxicated to install an ignition interlock device— better known as a breathalyzer—in their cars.8 The ignition will not operate until the driver blows into the device, which then determines whether the driver’s BAC is low enough to operate the vehicle. To ensure that the driver does not start drinking while behind the wheel, the car stops periodically to require additional tests.9 Although breathalyzers have not yet been manufactured specifically for guns, the technology of the device is simple enough to be applied to firearms. Small enough to be marketed as a smartphone accessory, breathalyzers are also inexpensive to produce; they are available for purchase for as low as 20 dollars apiece online.10 The device takes between 30 seconds and a minute total to warm up, measure one’s BAC, and produce results.

Gun rights activists might counter that a breathalyzer would hinder someone in dire circumstances from using a gun in self-defense.

Their argument rests on the incorrect assumption that guns are primarily used for self-defense purposes; in a survey of 4,348 Americans, the British Medical Journal found that less than one percent of respondents have used a gun in self-defense, either by posturing with the weapon or firing it.11 Furthermore, a breathalyzer would not hinder D.C. recreational hunters, as the District already lacks viable hunting space.

Between 1997 and 2009, the U.S. buried 395,366 victims of gun violence, averaging about 30,000 gun deaths per year.13 Someone under the influence of alcohol or drugs is seven times more inclined to commit a violent crime than a sober individual.14 51% percent of D.C. residents favor the reinstatement of the D.C. ban on gun ownership overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2008.15 In July 2014, a federal judge overturned the District’s ban on concealed carry weapon permits, starting a new series of court battles over gun rights in D.C. 16

The Council of the District of Columbia should launch a positive marketing campaign to generate public support for the tax. It should hold public forums and send surveys to registered gun owners’ homes to determine the tax threshold at which they would rather buy a breathalyzer-equipped firearm. The Council should then temporarily place said tax on all firearms currently sold in the District to fund long-term research on a breathalyzer-equipped gun prototype.

If manufacturers are interested in developing the prototype for sale, guns that are still sold without breathalyzers will continue to have the temporary tax, but breathalyzer-equipped guns will not. Whether or not breathalyzer-equipped guns make it to market, once the prototype is complete, the Council should redirect the tax to help fund Project ChildSafe, a national gun safety awareness program that distributes free gun locks to registered D.C. gun owners through the District’s Metropolitan Police Department.12 This policy proposal will require a lengthy and dedicated research process before breathalyzer-equipped guns can become a reality in D.C. Once the device’s prototype is designed, it will take months, if not years, for researchers to test and tweak the design to ensure that it meets safety regulations. In the meantime, the following short-term plan outlines the possible steps to establish a solid foundation from which the long-term plan can grow.

As a part of the greater D.C. community, Georgetown University has a responsibility to advocate for neighborhood safety and responsible gun ownership. With the help of student groups such as Georgetown Against Gun Violence, the following message would be communicated as early as late spring 2016—ahead of the aforementioned public relations campaign—through campus social media, distributed flyers, and tabling in public spaces: American gun violence is a complex social plague that will not be solved by one finite solution; rather, it needs to be addressed from multiple angles. Breathalyzers are a simple, inexpensive technology with the potential to significantly curb alcohol-induced gun deaths—which comprise one-third of all gun deaths—in D.C. It would also be communicated via local media outlets throughout the first half of 2016, ranging from Georgetown campus news outlets like The Hoya and the Georgetown Voice to D.C. area publications such as The Washington Post.

This plan also necessitates lobbying D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser’s office to hold bi- monthly public forums throughout the research process to keep D.C. residents abreast of developments regarding tax changes and the upcoming gun prototype. The tax would ideally be implemented by the upcoming January 2017 presidential inauguration.

In his January 5, 2016 speech condemning gun violence, President Obama called for better technology to improve gun safety. “We need to develop new technologies that make guns safer,” he insisted. “If we can set it up so you can’t unlock your phone unless you’ve got the right fingerprint, why can’t we do the same thing for our guns?” Breathalyzer technology could be an important step to making guns safer.17

1

Ingraham, Christopher. “There are now more guns than people in the United States.” The Washington Post, last

modified October 5, 2015.

2

Miller, Emily. “DC ends 2015 with 54 percent homicide spike.” Fox 5 News, last modified December 31, 2015.

3

Fisher, Sarah. “Concealed Carry on Campuses Considered.” The Hoya, last modified February 27, 2015.

4

Beekman, Daniel. “Tax on gun, ammo sales passes but there could be a battle ahead.” Seattle Times, last

modified August 10, 2015.

5

Brunner, Meg and Nancy Sutherland, eds., “Alcohol, Drugs, and Firearms (ADAI Info Brief).” Alcohol & Drug

Abuse Institute, last modified February 2013.

6

Wintemute, Garen J. “Association between firearm ownership, firearm-related risk and risk reduction behaviours

and alcohol-related risk behaviours.” Injury Prevention, June 13, 2011.

7

Jansen, Bart. “Make DUI limit 0.05% blood-alcohol level, NTSB says.” USA Today, Last modified May 14, 2013.

8

National Conference of State Legislature, “State Ignition Interlock Laws.” NCSL, last modified 2015.

9

Car Breathalyzer Help, “How Car Breathalyzers Work.” Car Breathalyzer Help, last modified 2015.

10

Amazon.com, “BACTrack Keychain Breathalyzer.” Amazon.com, last modified 2015.

11

D. Hemenway, D. Azrael, and M. Miller, “Gun use in the United States: results from two national surveys,” Injury

Prevention 6, no. 4 (2000): 263-67, accessed November 23, 2015

12

Metropolitan Police Department, “Gun Safety,” DC.gov, last modified 2015, accessed November 23, 2015

13

Brunner and Sutherland, “Alcohol, Drugs, and Firearms (ADAI Info Brief),” 2015.

14

Jonathan M. Metzl and Kenneth T. MacLeish, “Mental Illness, Mass Shootings, and the Politics of American

Firearms,” American Journal of Public Health 105, no. 2 (February 2015): 240-49, accessed November 23, 2015

15

Ann E. Marimow, “In D.C. gun-law case, appeals court debate focuses on judge’s authority,” Washington Post,

last modified November 20, 2015, accessed November 23, 2015

16

Andrea Noble, “Judge’s ruling allows concealed-carry for D.C. gun owners, shoots down police objections,”

Washington City Paper, last modified May 28, 2015, accessed November 23, 2015

17

Barack Obama, “Remarks by the President on Common-Sense Gun Safety Reform,” Speech, The White House,

East Room, Washington, D.C., January 5, 2016.

Image: https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4084/5073552229_3dd9459eeb_o.jpg

Equal Justice

Improving public schools to relieve mental health issues among LGBTQ Youth As sexual orientation and gender identity are not protected categories under federal law, Congress must pass a national non-discrimination act and require public schools to establish LGBTQ student groups supported by a knowledgeable employee.

HANNAH NELSON (COL ‘19)

Despite the recent legalization of same-sex marriage after the Obergefell v.

Hodges Supreme Court case, there are still many LGBTQ issues that have yet to be adequately addressed. One issue in particular is the high rate of mental health problems among LGBTQ youth. In general, LGBTQ individuals are over twice as likely to suffer from depression, anxiety, or substance abuse issues as compared to the general population.Additionally, LGBTQ youth are especially vulnerable and have been found to be four times more likely to commit suicide than their heterosexual, cisgender peers.1 One significant factor contributing to mental health issues in LGBTQ youth is unsafe and unsupportive school environments. A 2009 CDC survey found that among LGBT individuals ages thirteen to twenty-one, 80% reported that they had been verbally harassed at school within the last year, while 40% had suffered from some form of physical harassment.2 The harassment and discrimination suffered by LGBTQ youth within schools has been found to have strong associations with heightened rates of depression, self harm, and suicidal ideation.3 Based on policy initiatives on the state and local levels, there is significant evidence that both non-discrimination policies and the establishment of student support groups help to reduce the disproportionately high rates of mental health problems of LGBTQ youth. In Oregon, one study found that LGBTQ students living in districts with a LGBTQ-inclusive anti-bullying policy and curriculum were two times less likely to commit suicide than students in districts without these policies.5 Another study found that LGB students in schools with support groups were less than 33% as likely to report multiple suicide attempts and 50%as likely to report harassment; also, the presence of a supportive school staff member significantly reduced the likelihood of multiple suicide attempts by LGB students.6 While the research on this topic and on LGBTQ issues in general is unfortunately limited, much of the current data points to the benefits of creating on-campus support groups and enacting non-discrimination policies. States like California, Washington, and New Jersey have enacted comprehensive protections for LGBTQ students, but unfortunately, the only federal law that would have prohibited discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in public schools—the Student Non-Discrimination Act (Hr. 846, S.439)—failed to pass, despite widespread support from various educational, health, and civil rights organizations.7

The establishment of nondiscrimination policies and LGBTQ support groups in public schools would create safer school environments, likely leading to significant reductions in mental health problems among LGBTQ youth.

Creating this sort of affirming environment would likely also reduce other forms of bullying, benefiting non-LGBTQ students as well.

There would certainly be some costs associated with forming LGBTQ support groups on campus and providing an educated staff member, but these expenses could possibly be covered in the form of a categorical grant from the federal government specifically for this purpose. While other factors leading to mental health problems in LGBTQ youth, particularly familial acceptance, are out of the reach of the federal government, policies ensuring that public schools are safe, welcoming environments are vital.

Enacting a federal non-discrimination policy and establishing LGBTQ support groups within the public school system would be a crucial step forward in reducing the disproportionately high rates of mental health problems in LGBTQ youth.

1

Kates, Jennifer, Usha Ranji, Adara Beamesderfer, Alina Salganicoff, and Lindsey Dawson, “Health and Access to

Care and Coverage for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Individuals in the U.S.” Kaiser Family Foundation,

July 30, 2015.

2

“Reduction of Bullying to Address Health Disparities Among LGBT Youth.” American Public Health Association,

November 18, 2014.

3

Almeida, Joanna et al., “Emotional Distress Among LGBT Youth: The Influence of Perceived Discrimination Based

on Sexual Orientation.” Journal of Youth and Adolescence 38, no. 7 (2009).

4

Everett, Burgess. “Democrats Adopt New Strategy on Gay Rights.” Politico, July 23, 2015.

5

“Reduction of Bullying to Address Health Disparities Among LGBT Youth.” American Public Health Association,

November 18, 2014.

6

Almeida, Joanna Almeida et at. “Emotional Distress Among LGBT Youth.”

7

“Student Non-Discrimination Act,” Human Rights Campaign, October 15, 2015.

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Healthcare

REACHing for Safety: Restructuring the chemical regulation process in the U.S. To safeguard public health and reduce chemical related healthcare costs, the U.S. Congress should adopt a “guilty until proven innocent” regulatory system that imposes mandatory health evaluations on chemical manufacturers.

GRANT ROSENSTEEL (COL ‘19)

In the U.S., chemical regulation is fragmented under multiple federal agencies, such as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The intended use of each chemical determines which agency has jurisdiction. Under the Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976, the agency that has jurisdiction over the chemical bears the burden of proving the safety of that chemical.1 Additionally, chemicals in cosmetics are not required to have FDA approval,2 and any substance that is “Generally Recognized as Safe” (GRAS) is permitted to be sold without testing.3 Under current legislation, manufacturers are not required to conduct health evaluations on chemicals before appealing to the government for approval.4 Many chemicals such as rBST,5 Nitrates,6 Potassium

Bromate,7 and BPA8 are sold in the US but banned internationally due to their negative health effects.

Allowing chemicals to be sold without extensive health and toxicological testing is costing the U.S. billions in healthcarerelated costs.9 The inefficacy of the current system, described as an “innocent until proven guilty” approach, is demonstrated by the approval and subsequent ban of DDT after its detrimental effects on health and environment were discovered.10 11 The neurological effects of lead paint alone have cost the U.S. $53 billion in healthcare expenditures.12 By restructuring the way chemicals are regulated in the U.S., public health will be protected by ensuring that all chemicals used in food and consumer products pose minimal risk to individuals’ well-being.

The U.S. Congress should implement a “guilty until proven innocent” approach to chemical regulation, similar to that of the recently implemented Registration, Evaluation, Authorization, and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) program in the European Union.

Under such an approach, manufacturers would be mandated to test all chemicals for effects on human health and provide that research when seeking regulatory approval. 13 Additionally, a singular federal agency should be given sole authority to regulate all chemicals,14 and to conduct random audits.

These audits would validate companies’ health documentation and ensure that manufacturers are submitting scientifically sound evidence. A three-tiered regulation process should also be implemented, in which all chemicals undergo tier 1 testing for absorptivity and general toxicity, and those that prove potentially harmful would move on to the second and third tiers for more intensive biochemical evaluations.15 All chemicals previously designated as “GRAS” would undergo the same toxicological

U.S. government currently does not have safety data on chemicals that were in use before the introduction of the Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976.4 The FDA cannot conduct research on a chemical unless there is reasonable suspicion that it poses a threat to human health.2 Phthalates, which are often used in plastics, are known to cause cancer in the reproductive system of lab animals but are still allowed in consumer products.23

screenings as new chemicals.16 Chemical regulation in the U.S. has failed to match the rapid development of new and complex chemicals, resulting in increased rates of chemical-related diseases, especially cancer and endocrine system disorders.17 In the U.S., approximately 75-80% of all cancers are caused by exposure to toxic chemicals, costing over $260 billion in medical bills and lost productivity.18 The health care costs of endocrine-disrupting chemicals, such as BPA, is estimated to be $175 billion since their initial production.19 Under the REACH program, thousands of chemicals have undergone safety testing; as a result, the impacts of chemicals on human biochemistry have been compiled and dozens of dangerous chemicals have been banned. Investing in the REACH program has a projected return on investment of $6.2:1 over the next 10-20 years.16 Based on the costs incurred by the EU, the cost of implementing these regulations in the U.S. would be about $3.5 billion a year. However, these costs will be recouped from decreases in chemical-related health care expenditures and lost productivity in the long term.20 Annually investing a small amount towards a new federal agency to oversee all chemicals and requiring strict health and safety testing will pay for itself and allow for focus on preventative care. Additionally, by banning certain chemicals in foods, the U.S. will then be able to export products such as dairy, farm raised fish, and meat that were previously banned for import by certain countries due to the presence of harmful chemicals.21 The chemical industry conducted the largest lobbying effort in EU history in an attempt to defeat EU REACH, and similar industry lobbying is expected to occur with introducing a similar program in the U.S.22 Implementing more rigorous safety measures will prevent harmful cumulative health effects, decrease societal costs of chemical exposure, and positively impact the United States’ economic outlook.

Publicizing the dangers of the current regulatory process is the first step in implementing a REACH duplicate. This could be done by creating websites and billboards dedicated to the issue as well as having individuals who have been negatively impacted by current chemical regulations appear on national television and other media outlets.

Public hearings with experts in the fields of medicine, public health, toxicology, and biochemistry should be held so that these experts can testify about the impacts of chemicals on health in the U.S. The next step would be to establish a new federal agency to review all chemicals, determine their safety, and institute a program modeled after the EU’s REACH. Finally, after the legislative framework is established, manufacturers should be given a 5-10 year timeframe to comply with the new mandate of supplying heath and toxicological studies on all new and existing chemicals.

1

Phillips, Melissa. “Obstructing Authority: Does the EPA Have the Power to Ensure Commercial Chemicals Are

Safe?” Environmental Health Perspectives. December 1, 2006.

2

“U.S. Food and Drug Administration.” Science & Research. June 1, 2015.

3

“U.S. Food and Drug Administration.” Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS). June 1, 2015.

4

Urbina, Ian. “Think Those Chemicals Have Been Tested?” The New York Times. April 13, 2013.

5

Brinckman, Dirk. “AgBioForum 3(2&3): The Regulation Of RBST: The European Case.” AgBioForum 3(2&3): The

Regulation Of RBST: The European Case. 2000.

6

L’hirondel, Jean-Louis, Alex Avery, and Tom Addiscott. “Dietary Nitrate: Where Is the Risk?” Environmental

Health Perspectives. August 1, 2006.

7

Kurokawa, Y., A. Maekawa, M. Takahashi, and Y. Hayashi. “Toxicity and Carcinogenicity of Potassium Bromate--a

New Renal Carcinogen.” Environmental Health Perspectives. July 1, 1990.

8

“Tox Town - Bisphenol A (BPA) - Toxic Chemicals and Environmental Health Risks Where You Live and Work - Text

Version.” Tox Town - Bisphenol A (BPA) - Toxic Chemicals and Environmental Health Risks Where You Live and

Work - Text Version. October 1, 2015.

9

Trasande, Leonardo. “Further Limiting Bisphenol A In Food Uses Could Provide Health And Economic

Benefits.” Further Limiting Bisphenol A In Food Uses Could Provide Health And Economic Benefits. February 1,

2014.

10

“EPA.” DDT Ban Takes Effect. December 1, 2014.

11

The DDT Story.” The DDT Story.

12

“Prevention Tips.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. June 19, 2014.

13

“European Food Safety Authority.” Guidance for Submission for Food Additive Evaluations. July 1, 2012.

14

“European Food Safety Authority.” Food Additives. June 1, 2014.

15

Cone, Marla. “Europe Passes Tough Chemical Law.” Los Angeles Times. December 14, 2006.

16

Levi, Jeffery. “Investments in Disease Prevention Yield Significant Savings, Stronger Communities.” Prevention for

a Healthier America. February 1, 2009.

17

“Chemicals, Cancer, and You.” Chemicals, Cancer, and You FS.pdf.

18

“Cancer and Toxic Chemicals.” Confronting Toxics.

19

Grossman, Elizabeth. “Chemical Exposure Linked to Billions in Health Care Costs.” National Geographic. March

1, 2015.

20

Breithaupt, Holger. “The Costs of REACH. REACH Is Largely Welcomed, but the Requirement to Test Existing

Chemicals for Adverse Effects Is Not Good News for All.” EMBO Reports. October 1, 2006.

21

Search, Christina. “Six FDA-Approved Foods Banned In Other Countries.” Global Research. May 1, 2015.

22

Horel, Stephane. “A Toxic Affair.” May 1, 2015.

23

“Tox Town - Phthalates - Toxic Chemicals and Environmental Health Risks Where You Live and Work - Text

Version.” Tox Town - Phthalates - Toxic Chemicals and Environmental Health Risks Where You Live and Work -

Text Version.

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT

Grant Rosensteel

SABRINA ROMULO TIMMY REYNOLDS

Tell us a little bit about yourself.

I am a freshman in the college. I am studying biology. I want to be a biology global health major. I’m from a small town in North Carolina called Holly Ridge. It’s right on the ocean. It’s pretty rural. I’m the first member of his family to go college. I do research for professor Elmendorf. I research the intestinal parasite, Giardia Lamblia. I write policy for the Roosevelt institute. I am a part of Heroes For Hearts, where I am a CPR first aid instructor.

How did you end up getting involved with Roosevelt?

Well, the CAB fair. Like any other freshman, I had to cruise all the tables. I saw the Roosevelt institute and thought it was pretty cool and I talked to a couple of people.

I learned about how it is an undergraduate think tank that writes policy and looks for solutions to problems with new perspectives. I went to the general body meeting and I was interested. Then, I went to the first health care policy meeting and the rest is history!

Have you always had an interest in health care policy?

No, I’ve always been interested in public health. I didn’t really think about traditional health care policy, like insurance, patient protection, or things like that. That kind of stuff has never interested me too much. But, I realized that I don’t have to write policy on those kinds of things. I’m more interested in environment health, public health, disease control, and those are all aspects of public health policy, as well. So, I kind of went into the meeting a little bit discouraged because all they talked about was the traditional health care policy. But, I found a way to make health care policy work for me and I’m very about that.

Where did you get the idea for the piece you wrote?

The summer before I came here, I had a lot of time on my hands. So, I would sit and watch Netflix and watch documentaries. One of them was called Gasland and it was about the fracking industry around the country but specifically, Pennsylvania.

In that documentary they highlighted the environmental contamination from the fracking industry. That interested me a lot. In documentary they talked about the lack of regulation for chemicals and the fracking industry. That intrigued me, so I started digging deeper about chemical regulation in the United States and I decided to do that for my policy piece.

What has been your best moment at Georgetown so far?

Why do you have to ask such a hard question? I feel like my best moment was before my year actually started. I did a pre-orientation program so I moved in a week early. My mom came, she dropped me off, she helped me move in, we had a dinner as part of the program. And then she left. I remember saying good-bye to her and then I remember her leaving, so it was just me. It was just me at Georgetown, just me at a fresh start, just me at a new life with new people. I feel that was my best moment so far because I just realized how much potential the school has, how much potential I have in this city, how great things can become and how great things have become.

Healthcare

Learning for Life: Practical Health Literacy Education

EMILY LAU (NHS ‘18) SAUMYA BOLLAM (COL’16)

Low health literacy has both individual and societal consequences in the form of poorer health outcomes and unnecessary health care expenditures. California should adopt a new health education curriculum that prepares students to interact with the health care system and make decisions about their own health care.

Health literacy is recognized as an important part of encouraging people to make decisions that positively impact their health.1 Forty-six states and D.C. have some form of mandatory health education between grades K-12.2 However, the health education curriculum in many states focuses on theoretical health concepts, personal health decisions, and community influences on health while ignoring the practical knowledge that a person needs to navigate the health care system.

In California, where health education is mandatory at all levels of education, the content standards for K-12 students focus on “enabl[ing] students to make health choices and avoid high risk behaviors.”3 To meet that goal, California

has established eight content standards that aim to introduce students to the determinants of health, reduce risky behaviors, and enhance individual and interpersonal health.4 Despite claiming to provide the knowledge needed to make decisions that enhance health outcomes, these educational standards only address the health care system in a superficial way.5 Without education on how to navigate the health care system or make decisions regarding care, students lack an essential part of the foundational knowledge needed to make informed health decisions.

The California State Board of Education should adopt a new set of Health Education Content Standards that includes a ninth content standard on basic interactions with the health care system such as, the processes of health insurance, essential components of using primary care, how to interpret and follow drug instructions, and how to navigateing managed care. This new content standard should be developed based on free curriculum resources such as those provided by the National Institute for Literacy.

Improving the Health Education Content Standards would ensure Californian students receive a practical introduction to the health care system and how to make decisions regarding access to care.6 An additional content standard and goal that addresses issues of care utilization would be complementary to California’s already robust content standards.

Since this content standard would simply be an addition to existing standards, there is no cost above that which would regularly usually be spent to update content standards, which already occurs regularly. Additionally, new teaching materials would not need to be purchased for schools because free curriculum resources have been made available by organizations such as the National Institute for Literacy.7 In fact, due to the dynamic nature of health care systems it is more practical to teach using the most up-to-date online materials rather than tying curriculum to a textbook.

In 2006, the costs of inadequate health literacy would have been equivalent to providing health coverage to every uninsured person in the U.S.8 Approximately 80 million Americans have limited health literacy, which results in poorer health outcomes and access to care.9 California already has statewide health education content standards and somewhat limited mandatory health education requirements.10 11

Testimonials about the detrimental effect of lack of familiarity with health care knowledge should be sought from adults aged 26-30 who previously attended Californian high schools. Additionally, it will be important for physicians to testify to the importance of health literacy since they can personally speak, personally, to their experience with patients who have had trouble accessing and navigating the health care system. With these parties, we would need to persuade target individual legislators to persuade them to introduce a bill that would direct the Board of Education to revise health education content standards. Presenting a robust set of testimonials from former students who can speak to the value of having this education, as well as physicians who can speak to improved health outcomes, will have the most promising impact.

1

St. Leger, T. Lawrence. “Schools, health literacy and public health: possibilities and challenges,” Health Promotion

International, 16, no. 2, 2001, 197-205.

2

“State-Level School Health Policies and Practices,” School Health Policies and Programs Study, The Centers for

Disease Control and Prevention, 2006, 14-19,.

3

“Health Education Content Standards for California Public Schools, Kindergarten Through Grade Twelve,”

California State Board of Education, California Department of Education, March 12, 2008.

4 Ibid.

5 Ibid.

6

“State-Level School Health Policies and Practices.”

7

“Health Curricula for Adult Literacy,” Health Literacy Special Collection, National Institute for Literacy.

8

Vernon, “Low Health Literacy: Implications for National Health Policy.”

9 Ibid.

10

“Health Education Content Standards for California Public Schools, Kindergarten Through Grade Twelve.”

11

“State-Level School Health Policies and Practices.”