This 4-credit course will examine the contemporary texts and the social and political contexts of writers of color in the United States. We will look at issues of race and gender as social constructs that have historically served to exclude and oppress people of color and women. Along these lines, the playwrights and the texts that we will engage will serve as artistic commentary regarding images/stereotypes, approaches to similar themes within various communities, and the necessity for different models of both scholarship and aesthetic evaluations. (Gen. Ed. AL, DU)