In essay 2 you will continue to hone your skills in developing a thesis-driven essay with citations from texts.  In this essay you will cite 3 – 5 of the essays and works we’ve read since essay #1.  We have again worked hard on carefully reading and understanding the texts, choosing strong specific examples to show our connections (schema) to the concepts in the text, and selecting pertinent quotations from the texts to support your claims.  In addition, you are going pay closer attention to the documentation of sources in parenthetical citations and works cited format.    This essay will be worth 200 points and you must complete all the components both in and out of class (drafting, workshops, instructors conference, expected word count as well as all MLA requirements.    Also, this essay will provide a foundation for your research paper, which will be an extended look some of the elements, like the readings and examination of Human Rights and Social Justice in the United States today.    Guidelines for this essay:  Write a thesis driven, informative (expository) essay of 1000 – 1250 words (at least 4 full pages) that responds thoughtfully and completely to the prompt.    Effectively integrate ideas from the texts for readers who are unfamiliar with the texts (but not telling too much)    Practice integrating a variety of quotations and paraphrases (at least 10) from at least four sources (listed below) to support your claims about human rights and social justice in our nation.      “If the men and women of the past, with all their flaws and limitations and ambitions and appetites, could press on through ignorance and superstition, racism and sexism, selfishness and greed, to create a freer, stronger nation, then perhaps we, too, can right wrongs and take another step toward that most enchanting and elusive of destinations: a more perfect Union.”   ― Jon Meacham, The Soul of America: The Battle for Our Better Angels (Links to an external site.)  (Links to an external site.)     Essay Prompt:  Write a fully developed, well supported essay that explores the following topic: Since our first reading, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which proclaims that human rights are the “highest aspiration for the common people” and that “as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected by the rule of law” (preamble). And now turning from the planet, we are beginning to move from general to more specific reading articles about human injustice in our nation’s judicial and immigration systems. To begin with, start to formulate your own definition of Human Rights and Social Justice, in the context of current events in the United States. And then select carefully an acute problem related to Social Justice and Human Rights in this country.  Your thesis should clearly make a claim that this nation has a legacy where our aspirations expressed in our founding documents (the Declaration of Independence and our United States Constitution) may have not been held to our “highest aspiration.”  Where has the United landed short of their intention. And finally, when possible, personally postulate (suggest) a possible solution to the issue. The sources you choose to incorporate into your essay should help illustrate your thesis, as well as help you to support your claims. Make sure you include references to at least four sources assigned since the last essay; and a minimum of  ten citations from these sources is required.     Make Sure (I use this a lot) to remember:  Illustrate the ideas you are using from the texts for readers who are not in this class and have not read the texts. In other words, summarize key ideas and define any terms that may be unfamiliar and select short quotations from the texts to help your reader to get a sense of what the author is getting at. Choose specific, short, and relevant quotations from the texts to support your claims  Close your essay with a suggested solution to the issue and in your conclusion point to the significance that you want to leave for the reader.    MLA format is required for citations and essay set up: margins, header, and heading  Typed Works Cited page is required.  Type word count at the bottom of the essay: Must be 1000 – 1250 words, excluding Works Cited page.    Texts and Articles for Essay 2  Just Mercy Chapters 3 – 9:  3 Trials and Tribulations  4 The Old Rugged Cross  5 Of the Coming of John  6 Surely Doomed  7 Justice Denied  8 All God’s Children  9 I’m Here  “Before the Law” by Jennifer Gonnerman  “I Spent 18 Years in Solitary Confinement”.  by Ian Manuel  Interview:  “Inside a Texas Building Where the Government is Holding Immigrant Children”  Interview:  “How Detained Children are Treated Around the World”  “Seeking Refuge, Legally, Finding Prison” by Francisco Cantú  Documentary: 13th Netflix Video Excerpt: “Mandatory Minimums” Last Week Tonight with John Oliver    Possible Topics:  Prison informants  Mandatory minimums  Riker’s Island  8th Amendment  13th Amendment The right to a speedy trial (6th Amendment)  The rights of children detained at our border  Mass incarceration  Children serving life in prison without parole  Juvenile justice system  Justice System in the American South  There are many more.  These are suggestions.