A History of "Race": Colonial Era to the Obama Presidency

REVISED

Spring 2012 quarter

Faculty

Michael Vavrus education, history, political economy

Fields of Study

African American studies, American studies, history, law and public policy and political science

Preparatory for studies or careers in

history, law, sociology, political economy, social work, education and psychology.

Description

This program will explore the origins and manifestations of the contested concept "race." We will investigate the broad question as to how considerations of one's race result in differential social, economic, and political treatment. To do this, we will analyze a racialized history of the United States in relation to dominant discourses of popular culture, science, psychology, health care, law, citizenship, education, and personal/public identity.

By making historical connections between European colonialism and the expansion of U.S. political and military dominance in an era of globalization, students will have opportunities to investigate how the bodies of various populations have been racialized. Students will examine related contemporary concepts such as racism, prejudice, discrimination, gender, class, affirmative action, white privilege, and color blindness. Students will consider current research and racialized commentaries that surround debates on genetics vs. culture (i.e., nature vs. nurture).

Students will engage race through readings, dialogue in seminars, films, and academic writing that integrate program materials. A goal of the program is for students to recognize contemporary expressions of race by what we hear, see, and read as well as absences and silences that we find. These expressions include contemporary news accounts and popular culture artifacts (e.g., music, television, cinema, magazines). As part of this inquiry, we will examine the presidential candidacy of Barack Obama in relation to discourses on race. As a learning community we will work together to make sense of these expressions and link them to their historical origins.  We may also visit local museums to understand how issues of racial identity have been experienced in the Pacific Northwest.

Students will also have an opportunity to examine the social formation of their own racial identities through their own personal narratives. Current approaches from social psychology will be foundational in this aspect of the program. Related to this is consideration as to what it can mean to be an anti-racist in a 21st century racialized society. 

Location

Olympia

Online Learning

Enhanced Online Learning

Books

Greener Store

Required Fees

$25 for museum entrance fees and supplies.

Offered During

Day

Program Revisions