Sociology 349 - Race, Class, and Crime

This course will take an historical approach to understanding the relationship between race, class and the criminal justice system. We will analyze the various ways that social inequality, as a result of race and class, mediate individual and social group experiences with crime and the legal system. We will also analyze the affect of mass incarceration on poor and marginalized communities. The main goal of the course is to situate contemporary inequalities in the criminal justice system and their impact on communities, social groups, and populations in an historical context. Topics to be analyzed include: slavery and the convict lease system; industrialized prison labor; employment discrimination and incarceration; the war on drugs; felon disenfranchisement; and the affect of mass incarceration rates on poor communities.

Pre Req: 100 or 200 lvl SOCIOL