This course examines the discursive relationship between race and law in contemporary U.S. society. Readings examine the ways in which racial bodies are constituted in the cultural and political economy of American society. The main objective is to explore the rules and social practices that govern the relationship of race to gender, nationality, sexuality, and class in U.S. courts and other cultural institutions. Thinkers covered include W.E.B. DuBois, Kimberle Crenshaw, Derrick Bell, and Richard Delgado, among others.

This course analyzes the concepts of race and;racism from an interdisciplinary perspective,;with focus on Latinas/os/x in the United States.;It explores the sociocultural, political,;economic, and historical forces that interact;with each other in the production of racial;categories and racial "difference." In;particular, we focus on racial ideologies, racial;formation theory, and processes of racialization,;as well as the relationship between race and;ethnicity.

How have Americans -- and those contending with;America -- envisioned and reached for more just;and inclusive communities? What historical;circumstances have opened opportunities for more;robust democratic forms to emerge in the face of;oppression? We will consider structural barriers;to meaningful inclusion, involving racism,;wealth, poverty, property, citizenship, gender,;sexuality, disability, and dissent, as well as;efforts to overcome them through concerted action;and cultural struggle in the arts and public;humanities. What public stories shape our;connections with one another?

Using case studies such as the Eugenics Movement,;Jonestown, and the Kennedy Assassination, this;course will examine how distrust of the;government, originally motivated by logical;concerns, has transformed the way people think;about power in the postmodern era. The class will;explore the difference between rational;questioning of authority and blind distrust that;leads to questionable claims. Through topics such;as the War on Drugs, this class shows how the;powerful are able to use biases and public fears;to carry out their own, often counterproductive,;measures.

This capstone course brings seniors together to think through relationships among empirical research, theory, activism, and practice in gender studies. Majors with diverse interests, perspectives, and expertise (and other seniors with substantial background in the field) will have the opportunity to reflect on the significance of their gender studies education in relation to their current work (including work in 333s, 390, 395), their academic studies as a whole, and their plans for the future. Course readings and discussion will be shaped by students in collaboration with the instructor.

The course provides an historical and topical overview of Latina/o migration to the United States. We will examine the economic, political, and social antecedents to Latin American migration, and the historical impact of the migration process in the U.S. Considering migration from Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean, we will discuss the social construction of race, the gendered nature of migration, migrant labor struggles, Latin American-U.S. Latino relations, immigration policy, and border life and enforcement.

This course will investigate how representations of gender and class serve as a structuring principle in the development of the genre of the Victorian novel in Britain. We will devote significant attention to the construction of Victorian femininity and masculinity in relation to class identity, marriage as a sexual contract, and the gendering of labor. The texts chosen for this course also reveal how gender and class are constructed in relation to other axes of identity in the period, such as race, sexuality, and national character. Novelists will include Dickens, Eliot, Gaskell, C.

This seminar will focus on emerging innovations;in the development, use and governance of;reproductive and genetic technologies (RGTs). How;do novel developments at the interface of;fertility treatment and biomedical research raise;both new and enduring questions about;the'naturalness' of procreation, the politics of;queer families, the im/possibilities of;disabilities, and transnational citizenship? Who;has a say in what can be done and for which;purposes?

This course examines a variety of "literary";expressions of women in Early Modern Spain and;Colonial Latin America (e.g. Teresa de Avila,;Catalina de Erauso, María de Zayas and sor;Juana Inés de la Cruz). Attention will be;paid to the formal means by which women writers;emulated, appropriated, or subverted;male-authored models, and how with her words and;actions, they challenged modes of thinking and;threatened patriarchal ideologies.

Health is about bodies, selves and politics. We will explore a series of health topics from feminist perspectives. How do gender, sexuality, class, disability, and age influence the ways in which one perceives and experiences health and the access one has to health information and health care? Are heteronormativity, cissexism, or one's place of living related to one's health status or one's health risk?