Government 237 - COLQ:POLITICS OF US/MEX BORDER

Spring
2016
01
4.00
Velma Garcia
TTh 10:30-11:50
Smith College
40977-S16
HATFLD 107
vgarcia@smith.edu
This course examines the most important issues facing the U.S./Mexico border: NAFTA, industrialization and the emergence of the maquiladoras (twin plants); labor migration and immigration; the environment; drug trafficking; the militarization of the border; and border culture and identity. The course begins with a comparison of contending perspectives on globalization before proceeding to a short overview of the historical literature on the creation of the U.S./Mexico border. Though at the present time the border has become increasingly militarized, the boundary dividing the United States and Mexico has traditionally been relatively porous, allowing people, capital, goods and ideas to flow back and forth. The course focuses on the border as a region historically marked both by conflict and interdependence. Open to majors in government and/or Latin American studies. enrollment limited to 20.
Permission is required for interchange registration during the add/drop period only.