Databases & Online Resources - Racial and Ethnic Relations - SOC 120

What is a library database?

A database is a searchable collection of information. In library research, a database is where you find journal articles but can also include newspaper articles, books, videos, and audio files.

Each database contains thousands of articles which you can search for simultaneously and quickly to find articles with higher relevancy than searching in individual journals. Databases are highly organized and allow students to search for information on a topic by keyword, subject, author, title, and phrase. Most databases at Waubonsee Community College provide access to full-text content, which means that you will find entire articles available, not just summaries or citations of articles.

Not sure where to start your research? The interdisciplinary databases are good places to search for information on any topic, and have lots of full-text material available.

Academic Search Ultimate This link opens in a new window
Use Academic Search Ultimate to find full-text popular periodical articles or scholarly (peer reviewed) journal articles covering most subject areas. A great place to find reliable articles for your research.
JSTOR This link opens in a new window
Includes all 2,800+ academic journals on JSTOR that span more than 60 disciplines across the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences, along with millions of primary sources across four collections.
Project MUSE This link opens in a new window
Full text scholarly journal database covering the fields of literature and criticism, history, visual and performing arts, cultural studies, and other social sciences.

At the Waubonsee Community College Library we have many online reference (background) sources that are easy to access and easy to use. See below for some useful online resources

ABC-CLIO Daily Life Through History This link opens in a new window
In Daily Life through History, students and researchers discover the everyday details about past eras that make historical accounts relevant and meaningful. Includes reference articles, media, and documents.
ABC-CLIO Issues: Understanding Controversy and Society This link opens in a new window
Collections of articles on current and controversial topics in a variety of subject areas: crime, business, environment and health, for example. Good resource for persuasive speech and argumentative paper research.
CQ Researcher Online This link opens in a new window
In-depth articles on selected current and controversial issues of the day. Pro/Con section of each report is valuable for your argumentative papers or persuasive speeches. Full-text.
Encyclopædia Britannica Online This link opens in a new window
Encyclopedia Britannica, along with Britannica Student Encyclopedia, Britannica Elementary Encyclopedia, and Merriam-Webster's Student Dictionary and Thesaurus.
Gale eBooks This link opens in a new window
Gale Virtual Reference Library is a collection of electronic format Reference titles on a variety of topics. A good place to start your research with basic information.
Opposing Viewpoints This link opens in a new window
Easy to search articles with pro and con viewpoints from reference works, magazines, academic journals, newspapers, primary source documents, and statistics. Use this database for your argumentative papers or persuasive speeches.
Oxford Reference Online Premium This link opens in a new window
Combines 100 sources into a searchable collection offering integrated, consistent coverage of subjects from General Reference, Language and Quotations to Science and Medicine, and from Humanities and Social Sciences to Business and Professional.

Black Thought and Culture This link opens in a new window
Black Thought and Culture is a collection of non-fiction writings, including letters, speeches and leaflets, by leading African Americans in many fields over 250 years.
HeinOnline Academic This link opens in a new window
Your home for legal research. U.S. federal & state case law, law reviews and much more.
Nexis Uni This link opens in a new window
Provides full-text access to news, business, and legal sources. Use the Company Dossier module to find detailed company information and financial information or identify and compare companies. Also provides access to Shepard's Citations service for all federal and state court cases 1789-present. Use to research court cases.
Sociology Source Ultimate This link opens in a new window
Access to peer-reviewed scholarly sociology journal articles. Coverage of topics ranges from gender identity, marriage and family, to demographics, political sociology, religion and socio-cultural anthropology.
Racism
Women and social movements in the United States 1600-2000 This link opens in a new window
Resource on U.S. history and U.S. women's history from 1600 to 2000.

Roper Center
Comprehensive collection of social sciences data sets and public opinion poll data with results. Coverage 1930 - present

Access World News This link opens in a new window
A newspaper database of national, state and local newspapers, including the Beacon News and the Kane County Chronicle.
Formerly known as "America's Newspapers"
Chicago Tribune This link opens in a new window
Comprehensive coverage back to 1985 for the Chicago Tribune.
Chicago Tribune Historical Archive This link opens in a new window
Contains selected major stories from the Chicago Tribune. Coverage is from the 1920's through 1984. Includes front pages (image of entire front page as it appeared when published from the early 1900 through 1984) and Chicago Tribune Morgue clippings.
Global Newsstream This link opens in a new window
Search a variety of news sources around the world.
New York Times This link opens in a new window
Digital Edition. An American newspaper of record with worldwide influence.
Comprehensive digital coverage. Find breaking news, media, reviews and opinion
on national and international topics.
Newspaper Source This link opens in a new window
Provides selected full text coverage of newspapers and other full text transcripts.
Wall Street Journal This link opens in a new window
Digital Edition. Paid access to the current Wall Street journal provided by Waubonsee Community College Libraries.
If asked to login, you may need to click the "Sign In With Google" link, and provide your Waubonsee Community College email account.
World News Digest This link opens in a new window
Contains news as reported in the major newspapers and news magazines of the U.S. and around the world. Summarizes key news information every week.

Alexander Street Videos This link opens in a new window
A searchable collection of videos and some print information in areas Waubonsee has subscribed to, including Nursing, History and Criminal Justice. Videos may be clipped, emailed and embedded.
Filmakers Library Online This link opens in a new window
Filmakers Library Online provides award-winning documentaries with relevance across the curriculum. Part of Alexander Street Online.
Human Rights Studies Online This link opens in a new window
A database of sources on major human rights violations and atrocity crimes worldwide from 1900 to 2010. The collection includes primary and secondary materials. A part of Alexander Street Online.
World History in Video This link opens in a new window
An online collection of streaming video that includes documentaries covering human history from the earliest civilizations to the fall of the Berlin Wall. Part of Alexander Street online.
World Newsreels Online: 1929-1966 This link opens in a new window
World Newsreels Online: 1929 -1966 captures many of the key international newsreels from the early twentieth century. Part of Alexander Street online.

Online Newspaper Subscriptions

Wall Street Journal: Please CLICK HERE to register for an account before attempting to access this resource The Wall Street Journal is the world's leading business publication with coverage from 1984 to the current year.

New York Times Website: Waubonsee Community College students, faculty, and staff have unlimited access to NYTimes.com, including archives from 1851 to the present (articles from 1923 to 1980 are limited to five per day per user; unlimited access is available through ProQuest Newstream). First-time users need to create an account from this link Create a New Account to gain access. Returning users can log in from the New York Times' website from this link. Users will have to "renew" their account once a year with their same login information.