Social Meaning of Race (320-0-20)

Instructors

John Marquez
847 491 5122
1860 Campus Dr Crowe 5-135

Meeting Info

Kresge Cent. Hall 2-380 Kaplan: Tues, Thurs 9:30AM - 10:50AM

Overview of class

Racism is probably the most enduring paradox in modern democracies. This is especially true in the U.S.A. Scholars have proven how race determines where we live, the quality of education we receive, our economic opportunities, our access to the law, our access to health care, the quality of air we breathe, and often even our access to life itself. For example, in the U.S., roughly 20% of the Black, Latinx, and Native American populations live in poverty as compared to only 9% of whites. Blacks, Latinxs, and Native Americans experience premature death at rates that are roughly 60% higher than whites. Black and Latinx graduation rates from colleges are roughly twice as low as whites. Blacks and Latinxs are incarcerated at rate that is over twice as high as white people. This course is designed to help students understand this paradox. Questions we will consider are: What is race and how did it become such a central organizing principle in our world? How does race relate to other vectors of power such as class, gender, and sexuality? How are our identities or subjectivities shaped by race? How does race differ from ethnicity or nationality? How does racial ideology shape policy? How do the histories of racialized groups relate to one another? How have racialized groups informed our understanding of race through their expressive cultures or activism? We will explore these issues through readings, discussions, lectures, films, short stories, and music.

Class Attributes

Social and Behavioral Science Foundational Discipl
U.S. Perspectives on Power, Justice, and Equity
SoC Individual and Social Behavior Distro