Humanities Arts Cultural Stu 0280 - Ideology, Politics & the Media

In the wake of Obama's historic presidency, the American media triumphantly declared that we are living in post-racial times. But is race dead? Are we color-blind? If so, how do we explain the persistence of racism and racial inequality in the US? Utilizing an interdisciplinary amalgam of Ethnic Studies, Critical Race Theory, Media Studies, US Third World Feminism, Sociology, Cultural Studies, Political Philosophy, and Post-Colonial Theory, this course will investigate how "race" continues to shape American society in the post-civil rights era. Topics to be covered include: the social construction of race, racial formation, panethnicity, class-based and gendered racialization, multiculturalism, neoliberalism, double-consciousness, colonialism, essentialism, institutional racism, commodification of race/ethnicity, identity politics, colorblind ideology, cultural appropriation, resistance, and citizenship. Particular attention will be paid to affirmative action, immigration, hate speech, hate crimes, reparations, racial profiling, and the resurgence of white supremacy. This course is reading-, writing-, and theory-intensive. Prerequisite: Division II and III students only.

Independent Work Multiple Cultural Perspectives Writing and Research In this course, students are expected to spend a MINIMUM of ten hours outside of class time engaged in the following activities: completing the assigned readings, writing blog posts, reviewing video clips, and conducting research for their term papers.