Monday, January 27, 2020

Jails Old And New Sociology Essay

Jails Old And New Sociology Essay With the advent of civilization and ever improving societies, man has found the need for several constants. The needs for shelter, food and security have been just a few of these constantsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦as has the need for incarceration of some of those members of society that have chosen not to follow the rules that a particular society has deemed as necessary. For those members, jails and prisons were built to hold people before or after a conviction, it is not meant to be a permanent stop for those convicted, just a placeholder. The first jail built was believed to be in 1166, ordered by King Henry II of England, from there jails spread throughout Europe but changed in scope and size over time. (Schmalleger Smykla, 2011) Workhouses and poorhouses were developed in the 15th and 16th centuries in England where sheriffs took the role of supervising vagrants, the poor and the mentally ill. (Schmalleger Smykla, 2011) These so-called jails were not sanitized and had unhealthy conditions for the prisoners. This caught the attention of 18th century reformers. One such reformer was English sheriff John Howard. In 1779, Englands Parliament passed the four jail reforms that Howard proposed: secure and sanitary structures, jail inspections, elimination of fees, and an emphasis on reforming prisoners. (Schmalleger Smykla, 2011) The first jail in the United States was the Walnut Street Jail in Philadelphia, built in 1773; it housed offenders without regard to sex, age, or offense. The Philadelphia Quakers had wanted the Walnut Street Jail to be a place where inmates reformed themselves through reflection and remorse, but shortly after its opening, it turned into a promiscuous scene of unrestricted intercourse, universal riot and debauchery. (Schmalleger Smykla, 2011) On October 5, 1835, the Walnut Street Jail closed and those prisoners were transported to another facility. By the close of the 19th century, most cities across the United States had jails to hold persons awaiting trial and to punish convicted felons. (Schmalleger Smykla, 2011) So, what has changed in the jail population and structures since they were first built? Back in the day, prisoners were treated inhumane, beaten, flogged, and even hung for their crimes. In todays jail society, those types of treatment are nothing but a moment in histor y. There are laws governing the treatment of prisoners and prisoners now have rights on how they are treated. The 8th Amendment, ratified in 1791, protects persons convicted of a crime to not have excessive bail or fines imposed, nor to have cruel and unusual punishment inflicted. (Head) I tend to somewhat disagree with this due to some persons crimes are so hideous that they deserve fines and/or cruel and unusual punishment, I mean look what some of those criminals do to their victims! I think they deserve the same treatment as they gave those victims, but that is just my personal opinion. The design and structure of the jails have also changed. Jails have changed throughout history, and have been through four phases of design, First-Generation, Second-Generation, Third-Generation and Fourth-Generation. First-Generation jails were designed back in the 18th century, and were called linear design. In this design, prisoners lived in cells or dormitories. The cells lined up in the corridors and the inmate supervision was minimal. Staff would walk the corridors and would not be able to see into the cell until they were right up on it. The idea of this type of design was to keep prevent inmates from trying to escape and to keep the staff safe. I would describe this type of jail setting as isolated. The downfall to this type of setting is no type of social contact with anyone unless a fight broke. This was not a solution to what needed to be done in order for the prisoners to reform. These types of jails were more like solitary confinement, which over time would literally drive a person insane. The Second-Generation jails emerged in the 1960s to replace old, rundown linear jails and provide staff officers to observe inmates in a central zone or better known as a control booth, of the jail. The conception of the second-generation jails was for staff to be centralized in one area, which was enclosed in glass for security, to overlook the pods. These jails have been termed podular remote-supervision facilities. (Schmalleger Smykla, 2011) This type of jail has its difficulties. The advantage for this type of jail is that the staff can see more of the inmates without having to walk down a corridor. The disadvantage for this type of jail is that the staff and inmates are still separated and with no social contact, much like the first-generation jails. The Third-Generation jails, which are also known as direct-supervision jails, were introduced in the early 1970s. The housing unit is podular. The cells are arranged around a common area or dayroom. There is not control booth and no physical barriers between the staff and the inmates. (Schmalleger Smykla, 2011) The first direct-supervision county jail in the United States was the Martinez Detention Facility in Contra Cost, California. (Schmalleger Smykla, 2011) With the direct-supervision jails come the principles of Direct Supervision: 1. Effective control, 2. Effective supervision, 3. Competent staff, 4. Staff and inmate safety, 5. Manageable and cost-effective operations, 6. Effective communication, 7. Classification and orientation, 8. Justice and fairness, and 9. Ownership of operations. (Schmalleger Smykla, 2011) Direct-supervision jails facilitate staff movement, interaction with inmates, and control and leadership over pods. (Schmalleger Smykla, 2011) With direct-supervis ion, staff and inmates intermingle and this is a positive movement towards the reformation of the inmates and their social skills. You cannot just put someone back into society if he/she has had no contact with other people over a certain amount of time. When you are alone, after a while you get use to the idea of being alone and you get set in your ways and adopt a certain way of doing things. Take my brother for example, no he was not in jail, but he had been living on his own after his divorce for about 10 years and when he recently remarried, it was difficult for him to adapt to new lifestyle that involved another person. He had to adjust his ways that he had been accustomed to and to accept new ideas and new rules for the house. This was very difficult for him and it goes along the same line for inmates. People need social interaction and with the third-generation jails they received it. The Fourth-Generation jails brought improvements to the direct-supervision jails by adding borrowed light or natural sunlight into the day room. This improves the moral of the inmates and staff and saves on electricity bills when it is sunny outside. Along with the borrowed light concept, the fourth-generation jails also implemented program services, more staff, volunteers, and visitors to the jail, even vending machines to the day room. This reduces the feeling of isolation. This improvement adds to the staff the ability to carry out the nine principles of direct-supervision. (Schmalleger Smykla, 2011) Along with these new generation jails requires new interpersonal skills. Officers and staff must have excellent interpersonal skills. They must be able to address minor and major conflicts within the pods, even though in the new generation jails, especially the fourth-generation jails, conflicts are at a minimal rate due to the improved conditions and the attitudes of both the inmates and the staff. Reports have shown that the staff no longer saw themselves as mere guards or defined their jobs as simply to keep criminals locked up. Among the positive impacts, the officers and staff tend to see the jails as cleaner, less crowded, having fresher air, and being more temperate. However, these same researches also showed, even with the improvements, that the staff was no more satisfied than with the new generation jails than the traditional jails. (Appegate Paoline, 2007) I can see how the cleaner jails could be a positive effect on the staff and inmates. Take for example, you are invite d over to a friends house and it is totally in chaos and messy. The friend might be comfortable in that type of environment, but you are not so comfortable. If the environment were cleaner and more organized, you would be more comfortable and able to relax and enjoy that visit. Same thing with jails, the cleaner and organized it is, the more positive the attitudes of the staff and inmates. They will be more prone to communicate and follow the rules than in a run-down, unstructured type of jail. Another point of view would be that if an inmate can see that the place he/she is housed and it is not being take care of properly, what makes them think that anyone cares to find ways of improving it, that the facility is complacent with the conditions? Not that I would want to experience jail life, I would prefer it to be clean, healthy and somewhat a positive environment. With the improvements of the third and fourth generation jails brought, it also brought controversy and disadvantages. Results from studies show that few jails are strictly adhering to the new design techniques that have been recommended for the successful operations of these new generation jails. (Tartaro, 2002) Overcrowding is a popular problem in todays jails and even thought the crime rate is down, there is still overcrowding. Another problem the new generation jails have is the age of the offenders has increased and having the necessary accommodations for these elder prisoners. In the traditional jails, there were no medical treatments available, in todays jails, most jails offer medical treatment, but only on the same level as lower income families. Studies have also shown that inmates with disabilities are a growing problem in that they were discriminated against and most jails do not have the means to house inmates with disabilities, and I mentioned earlier, the 8th amendment protects this group of prisoners in todays society. (Ginsberg, 2009) In closing, the research I have done I have learned that the differences in the old jails and the new jails are similar in some ways and totally opposite in other ways. I believe that in the old jails and the way they were imprisoned were more likely not to repeat their offenses, and in the new jails, offenders are likely to repeat their offenses. In the old jails, inmates were brought into the public eye and were embarrassed by their actions. The old, traditional jails were not focused on reforming the prisoners; they were more focused on punishment to these criminals. In todays jails, we are more focused on reformation of the prisoners and trying to help them merge back into the society from what they once came from, but as I have learned in class, some inmate repeat their offenses because the jail life is better life than what they had. They may have come from broken homes, life of poverty and the jails give them a place of security and more of a home life than what they had. As s ad as this is, it is true and with the economy the way it is, this would seem like a better life. New generation emerged due to society to stand against the inhumane treatment that convicts were submitted to and to require the transformation of detention places from excusive instruments of punishment into establishments of moral recuperation (Merei, 2012) Merei also stated that in the nineteenth century, it was developed the concept according to which jails could become, from the means of expiation of the evil committed, social sanctums for healing the soul of the one in conflict with the laws of society . In Mereis report, she mentioned that a man named Panait Mucoiu made a categorical statement, which sums it all up. Mucoiu stated, As long as you take the mens freedom, you will definitely not transform him into a better person. You will harvest relapse. By incarcerating him and by giving him, every moment, the conviction that everything that happens in detention is a punishment, t he society proceeds with all its resources to make him an enemy. (Merei, 2012) Appegate, B. K., Paoline, E. A. (2007, June). Jail Officers Perceptions of the Work Environment In Traditional Versus New Generation Facilities. Retrieved November 21, 2012, from ProQuest Criminal Justice: http:search.proquest.com.ezproxy.lib.uwf.edu/criminaljusticeperiod Ginsberg, B. (2009, June). Out with the new, in with the old: the importance of section 504 of the Rehabiliation Act to prisoners with disabilites. p. 713. Head, T. (n.d.). Retrieved December 1, 2012, from About.com Civil Liberties: http://civilliberty.about.com/od/lawenforcementterrorism/p/8th_amendment.htm Merei, L. E. (2012, January). The affirmation of the renewing current of prison reform in the 19th century Romanian thinking. p. 313. Schmalleger, F., Smykla, J. (2011). Corrections in the 21st Century. New York: McGraw-Hill. Tartaro, C. (2002, September ). Examining Implementation Issues with New Generation Jails. Retrieved November 21, 2012, from Sage Journals: http://cjp.sagepub.com.ezproxy.lib.uwf.edu/content/13/3/219

Sunday, January 19, 2020

Counselling Essay

Identify aspects of body language and explain their necessity in rapport building in counselling Describe what â€Å"body language† or non-verbal communication (NVC) are. Write about body language the S.O.L.E.R and identify aspects of body language useful in creating an effective counselling relationship. Body lanuage is very important of how one looks on the outside during interation with others. If a person looks uninterested during a conversation he will have a hard time making and keeping friends. A good body language involves, keeping good personal space, making eye contact, sitting or standing up straight, and looking interested. You must not do the bad role play,which is stare at the floor, or stare too much at th client. Even scowl, fidget or rock back and forth, cross arms, slouch etc. The counsellor can identify what you are doing wrong. If the clients talks ina very flat voice, the counsellor may think this is his feelings of depression. The counsellor and client attribute characteristic to each other on the basis of non-verbal and para-verbal communiction. Thiscan be used to replace or support words. This can be used to replace or support words. This can conceal as well as to reveal, thoughts and feelings. Counsellors sometimes, can misinterpret clients non-verbal and para-verbal communication and must ask the client, what they are really thinking and feeling. The SOLER are for the 1) eye contact it is essential, majority of the time and showing face movement. This can be gestures, head movement and facial expression. 2) keep still, not to fidget do not rock back and forth, play with your hair or clothes or hands. 3) Personal space , not too far near about 2-3 feet apart is a comfortable distant. 4) Posture sitting up straight or even leaning towards the speaker, the client will know you are interested and encourage active listening. Maintaing eye contact, forward trunk, lean, close distance and medium-rated and high rated verbal empathy results to higher levels of judged empathy . Counsellor must be careful not to misinterpret the efforts of their own non-verbal communications on their clients. Silence is an important form of non-verbal communication. One of the main ways in which counsellors can show acceptance is to give the client both permissin and psychological space to reveal their thoughts abnd feeings. Non-intervention and saying nothing is important way where parents can communicate acceptance to their children.

Friday, January 10, 2020

Swot Analysis of Li & Fung Ltd

Part I. Backgrounds Study: Headquartered in Hong Kong, Li & Fung Limited’s extensive global sourcing network covers more than 80 offices in more than 40 economies around the world. The global trading company supplies high-volume, time-sensitive consumer goods. Particularly, garments make up a large part of its business which also covers the sourcing of hard goods such as fashion accessories, furnishings, gifts, handicrafts, home products, promotional merchandise, toys, sporting goods and travel goods.Li & Fung plays the role as a supply chain manager across many producers and countries, covering over 80 offices and over 13,000 employees in more than 40 economies across North America, Europe and Asia. They provide product design and development, raw material and factory sourcing, production planning and management, quality assurance and export documentation to shipping consolidation.SWOT analysis is a strategic planning method used to evaluate the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportu nities, and Threats involved in a project in a business venture. It involves specifying the objective of the business venture or project and identifying the internal and external factors that are favorable and unfavorable to achieve that objective. Part II. SWOT Analysis Strengths of Li & Fung Limited Strength is defined as the â€Å"characteristics of the business or team that give it an advantage over others in the industry†.The following part will analyze Li & Fung Ltd’s strengths in seven aspects, which are: flexible adjustments in supply, minimization of production cost, expertise in cost control, diversification of risk, complete chain of service, advanced information system and management, and low information cost. 1. Flexible adjustments in supplies Li & Fung Limited (â€Å"Li & Fung† in the following) itself does not involve any production activity, all the goods they provided to the customers are not produced by them. Instead, they have growing network of early 11,000 international suppliers in more 26 cities and countries around the world, such as United Kingdom, United State, Russia and Mainland China (see Figure 1). Therefore, it allows Li & Fung Limited to adjust its supplies to meet the frequent changes in world’s demand. Figure 1: Global distribution of Li & Fung suppliers 2. Minimization of production cost Li & Fung Limited keeps on finding the production firms that offers the lowest cost. As one product has many components, the company tries to purchase them from different suppliers.With the help of its global distribution of local suppliers, the purchase team of Li & Fung can compare the prices of each required components, and find out the lowest purchase price. It allows the company to minimize the cost (see Figure 2). Figure 2: Global purchase cost control of Li & Fung / components’ supply Even in the same region, which is more economically convenient for transporting. Li & Fung also tries to control the purchase cost according to the development among near suppliers.Take the example of mainland China, rising raw material and labor costs in China due to inflation and the need for a fairer distribution of income, respectively, have inevitably impacted the overall cost of production. The Group had anticipated that the southern and central, coastal manufacturing areas of China would become more expensive, so it began shifting some of its business to other country, such as India. 3. Expertise in cost control Li & Fung Limited has also set up many offices in over 40 countries, in each office, there are a professional team of experts which are well-comprehended the information of the local production factories.It enables them to search for the high-quality, cost-effective sourcing markets. Moreover, once they find the new supplier, the managing team will take time to understand the firm’s operation well and check the product quality carefully. Since they have knowledge of the opera tion of similar or related suppliers, to certain degree, it prevents the possibility of having low quality products. 4. Diversification of risk There is a well-known saying that â€Å"do not put all your eggs into the same basket†.Li & Fung Limited has engaged in export trading of many different kinds of both hardgoods and softgoods, such as fashion accessories, furnishings, gifts, handicrafts, toys, sporting goods and traveling goods (see Figure 3). If one of them becomes unpopular, they can easily shift their focus on the other goods. Then, it does not affect the company’s profit won’t be impacted by the drop in sales or consumer loyalty of one single goods. Figure 3: Diversity in Li & Fung’s multiple brands supply 5. Complete chain of service In the past, Li & Fung used to do simple searching of products.For example, a customer wants product X, and then their task is to find a factory that can do that. Now, Li & Fung expand their business. It provides a complete and one-stop shopping service for customers, that means from product design and development; through raw material and factory sourcing, production planning and management, quality assurance, and export documentation; to shipping. All the process is processed by them and it brings more revenue to them (see Figure 4 at the right). Figure 4 : Supply Chain 6. Advanced information system and managementLi & Fung has established sophisticated & Internet-based systems to link up all its business partners, including customers, producers, distributors, logistics service providers etc. The application of IT aims to provide more value-added services, shorten lead-time, lower cost and enhance flexibility. 7. Low information cost From past to now, Li & Fung has still continue to grow because customers were much easier to identify than suppliers. Usually, Suppliers were large in amount, fragmented, smaller and located in emerging markets. So, Li & Fung serve as a database of these suppl iers, it could source the goods easier than customers.Li & Fung significantly lowers the information cost of the customers, that’s why the company still grows. Weaknesses of Li & Fung Limited Weakness is the â€Å"characteristics that place the firm at a disadvantage relative to others†. The following part will analyze Li & Fung Ltd’s weaknesses in four aspects, which are: No self-owned factory, No self-owned shipping port, Over dependence on US Market, Vast and complicated supplier network. 1. No self-owned factory Aforementioned, Li & Fung does not own any production firm. There is no doubt that it is good for the company to have a flexible supply of inventory.Nevertheless, the production cost will be passively controlled by other. If the whole price level of a region rise, it takes some times to search a new suppliers. 2. No self-owned shipping port Li & Fung does not own any shipping port. All the goods and materials are transported by other shipping agents. In contrast, one of their main competitors, Hutchison Whampoa, has their private port. It will be more flexible in the shipping schedule and more easy in cost control. 3. Over dependence on US Market According to turnover report (see Figure 5), from 2006 to 2009, the turnover from USA and Europe is over 90%.In Contrast, the proportion from China is even less than 1%. In recent years, there are many financial problems in USA and Europe, a good example is the subprime mortgage crisis. If the economy of USA and Europe recover slowly, the demand for export service decline, it will likely affect the profit of the company. Figure 5 4. Vast and complicated supplier network Li and Fung has the network of nearly 11,000 international suppliers in more 26 cities and countries around the world, they were large in amount, fragmented, smaller and located in emerging markets.To manage them, it is very time-consuming and costly. The process takes many staffs as there is still a lot of human factor in business relationship. It cannot yet be replaced by technology. It incurs high labour cost. Opportunity of Li & Fung Limited Opportunity means the â€Å"external chances to make greater sales or profits in the environment†. 1. China market Nowadays, every companies glare at China like a tiger eyeing its prey. China, As the world’s second biggest economy and one of the highest potential of leading country in future, it is profitable to set up its own brands and reputation in China.In order to get more market share, previously, Li & Fung will become a sourcing agent for Li Ning Co. brands in local and foreign markets. They will responsible for sourcing for a range of products including running, basketball and lifestyle lines. 2. Improvement in IT & Internet Technology is improving at the tremendous speed by leaps and bounds. The advanced tele-communication and internet certainly enhance Internal & External Communication. It can consolidate the global network with the â€Å"infinite† suppliers. Also, more works can be progressed by the computer instead of people. It can reduce the labour cost at the same time. . Lower cost in the developing countries The continue emergence of the developing countries enable Li & Fung to source the new market which offer the lower purchase cost. On the other hand, in these developing countries, like India, usually provide a pool of cheap labour. It lowers the labour cost too. Threats of Li & Fung Limited In SWOT model, threat refers to the â€Å"external elements in the environment that could cause trouble for the business†. Under the background of post financial crisis time, I consider certain exist trends or disputation may potentially threaten Li & Fung Ltd’s future development in the global market. . Rise of trade protectionism around the world In recent years, there is a rising trend of trade protectionism, especially in western countries. Increasing amount of tariffs or quotas on the im portation of foreign goods and services have been installed by many countries or economic bodies in order to protect domestic interest and local enterprises. The actions of putting sizable tariffs on other country's major part or even entire line of exports would be regarded as â€Å"highly unusual† at the time before global financial crisis in 2008. However, it is quite common today.That’s why some even argue and doubt their legality under international trade law. These actions will certainly threaten Li & Fung’s global supply trading business, which need to buy and sell goods from one part of the world to another. On the one hand, the extra effort on processing newly added legal or regulational examination and approval might slow down the trading and transporting speed; on the other hand, the business cost is likely to increase because more and more human forces or resources are required to handle problems when trading goods globally. 2. Disputation of currenc y exchange ratesMoreover, the hot disputation on currency exchange rate can be regarded as another potential threat to Li & Fung’s global trading business. In order to recover fast from the weak and weary economic status, the US government carried out a quantitative easing approach to maintain its trading competitiveness around the world. In the early November 2010, Federal Reserve Board has just announced QE2. More cheap money for investors to play with suggests a further cheapening of the currency of US dollar and higher asset prices in other regions, typically those developing countries.Increasing asset prices could be a headache to Li & Fung, since its profit is quite sensitive to the goods purchase costs. Today, the prices of raw materials, manufactured goods and labor forces are no longer that significantly cheap in developing countries or regions like mainland China, India or Latin America, especially in garments industry. Hence, the ups-and-downs of global currency ex change rates may worsen the situation and become another risk to the global expending strategy Li & Fung. 3.Former entered competitors Comparatively speaking, Li & Fung is not the earliest bird who stepped in China market, though it recently emphasizes its strategic turn from US & Europe market to mainland China. Thus in the market of mainland China, Li & Fung Ltd has to face some strong competitors in the future years, such as Hutchison Whampoa Limited, another huge international corporation originates from Hong Kong and led by Li Ka-Shing and his business group. Part III. Competitive advantages of Li & Fung LimitedCompetitive advantage is defined as the distinctive edge comes from the organization’s core competencies because the organization does something the others cannot do or does it better than others. In the following, I have considered three points that give Li & Fung to have Competitive advantages. 1. Li & Fung’s customized service One of the Li & Fung seven principles is customer-centric and respond accordingly to the market demand. Li & Fung will first know the customer’s needs comprehensively. Then, the product will be designed and developed. The process will go on until the shipment is completed.It gives the high degree of freedom to customers, as all the process are actually controlled by them. If they have any problem or opinion, they are free to adjust. Also, the staffs in Li & Fung are well-trained as they know that human capital is the key factor to the growth and profitability of business. The quality of service and staffs are exclusive in Li & Fung, but not the other competitors in this industry. Because of the customized service and excellent service, It is not surprising that Li & Fung cut the direct relationship between suppliers and customers.Li & Fung act the role as middleman, They know much about information of the demand and supply side. Finally, both suppliers and customers become reliant on Li & Fung. This re lationship doesn’t easily change. 2. Global sourcing network Li & Fung plays the role as a supply chain manager across many producers and countries, covering over 80 offices and over 13,000 employees in more than 40 economies across North America, Europe and Asia. It enable them look for the high-quality, cost-effective product. Their global network is much larger than the other competitors, so Li & Fung can do better in this industry. . Economies of scale Aforementioned, Li & Fung covers more than 80 offices in more than 40 economies around the world. The company set up over 80 offices and employ 13,000 employees. It can enjoy economies of scale, for examples, discount from bulk purchase of materials from the firms, increasing the specialization of manager, increasing degree of division of labour, lower-interest rate charged when obtaining loan from banks and having access to a greater choices of financial instruments, spreading the cost of advertisement over a large amount of goods. Part III.Suggestions on strategic approach in Li & Fung Limited future development 1. Focus on the China Market China is known for its large population and rich in natural resources. China has a population of more than 1. 1 billion, The Chinese economy has been upsurging since 50’s, and particular in recent decades, the implementation of â€Å"open door† policy and the economic reform have given a great influence on Chinese economic development. It caused a significant increase in the living standards of the Chinese people, and has also led to further economic construction.These changes in turn have created an larger consumer market in China. As the economies of USA and Europe grow slowly and the market is already well-established, it is of vital importance of Li & Fung to increase the market share in china in order to increase the gross profit in the following years For example, Li & Fung can cooperate with the well-known brands in China, such as the another famous sports brand, Anta. 2. Develop the online commercial service Like the success of Alibaba. om, Alibaba is the global leader in e-commerce for small businesses that includes business-to-business international trade, online retail and payment platforms and data-centric cloud computing services. It has more than 8 million small and midsize companies using its business-to-business online marketplace. In this example, I believe that Li & Fung can imitate this kind of e-commerce. They are experienced in this field. It is profitable to expand their service to online service. It may bring a new market and higher profit to company

Thursday, January 2, 2020

Questions On The Law Of The United States - 1387 Words

Rachel Pratt EDUC-A 308 24 March 2015 Issue Paper Detailed Outline Step One: Summarize the issue you have chosen and state the position you will argue. I am going to argue that the fourth grade teacher who posted a banner in his room that said â€Å"What Would Jesus Do?† has violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. In order to avoid violating this clause, the banner must pass every prong of the Lemon test. However, this particular banner does not. Step Two: List the legal standards and how they will apply to your case and argument. The Establishment Clause of the First Amendment is the legal standard that pertains to this particular argument. When assessing whether the banner in question violates the Establishment Clause,†¦show more content†¦Case One: Stone v. Graham Supreme Court of the United States 449 U.S. 39 In this case, petitioner private citizens filed a suit against the superintendent of public schools in Kentucky, James Graham. Sydell and a number of other parents challenged the Kentucky state law requiring the posting of the Ten Commandments in every public school classroom. Each plaque would be purchased with private contributions and would have that statement, â€Å"The secular application of the Ten Commandments is clearly seen in its adoption as the fundamental legal code of Western Civilization and the Common Law of the United States.† The private citizens claimed that the statue violated the First Amendment and sought an injunction against its enforcement. The state supreme court held that the statue’s purpose was secular and it would neither advance nor inhibit any religion or religious group nor involve the state excessively in religious matters. On appeal, the United States Supreme Court held that the statue had no secular legislative purpose and was, therefo re, unconstitutional. The purpose for posting the Ten Commandments was clearly religious due to the fact that they are sacred in the Jewish and Christian faiths, therefore violating the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. This particular case will support my argument by confirming that hanging up items on school walls that do