Category: Essays on Controversial Topics
Browse our collection of essays on controversial topics. Each topic in this category represents a controversial issue and thus is a good choice if you are looking for argumentative or persuasive essay topics. When writing an argumentative essay or a persuasive essay you should focus on picking a topic that is current and relevant to society and can be argued logically.
While a strong interest in a topic is important, it’s not enough to be interested. You have to consider what position you can back up with reasoning and evidence. It’s one thing to have a strong belief, but when shaping an argument you’ll have to explain why your belief is reasonable and logical. As you explore the topics, make a mental list of points you could use as evidence for or against an issue.
Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954), was a landmark Supreme Court case that overturned the “separate but equal” doctrine of Plessy v. Ferguson, 169 U.S. 537 (1896), ruling that blacks and whites be allowed to attend the same public schools. The decision was a major …
Demographic conditions profoundly affect the U.S. federal budget. Roughly one half of spending outside of interest on the debt and defense goes to people age 65 and over. In 2006, combined Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid spending averaged over $30,000 per capita for the older population. The first …
Bullying refers to aggressive behavior intended to harm the physical well-being of the victim or to create a feeling of fear and intimidation. Bullying includes physical assaults, physical intimidation, psychological intimidation, name-calling, teasing, social isolation, and exclusion. Two characteristics distinguish bullying from other forms of aggressive behavior. The …
A bureaucracy is a form of organization with designated rules, hierarchy or chain of authority, and positions. Max Weber identified bureaucracy as a particular ideal-type, or an abstracted model, with the following characteristics: a division of labor in which tasks are specified and allocated to positions, a hierarchy …
The crime of burglary, also called “breaking and entering,” is rooted in common law, originally designed to protect both the property within the home and the safety of its occupants. Modern-day burglary has expanded from a common law definition of entering the dwelling house of another during the …
Job burnout is one of the top 10 health problems in today’s workplace in the United States and is a persistent problem in other developed nations. Although definitions of burnout vary, generally it is a chronic and persistent feeling of emotional exhaustion related to stressful job conditions. The …
The phenomenon of capital flight refers to the movement of money—as capital—across national boundaries. This can be money leaving one country to be invested in financial assets in another country, or it can be foreign direct investment, whereby a company invests directly into a foreign country’s domestic structures, …
Unlike most industrialized nations that severely restrict or have banned the practice completely, the United States continues to use capital punishment. Despite international pressures, internal protests, and some compelling arguments against this practice, the United States remains the only industrialized democracy still executing prisoners. Historical Use of Capital …
Carjacking is the theft of a motor vehicle from another person by force, violence, or intimidation. Although often viewed as a hybrid offense—maintaining elements akin to both robbery and auto theft—carjacking is counted as a robbery in the Federal Bureau of Investigation Uniform Crime Reports because force is …
Charter schools are publicly funded schools that operate under a legally binding agreement or “charter” between an independent stakeholder (charter operator) and an authorizing agency (charter sponsor). Stakeholders may be, among others, a group of parents, a team of educators, a community organization, a university, or a private …
Understanding the Chicano movement requires an understanding of the past. Often heard among Mexican Americans is the saying, “We did not cross the border; the border crossed us.” This refers to the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo that ended the war between the United States and Mexico and …
Child abduction occurs when, in violation of lawful authority, a child is transported or detained, even if for a short period of time. Whereas news media often focus on dramatic stranger kidnappings, the problem of child abductions is more complex, often involving noncustodial family members. Despite this, much …
Child care safety refers to children’s safety from injury or death from accidents or acts of violence, or from emotional or sexual abuse, while in child care settings. Child care is defined as paid care provided by nonrelatives. Nearly 8 million children of employed mothers in the United …
Child neglect is the most frequent form of child maltreatment and results in more fatalities than all other types of child maltreatment in the United States. Child abuse often involves acts of commission, but child neglect often involves chronic acts of omission in care by a parent or …
Chronic diseases are illnesses that characteristically have a slow, progressive onset and a long duration. Chronic diseases impact every aspect of the individual’s and family’s life and usually result from repeated or prolonged exposure to an environment or substance that does not support the normal structure and functioning …
Since September 11, 2001, public and political concerns have focused primarily on international terrorism and Al-Qaeda. It is surprising that domestic terrorism has been ignored, considering that it was an important social problem after the Oklahoma City bombing. Timothy McVeigh was a right-wing extremist, and when he murdered …
Citizenship is both a legal status and a social identity. Legally, citizenship refers to an individual’s political status, rights, and obligations in a nation, for example, the right to political representation or participation in the judicial process in that nation. Socially, citizenship refers to an individual’s membership in …
Governments grant civil rights to those considered citizens through birth or naturalization. When rights are not distributed evenly, conflicts arise. The first stage is often a struggle for citizenship and against laws that create and delimit access to citizenship and related rights and privileges. The 1790 Naturalization Law …
Claims making entails the activities by which groups of people (such as advocacy or social movement organizations, community groups, legislators, or journalists) attempt to persuade an audience (such as Congress, other government officials, or the general public) to perceive that a condition is a social problem in need …
In its broadest sense, class refers to group inequalities based on economic attributes. The specific economic attributes used to define class vary by theoretical perspective, with some focusing on ownership or control of wealth-producing property, and others emphasizing material and cultural holdings, such as income, wealth, occupational prestige, …
