Volume 45 • Number 2 Sex and the Province: A Short History of Quebec Poulami Roychowdhury, childbirth out of wedlock were to the women’s rights movements inside and Eran Shor, McGill University substantially higher than those of all and turning away from the Church, uebec has a long and multi- other Canadian provinces. Similar which were integral to Quebec’s faceted history of intimate to Sweden, Norway, and Denmark, Quiet Revolution (La Révolution Sociology and Policy Q 3 relationships and sexuality. Over Quebec has very low marriage rates Tranquille). A period of immense Meet the past hundred years, the city has and very high levels of cohabita- socio-political and socio-cultural During a Time of Political witnessed massive changes in the tion. In fact, the concentration of change that surrounded the election Change ASA’s Congressional institution of marriage, as well as unwed couples in Quebec today of the pro-sovereignty national Fellow learns that policy in the social acceptability and legal is among the highest in the world. government in 1976, the Quiet work requires some rights of gays and lesbians. Thirty-seven percent of people Revolution broke the power of the transitions. The province was long dominated living together as couples in the Church and instituted a welfare state by the Catholic Church, which exer- province are not officially married. with robust family-friendly policies. Cohabitation is so popular that the In 1981, the provincial government Check Out the ASA cised immense control over social 4 and family life. These days, however, term conjoint/conjointe (mascu- went so far as to adopt a policy Employment Fair line and feminine terms referring preventing women from legally Heading to the ASA Annual Quebec residents are calling the very foundations of marriage under to either a cohabiting or married taking on their husband’s surname. Meeting? All meeting partner) is frequently applied to By making name changes illegal, the attendees are invited to question. A 2006 study by sociol- ogists Don Kerr, Melissa Moyser all partners irrespective of marital government hoped to initiate equality the Employment Fair in status. among spouses. The rule applies even Montreal. and Roderic Beaujot showed that Quebec’s rates of divorce, cohab- The decreasing popularity of to Canadian women who move to itation outside of marriage, and marriage in Quebec can be traced The Attack on Social Continued on Page 4 5 Scientists in Turkey Under Erdoğan’s regime, many academics are the target of a political witch Proposed Change to the Selection A New hunt. Process for Status Committee Membership Get to Know Montreal’s 7 Cultural Diversity Membership Category for The city’s diversity is more his year’s ballot includes a to Council every five years and, as High School than identifying as native Tproposal to change the process appropriate, offering recommen- French-speaking and native for establishing membership for dations for how the association can Teachers English-speaking. the four ASA status committees. better respond to the needs of these hile important to the discipline, Currently members of status groups. high school teachers have been Task Force on First- committees are nominated by the Nancy Lopez, Chair of the ASA W minimally represented in ASA’s 9 Generation and Committee on Committees and Status Committee on Racial and membership. At its March meeting, approved by Council. If the ballot Ethnic Minorities explained, “The Working-Class in ASA Council was asked to recom- initiative passes, membership on ASA status committees… play an Sociology mend a new membership category status committees will be estab- indispensable role in advancing Please consider volunteering designed for this population, which lished through a process similar equity and inclusion in ASA and to serve on this new task it supported. High school teachers to that used for task forces, which beyond (e.g., undergraduate and force. are important to ASA as we seek begins with an open call for volun- graduate admission, tenure and to strengthen the pipeline to the teers, followed by formal appoint- promotion guidelines, public and sociology major. If we can sup- ment by Council. engaged scholarship and praxis).” port robust sociology high school From the Executive Office ..................2 Status committees are charged Status Committee programs, students will become with monitoring the standing in the Science Policy .........................................3 Accomplishments familiar with and, hopefully, excited discipline of groups that have been Announcements ................................. 15 about sociology before arriving at historically underrepresented in Over the years, the research college. An ASA high school teacher Obituaries .............................................. 18 academia including racial and eth- and recommendations of status membership would also benefit nic minorities; women; members of committees have led to scholarly the teachers, many of whom have the LGBTI community; and persons publications. For example, efforts little training in sociology and scant with disabilities. Status commit- of the Committee on the Status access to resources for teaching tees are responsible for reporting Continued on Page 6 Continued on Page 6 footnotes To view the online version, visit <www.asanet.org/news-events/footnotes/> 1 American Sociological Association footnotes.asanet.org Sociology at the March for Science n Saturday, April 22, hundreds of thousands took to the streets in Washington, DC, and in hundreds of satellite marches around the world in a show Oof unity and support for scientific research funding and evidence-based policymaking. Sociologists were at the March for Science en masse. Many flew into Washington from around the country to participate in Washington’s march. Many others made their voices heard in their own localities, letting ASA know their presence online via social media using the hashtag #march4sociology. Here are some photographs from that day in Washington and beyond. 2 footnotes footnotes.asanet.org American Sociological Association science policy Census Bureau Director Federally Funded R&D Center breakdowns of funding by source the role of financial aid in eliminat- Resigns, Complicating Outlook Funding Rebounded in FY 2015 from FY 2010 to FY 2015, read the full ing barriers to paying for college; for 2020 Decennial after Four Years of Declines report at www.nsf.gov/statistics/2017/ how students pay for college; and On May 9, John Thompson The nation’s 42 federally funded nsf17314/. how educational attainment rates and early income outcomes vary by announced his plans to research and develop- Report on the Indicators of family characteristics. In addition, step down as Director of ment centers (FFRDCs) Higher Education Equity in the the new Equity Indicators website the Census Bureau effec- reported spending $18.5 United States tive June 30. Thompson billion on research and provides access to data files used to TheIndicators of Higher was confirmed as direc- development (R&D) produce the figures included in the Education Equity in the United tor in 2013 and before in FY2015, their first 2017 Indicators Report. The website States — 2017 Historical Trend that worked in the bureau for 27 rebound after several years of declin- also provides links to earlier reports Report is a collaboration of the years. According to the COSSA ing or flat expenditures, according to a and allows policymakers, educators Pell Institute and the Alliance for newsletter, “Thompson’s resigna- new report from the National Center and the public to explore data on Higher Education and Democracy tion comes at a critical time for the for Science and Engineering Statistics. equality and opportunity in U.S. at the University of Pennsylvania Bureau as it ramps up its activities The FFRDCs are privately operated higher education. In addition to (PennAHEAD). According to ahead of the 2020 Census and con- R&D organizations that are exclusively providing longitudinal indicators the report, equity gaps remain in tinues to face periodic threats to or substantially financed by the federal of equity, the reports are intended American higher education. The the American Community Survey. government. Accounting for inflation, to advance productive conversa- cost of college has continued to So far, no details have emerged expenditures rose 3.1 percent from tion about effective policies and increase, and Pell Grants do not about a potential replacement.” FY2014 to FY2015. In FY 2015, 22 practices for improving equity in cover the same proportion of the The Deputy Director position at percent of FFRDC R&D expenditures higher education opportunity and average cost of college they once the Bureau has been vacant since went toward basic research, 39 percent outcomes. For more information, did. The report includes data on Nancy Potok left to become Chief went toward applied research and 38 visit ahead-penn.org/news/indica- enrollment by race/ethnicity and Statistician of the United States in percent went toward development. For tors-higher-education-equity-unit- socioeconomic status; the types of January. more information, including detailed ed-states-%E2%80%94-2017-histor- institutions in which students enroll; ical-trend-report. Engaging in Policy-Making during a Period of Political Change Emerald Nguyen, 2016/17 ASA this period of unprecedented social has allowed me to gain insights a particular piece of legislation is Congressional Fellow and political change. into the workings of both chambers oftentimes motivated by the same of Congress, and afforded me the methods that are used by qualitative y first encounter Multiple Transitions with the policy world opportunity to use my sociologi- sociologists. I have observed how M My fellowship journey cal insights and research skills in members of Congress will draw on happened when I moved to first brought me to the U.S. Washington, DC, shortly multiple ways. rich, detailed stories about individ- House of Representatives ual constituents back in their home after graduating from Using Sociology to Understand where I worked in the states and districts.