Final Paper Assignment Description: Now that you have produced a research proposal and an annotated bibliography, it’s time to compose your final research paper on your selected event, which you will argue advanced a sociopolitical goal of feminism or contributed to a more multicultural American society. For purposes of this assignment, we will define multiculturalism as a willingness to be transformed by the multiple distinct but varied subjectivities informed by identity markers such as gender, race, sexual orientation, and socio-economic class, which overlap and intersect in complex and fluid arrangements. In a multicultural world, these distinct but varied voices are authorized to speak and empowered to shift our ontological formations such that we may move past dualistic thinking and, as Gloria Anzaldúa writes “stretch the psyche horizontally and vertically” toward “a more whole perspective, one that includes rather than excludes” (Freedman 388). Each of you has selected an event that you believe has contributed to these goals as articulated by the thinkers we’ve engaged this term. Now is your chance to explain your event’s meaning and argue for its importance. Your final research paper should include the following parts in no particular order: · a thesis statement that makes a specific claim about the impact your event had on our goals for a more just, more multicultural America; your thesis should help you fulfill your paper’s rhetorical exigence or primary purpose; · background information that situates the event in its sociohistorical moment and scales the information given to the audience of readers you have in mind; · a sustained, audience-aware argument that interprets the meaning of your event from a feminist perspective by relying on relevant scholarship; · analysis of the rhetoric surrounding your event both from public/popular sources and academic sources; · where applicable, description and analysis of normalizing/regulatory responses or backlashes to your event by institutions, ideological beliefs, or groups of citizens who push back against any advancements triggered by your event; · optional: you may include a section that describes the need for additional work in the area advanced by your event. Form: Papers should be approximately 2,250 words not including your works cited page. In addition to formatting your works cited page per MLA formatting, please also use that same format throughout your paper. Using MLA rules to guide you, be sure that all quoted material is fluidly integrated into the text, preceded by introduction and followed with parenthetical citations. While you will need to include other voices in your paper, do not subordinate your voice to those quoted in your paper. Use a confident, direct, and specific voice throughout your paper—avoid vague and wordy constructions—and remember to keep a specific audience in mind as you write. 29 October 2019 SlutWalk’s Demand to End Rape Culture: Proposal After ...

1. Final Paper Assignment
Description: Now that you have produced a research proposal
and an annotated bibliography, it’s time to compose your final
research paper on your selected event, which you will argue
advanced a sociopolitical goal of feminism or contributed to a
more multicultural American society. For purposes of this
assignment, we will define multiculturalism as a willingness to
be transformed by the multiple distinct but varied subjectivities
informed by identity markers such as gender, race, sexual
orientation, and socio-economic class, which overlap and
intersect in complex and fluid arrangements. In a multicultural
world, these distinct but varied voices are authorized to speak
and empowered to shift our ontological formations such that we
may move past dualistic thinking and, as Gloria Anzaldúa writes
“stretch the psyche horizontally and vertically” toward “a more
whole perspective, one that includes rather than excludes”
(Freedman 388). Each of you has selected an event that you
believe has contributed to these goals as articulated by the
thinkers we’ve engaged this term. Now is your chance to
explain your event’s meaning and argue for its importance.
Your final research paper should include the following parts in
no particular order:
· a thesis statement that makes a specific claim about the impact
your event had on our goals for a more just, more multicultural
America; your thesis should help you fulfill your paper’s
rhetorical exigence or primary purpose;
· background information that situates the event in its
sociohistorical moment and scales the information given to the
audience of readers you have in mind;
· a sustained, audience-aware argument that interprets the
meaning of your event from a feminist perspective by relying on
relevant scholarship;

2. · analysis of the rhetoric surrounding your event both from
public/popular sources and academic sources;
· where applicable, description and analysis of
normalizing/regulatory responses or backlashes to your event by
institutions, ideological beliefs, or groups of citizens who push
back against any advancements triggered by your event;
· optional: you may include a section that describes the need for
additional work in the area advanced by your event.
Form: Papers should be approximately 2,250 words not
including your works cited page. In addition to formatting your
works cited page per MLA formatting, please also use that same
format throughout your paper. Using MLA rules to guide you,
be sure that all quoted material is fluidly integrated into the
text, preceded by introduction and followed with parenthetical
citations. While you will need to include other voices in your
paper, do not subordinate your voice to those quoted in your
paper. Use a confident, direct, and specific voice throughout
your paper—avoid vague and wordy constructions—and
remember to keep a specific audience in mind as you write.
29 October 2019
SlutWalk’s Demand to End Rape Culture:
Proposal
After Mike Sanguinetti, a police officer, made a comment to
York University law students in Toronto about a supposed
relation between the way women dress and the likelihood of
sexual assault, the SlutWalk protest emerged. The event was co-
founded by Heather Jarvis and Sonya Barnett. Later, they joined
with Alyssa Teekah, Jeanette Janzen, and Erica Jane Scholz to
help coordinate the event. At the protest, thousands of people
showed up to march in revealing clothing in order to draw
attention to the word “slut” and to assert that regardless of
clothing, sexual assault is never the victim’s fault. Following

3. the first march, SlutWalk became a transnational event, with
protests occurring across the world, such as the United States,
India, and Latin America. Comment by Erin Sandhir: Good
statement on the event’s rhetorical intention.
This essay aims to answer how the 2011 Toronto SlutWalk’s
rhetoric, which called for the end of rape culture, advanced
gender equity. The project is valuable, as it will analyze how
rape culture, although a societal phenomenon, directly affects
the wellbeing of women. The essay will first discuss what
exactly the Toronto SlutWalk was and then will lead into the
concept of rape culture. Rape culture is the normalization of
sexual assault in a society, which leads to elements or attitudes
that may promote rape. The essay will use Susan Brownmiller’s
Against Our Will: Men, Women, and Rape to discuss rape and
its notion of being a political act. Impacts of rape culture, such
as injustices, in both Canada and the United States will be
examined. Later, the paper will review Black Women’s
Blueprint’s response in order to show some critiques of
SlutWalk. After, the event will be defended using Andrea
O’Reilly’s work as a source, and ultimately this paper will
demonstrate that SlutWalk advanced gender equity by making
rape culture visible. Overall, the paper will make evident that
SlutWalk had a positive impact on the advancement of feminist
goals. Comment by Erin Sandhir: Yes, good, direct
statement of your project’s research question, Isabelle.
Comment by Erin Sandhir: Yes, and I also think that your
project will be valuable in offering readers analysis of the
efficacy of this particular form of activism. One of the most
vital needs of any social movement is to understand which
rhetorical tactics will usher in the desired change. And
feminists have been trying to figure out how to effectively
combat and eventually eradicate rape culture. Many feminists
look at SlutWalk and ask themselves, will this approach will
work? Is this the way forward? We need to know, so that we can
decide where resources (including people power) should be
expended. Comment by Erin Sandhir: Good. Transfer this

4. definition into your final paper.
Annotated Bibliography
“An Open Letter from Black Women to the Slutwalk.” Gender &
Society, vol. 30, no. 1, Feb. 2016, pp. 9–13. EBSCOhost,
doi:10.1177/0891243215611868.
This will be used to show a key reaction generated
from Toronto’s SlutWalk in 2011. It will bring up the concerns
of black women, such as the movement’s lack of inclusivity, yet
will also acknowledge the positive goals of the movement.
Comment by Erin Sandhir: Good details on which ideas
you will incorporate but think about how you will use these
ideas in your argument. Be careful not to just acknowledge them
and move on. Allow these views to transform your thinking and
lead us toward new ways of knowing. For example, this source
might help you perturb the notion that reclaiming the term slut

5. diminishes rather than fertilizes rape culture. I think we should
have a real debate about that.
Brownmiller, Susan. “Against Our Will: Men, Women and
Rape.” The Essential Feminist Reader, edited by Estelle B.
Freedman, Modern Library, 2007, pp. 311–317.
The source, used in class, provides information on
rape and how elements of culture have promoted this male
dominance. It will establish that rape is not just an individual
crime, but a political act. Comment by Erin Sandhir: It will be
interesting to see how Brownmiller’s framework for thinking
about rape informs your analysis of SlutWalk.
Du Mont, Janice, and Deborah Parnis. "Judging Women: The
Pernicious Effects of Rape Mythology." Canadian Woman
Studies, vol. 19, no. 1, 1999, pp. 102-109. ProQuest,
http://ezproxy.depaul.edu/login?url=https://search.proquest.com
/docview/217443521?accountid=10477.
The source will provide information on rape
stereotypes and injustices in Canada. It will be used to discuss
rape issues on both societal and criminal grounds. Comment by
Erin Sandhir: This annotation could use more detail.
Herriot, Lindsay. “SlutWalk: Contextualizing the
Movement.” Women’s Studies International
Forum, vol. 53, Nov. 2015, pp. 22–30. EBSCOhost,
doi:10.1016/j.wsif.2015.08.001.
The source’s purpose will be to provide background
on the origination of the SlutWalk movement, which is the
primary source of the paper. It will give information on sexual
assault issues in Toronto. Also, it will be used to analyze how
the movement contributed to feminist theory-building.
Malti-Douglas, Fedwa, editor. Encyclopedia of Sex and Gender.
Macmillan Reference USA, 2007. 4 vols. Gale eBooks,
https://link-gale-
com.ezproxy.depaul.edu/apps/pub/1OYK/GVRL?u=depaul&sid=
GVRL. Accessed 22 Oct. 2019. Comment by Erin Sandhir:
Good.
This source will be used to establish key terms such

6. as feminism and rape culture. It will provide basic information
about the women’s movement.
O'Reilly, Andrea. "Slut Pride: A Tribute to SlutWalk
Toronto." Feminist Studies, vol. 38, no. 1, 2012, pp. 245-
250,269. ProQuest,
http://ezproxy.depaul.edu/login?url=https://search.proquest.com
/docview/1022174889?accountid=10477.
The source defends the SlutWalk and the ridicule that
resulted. It will give information on the event’s intentions and
also analyze the critiques of the movement.
Rentschler, Carrie A. "Rape Culture and the Feminist Politics of
Social Media." Girlhood Studies, vol. 7, no. 1, 2014, pp. 65-82.
ProQuest,
http://ezproxy.depaul.edu/login?url=https://search.proquest.com
/docview/1699538707?accountid=10477.
The source discusses U.S. and Canadian public
discourse in social media on sexual violence. It will be used to
bring up injustices in regard to rape and draw comparisons
between both countries. This will be used to relate to the
SlutWalk movement’s goal to end rape culture. Comment by
Erin Sandhir: The use of social media to organize these protests
is an area to explore. On the one hand, platforms like Facebook
& Twitter allow movements to scale up quickly, on the other
hand, they lacks the organizational infrastructure to make
lasting change.