Critical Race and Ethnic Studies

An examination of 1) the emergence of race in modern societies, with special emphasis on the North American context; 2) the role of race in shaping power dynamics in the US historically; 3) contemporary consequences of racial power dynamics in the US today.

This course analyzes the colonial experience of African people in sub-Saharan Africa, from the late 19th century and throughout the twentieth century. European colonialism in Africa transformed customs, traditions and social organizations, introduced new boundaries between peoples and erased others through the institutionalization of racism and the creation of new ethnicities. The history, theory and practice of colonialism (and neocolonialism) are presented in this course through historical documents, scholarly writing, literature and film. We will explore the long-term economic, psychological and cultural effects and legacies of colonialism on the colonized. Finally, we will examine the episodes and events invoked by anti-colonialism and nationalism as colonized peoples resisted colonial domination. Fundamental to all these debates are concerns with the gendered and racist ideology of colonization — themes that also echo in the anti-colonial rebellions and liberation movements in Africa. 

This course will critically examine the social construction of race and racism in different cultural contexts. The course will question the biological basis of racial difference, and take anthropology to task for participating in a long history of scientific racism. After this quick historical background, we will tackle contemporary forms of racism across the world, and read about the struggles against racism and white supremacy, from the fight against settler colonialism and segregation, to Black Lives Matter and immigration rights. Racist ideologies are deeply entrenched in institutions and have ongoing effects on the health, wellbeing and livelihood of millions of people, so it is crucial we become aware of the way racism operates to begin the work of undoing it.

This course focuses on the rhetoric and practice of abolition. We explore tactics in speech, writing and direct action taken up by nineteenth-century abolitionists. Then, we explore contemporary activists’ use of abolitionist frameworks to advance the cause of racial justice. Readings include texts by John Brown, Sarah and Angelina Grimké, Frederick Douglass, Sojourner Truth, Michelle Alexander, Ruth Wilson Gilmore and Angela Davis.

This course will examine contemporary African American drama and highlight long-running traditions in the genre as well as revisions and sequels to some of its most canonical plays. Through the plays, additional readings and performances, we will explore questions of slang, dialect and accent; how history is presented and challenged on stage; the relationship between social justice and drama; debates about colorblind versus color-conscious casting; and audience reception.

Once a marginalized and discredited artform, comics and graphic novels has enjoyed a cultural resurgence and aesthetic renaissance in the 21stcentury. Concomitantly, questions of racial justice and equity have resurfaced in both U.S. and global culture and have begun to be addressed in long overdue ways. Perhaps unsurprisingly, contemporary comics and graphic novels have become a favorite medium (among others) for intervening in racial justice discourse. Therefore, this class will balance a literary perspective on the artistic contents of this exciting body of literature while simultaneously embracing a social science approach to its contexts. We will explore a growing canon of key authors and texts growing increasingly visible on college syllabi and popular best-seller lists. At the core of this class, we will ask what the graphic narrative form offers seekers of social justice and how social science can enrich our understanding of the relationship between art and equity.