SF-1208 Social Meanings of Money
Money, not sex, is the last taboo topic in the U.S. It is vulgar to talk about it, wrong to ask others how much they make, immoral to boast the money you have, and shameful to admit you don't have any. Yet, money is simply a form of exchange, an objective way to measure value. So why is something so impersonal such a private matter? To answer this question, we will approach money from a social perspective by examining how different cultures understand systems of exchange; how popular media give meanings to debt, crisis, and money management; why money has a gender and race bias; and why our current understanding of money leads to social injustice. Students will engineer Suffolk Money that advances social justice for all community members