POLITICAL ECONOMY

AND SOCIAL MOVEMENTS

Winter 2007 Quarter

Fall 2006 / Winter 2007 program at The Evergreen State College, Olympia, Washington

Faculty members: Peter Bohmer, Zoltán Grossman, Tony Zaragoza

LINK TO FALL QUARTER SYLLABUS

Political Economy resources

 

 

Political Economy critically analyzes economic systems, particularly capitalism. It examines the interplay of politics & economics in the historical development of a society and its social relations, particularly class relations. Systemic analyses of unequal power in the determination of the production, distribution, consumption and exchange of goods & services are central to political economy. Social Movements are a collective expression by noninstitutionalized ("grassroots") groups seeking or resisting social change. It is a social network attempting--mainly from outside the power structure--to bring about institutional changes, or to assert the power and self-determination of a particular social community.

"The point, however, is to change it...."

Description / Faculty Assignments
Rooms / Times Credit Requirements
Books Media / Culture
Economics Weekly Schedule / Readings

Bookmark this syllabus website (http://academic.evergreen.edu/curricular/PESM)
The syllabus is subject to change; website updates supersede the printed syllabus.

Lecture download links are in the Weekly Class Schedule below.

New students: Join the Program Listserv: join-pesm@lists.evergreen.edu

SEE GUEST SPEAKERS FROM BOTH QUARTERS AT BOTTOM.


GUEST SPEAKERS IN PROGRAM

 

Antonia Juhasz

Guest speaker on Jan. 19 (left): Antonia Juhasz, author-activist, visiting scholar at the Institute for Policy Studies, and author of The Bush Agenda.

Guest speaker on Jan. 24 (right): Ruth Wilson Gilmore, USC geography professor; author of The Golden Gulag on the prison- industrial complex.

 

Ruth Wilson Gilmore

 

Anne Feeney

Guest performer on Jan. 19 (left): Labor singer Anne Feeney.

Guest speakers on Feb. 7 (right): Michael Cuzzort (Afghan War veteran, member of Iraq Veterans Against the War),; and Carlos Arredondo (Gold Star father from People United for Peace; lost his soldier son in Iraq.

Michael Cuzzort and Carlos Arredondo 

 

Syndel and Toni Hill.

Guest speakers on Feb. 27 (right): Claudia Paras and Katrina Pestano of the Filipina organization PINAY sa Seattle.

Guest performers / speakers on Nov. 10 (left): Siren's Echo, a Portland duo of Oldominion's Syndel and Hungry Mob's Toni Hill.

Claudia Paras and Katrina Pestano

 

Guest speakers on Nov. 1 (from left): Maria Cuevas (Yakima Valley College instructor), Monserat Mendoza (Eisenhower H.S. senior in Yakima), Miguel Rodriguez (Yakima Valley College student), and Rosalinda Guillén (Comunidad a Comunidad in Bellingham, Whatcom County), discussing the "Águilas del Norte" (Eagles of the North) legal observer group monitoring the anti-immigrant Minutemen vigilantes, and discussing the Spring 2006 high school walkouts against anti-immigrant legislation . For more information, see Not in My County and Vigilante Watch.

 

Selma James

Guest speaker on Oct. 18 (left): Selma James, a leader of the International Wages for Housework campaign and Global Women's Strike for Peace.

Guest speaker on Oct. 17 (right): Elizabeth "Betita" Martinez, activist and author of DeColores Means All of Us.

 

Elizabeth Martinez

 

Angela Gilliam

Guest speaker on Nov. 8 (left): Evergreen emeritus faculty member Angela Gilliam. Guest speaker on Nov. 14 (right): Evergreen faculty member Therese Saliba

 

Therese Saliba

 

Monica Peabody

Guest speaker on Nov. 15 (left): Monica Peabody of Olympia's Welfare Rights Organizing Coalition.

Guest speaker on Dec. 1 (right): Rev. Edward Pinkney, pastor of the Bethel Christian Restoration Center in Benton Harbor, Michigan, and executive director of Black Autonomy Network Community Organization (BANCO)

 

Edward Pinkney

 

Kate Villarreal

Guest speaker on Dec. 5 (left): Kate Villarreal, Community Organizer in the Community Coalition for Environmental Justice in Seattle.

Guest speaker on Dec. 6 (right): John Ross, author and activist on social resistance in Mexico and the U.S.

 

John Ross

 

Felice Yeskel

Guest speaker on Nov. 29 (left): Felice Yeskel, director of Class Action

Guest performer on Dec. 6 (right): Jim Page, Seattle songwriter, poet, and activist

 

Jim Page

 

Cecilia Santiago Vera

Guest speaker on Dec. 6 (left): Cecilia Santiago Vera, Social psychologist from Chiapas, brought by Mexico Solidarity Network

Guest speaker on March 21 (right): Delia Aguilar (co-author /editor of Women and Globalization), on "Feminism and the Denial of Empire"

 

Delia Aguilar


PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

This program is designed to introduce students to the major concepts, historical developments and theories in political economy & social movements and to provide a foundation for more advanced work in political economy and the social sciences. We will examine the historical construction of U.S. political economy, the role social movements have played in its development, and possibilities for social justice, self-determination and equality.

A central goal is to gain a clear understanding of how and why the U.S. economy has been organized and reorganized over time, how it has been controlled, who has and has not benefited from it, the nature of exploitation, racism and sexism, and how social movements, particularly those based on race, class and gender, have resisted and shaped its direction. We will analyze everyday understandings of our human experience and social relations and how they are influenced by media, schools, dominant ideology and popular culture. We will also examine the current and future direction of U.S. economy and society, and how various social movements are responding to the changing political economy­locally, nationally and globally. Effects of the U.S. political economy on meeting people's needs in the U.S. and elsewhere will be major themes.

Fall quarter's work focused primarily on the historical development of the United States, while we learned and critiqued ideologies such as liberalism, feminist theories, marxism, anarchism and neoclassical economics. A question of ongoing importance was how economic exploitation relates to other forms of social oppression such as racism, sexism and homophobia. Current economic restructuring efforts and the reorganization of the social welfare state and the implications for growing inequality of income and wealth, for poverty and the changing nature of work were also examined. For each of these topics we examined the role of race, class, nation and gender and the relationships among them, as well as local and national building of social movements that propose solutions to social problems.

Winter quarter's work will center on the interrelationship between the U.S. economy and the changing global system, as well as the history of capitalism and its rise to global prominence. We will study the causes and consequences of the globalization of capital and its effects in our daily lives, the role of multilateral institutions such as the World Bank, the IMF and the WTO, the meaning of various trade agreements and regional organizations, and the response of social movements opposing this emerging global order. We will pay attention to the human consequences of imperialist globalization, and resistance to it in case studies from the global South and global North. We will study changes and continuities in the post-September 11 period with regards to militarism, attacks on dissent and new forms of racism. We will look at alternatives to neoliberal capitalism including socialism, participatory economies and community-based economies.

The seminars will discuss all-program readings (mainly on Tuesdays), but will also discuss their popular education workshops and current events. Students working in Tony Zaragoza's seminar will be working in the Gateways for Incarcerated Youth program; students who choose this option will attend class and learn with incarcerated students.

This program will emphasize a diversity of voices, drawing from program faculty, guest Evergreen faculty, and outside guest lecturers (see bottom). Films will be shown throughout the program. There will be a substantial amount of reading in a variety of genres. Workshops and role-playing exercises in economics, international relations, writing and organizing for social change will be used. Students will learn popular education and participatory research methodologies and take part in projects using these methods. Students taking this program should have an interest in economics and the social sciences, in the theory and practice of social movements, and in principles of grassroots organizing.


FACULTY & OFFICE HOURS

Peter Bohmer

Office: Lab II Room2271 Tel.: 867-6431 E-mail: bohmerp@evergreen.edu

Faculty website at http:/./academic.evergreen.edu/b/bohmerp

Office hours: Tuesday 4:30-5:30 pm & by appt.

 

Zoltán Grossman

Office: Lab I Room3012 Tel: 867-6153 E-mail: grossmaz@evergreen.edu

Faculty website at http:/./academic.evergreen.edu/g/grossmaz

Office hours: Tuesday 4:30-5:30 pm & by appt.

 

Tony Zaragoza

Office: Sem II D3106 Tel: 867-6408 E-mail: zaragozt@evergreen.edu

Office hours: Wednesday 9:00-10:00 am & by appt.


ROOMS AND TIMES

 Day Start End Class SEM II Room
 TUESDAY 10:00 am 11:30 am Political Economy presentation/lecture  E1107
  11:30 am 1:00 pm Economics presentation/lecture  E1107
  2:00 pm 4:30 pm Pete book seminar  C3107
 

"

 "

Zoltan book seminar  C3109
 

"

 "

Tony book seminar  D3109
 WEDNESDAY 10:00 am 10:30 am Student weekly cultural segment  E1107
10:30 am 1:00 pm Workshop (or guest, film, etc.)  E1107
 FRIDAY 10:00 am 11:45 am Social Movement presentation/lecture/workshop  B1107
  11:45 am 1:00 pm Economics workshop  B1107
  2:00 pm 4:30 pm Pete seminar  C3107
 

"

 "

Zoltan seminar  C3109
 

"

 "

Tony seminar  D3109


REQUIRED BOOKS (all books and articles are available on reserve at the library)

Other articles and chapters will be handed out, put on line, and/or put on reserve in the library.

Bold indicates name used in the class schedule below.

*--Book also used in fall quarter.

BER: Bowles, Sam, Richard Edwards, Frank Roosevelt, Understanding Capitalism, 3rd edition (Oxford U.P., 2005).*

RW Macro: Dollars & Sense, Real World Macro, 23rd edition (Dollars and Sense, 2006), ISBN 1-878585-59-2

Lichtenstein, Nelson, ed. Wal-Mart, The Face of Twenty-First Century Capitalism, (The New Press, 2006). ISBN: 159558-021-2

Juhasz, Antonia. The Bush Agenda, Invading the World, One Economy at a Time (Harper- Collins, 2006). ISBN: 0060878789 (paperback edition) [if not available hardback is 0-06-084687-9]

Aguilar, Delia, and Anna Lacsamana. Women & Globalization (Humanity Books, 2004). ISBN: 1591021626

Smith, Andrea, Conquest: Sexual Violence and American Indian Genocide (South End Press, 2005).*

Hernandez, Daisy & Bushra Rehman, eds. Colonize This! Young Women of Color on Today's Feminism (Seal Press, 2002).*

Benjamin, Medea & Jodie Evan, eds. Stop the Next War Now (Inner Ocean, 2005) ISBN: 1930722494

Rose, Fred, Coalitions Across the Class Divide (Cornell University Press, 2000).*

Prashad, Vijay. Everybody was Kung Fu Fighting (Beacon Press, 2002) ISBN: 0807050113

Hahnel, Robin. Economic Justice and Democracy, From Competition to Cooperation (Routledge, 2005). ISBN: 0-415-93345-5

Roy, Arundhati. Power Politics (2nd ed.) (South End Press, 2002) ISBN: 0896086682

Gedicks, Al, Resource Rebels (South End Press, 2001).*

Gott, Richard. Hugo Chávez and the Bolivarian Revolution (Verso, 2005) ISBN: 1-84467-533-5

The faculty have chosen and arranged the texts (books, articles, and videos) very carefully and expect that both those enrolled in and those teaching the program will read them very closely. A major program goal is not only to know what has happened historically and in the world of political economy (historical facts) but also to know why it has happened and/or is occurring (political theory). Therefore, a major part of the program will be focused on understanding events and becoming empowered to act on events now and in the future. It is thus very important that we all become close and careful readers of all the assigned material.

It is the policy of the college bookstore to return used books in the sixth week and new books in the seventh week. Please plan accordingly. In addition to these books, there are a number of articles in the syllabus that are available on-line via the program webpage and/or on closed reserve at the library circulation desk. You should print out or make copies of these materials for active reading and seminar discussion. In addition to readings, the PESM webpage will have the syllabus, schedule and program-related resources including news sites, maps, photos & writing resources. The program website address is http://academic.evergreen.edu/curricular/PESM. Bookmark the site for easy reference. We'll update it as changes are made, so the web version will be more current than the paper version. If you have resources, problems, or suggestions concerning the webpage, email Zoltán at grossmaz@evergreen.edu.        


ECONOMICS

In fall quarter we studied the assumptions, logic, conclusions and policy implications of neoclassical microeconomics. Students learned key microeconomic concepts such as scarcity, efficiency, opportunity cost, market structure, and demand and supply in the goods and labor markets. We compared and contrasted neoclassical and political economic approaches.

In winter quarter, we will study macroeconomic theory and policy. We will examine key components of Keynesian economics such as aggregate demand, determinants of consumption and investment, and fiscal and monetary policy. Students will be introduced to competing theories of international trade and finance in the context of examining their applicability in the global South and North.


ASSIGNMENTS

Discussion Paragraphs: Two detailed short discussion paragraphs with questions or comments need to be turned in at each seminar, with your name and the date. They should be detailed, and refer or respond to specific passages or aspects of the reading (not vague, general questions), and related to program lectures. These paragraphs will constitute your attendance in the seminar, and verify that you have completed and reflected on the reading.

Synthesis Essay: In the winter quarter you will write a synthesis essay on the readings, in two parts. One synthesis paper (5-7 pp) is due in Week 4. It would be revised and expanded (8-10 pages) by Week 9, using additional assigned readings. On the due date, you will bring to seminar a copy of the essay: stapled, 12 point double-spaced. (In Zoltan's seminar, turn in two copies.) The seminar faculty member will return the copy marked with comments. A synthesis essay requires you to relate the themes of different readings to each other in a clear analysis and argument. Your essay should draw convincingly from all or nearly all of the recent readings, as well as lectures, films, and prior program readings. It should work with the program materials to show your reasoning, evidential support, and careful judgment in the development of your thesis. The essays is used to verify that students have understood the themes of the readings and lectures. Please take care in your writing. This means treating your readers with respect by drafting, organizing, revising, and proofreading your essay. It should be presented with appropriate grammar, sentence structure, citations, and the usual bibliography. It should have page numbers and a title. See Evergreen Library's Citation & Style Guide page. More synthesis essay guidelines.

Popular Education Workshops: Popular education group presentations will be related to weekly theme, with collective "lesson plan" by group. Beginning in Week 5, students will be responsible for leading part of the Wednesday workshops. These popular education workshops will relate broadly to the larger theme of the week, including macroeconomics. Each seminar will be divided into two groups, and each week one of these six groups will lead the program through the workshop they've designed. You will use part of our seminar time in Weeks 1-4 to prepare; and present in Weeks 5 & 6 (T), 8 & 9 (Z), 7 & 10 (P). This is not just a group presentation, but an exercise in mass-based education--how would you educate your own family or friends? The group will also write up the "lesson plan" of their workshop including an overview, outline, and basic content--sufficient for others who may want duplicate the workshop. In addition, each student will contribute about one page per person on their individual section of the presentation, and what they learned from doing it. The collective lesson plan and students' contributions will be put on the web.

Economics Problems/Questions: There will be four problem sets consisting of questions using quantitative reasoning, and short answer and essay questions, as well as "scavenger hunts" (examining your local Wal-Mart, your possessions, your home community, etc.) . They will coming primarily but not exclusively from the economics presentations and workshops and from the material in Understanding Capitalism and Real World Macro. They will be due at 10 :00 am on Tuesday, Week 3 (January 23rd); Friday, Week 5 (February 9th); Friday, Week 7 (February 23rd), and Wednesday, Week 10 (March 14th). The problem set will be handed out one week before they are due. The final (fourth one) will be longer than the others and cumulative. You are encouraged to work with other students on the questions but each student must turn in their individual answers.

Economics tutor: The economics tutor is Thomas Herndon. His email is grouchyjourneyman@yahoo.com, and phone number is (512) 964-3317. He is an outstanding resource for the program. Thomas will conduct some math review workshops, go over the weekly material and help people with the problem sets. Thomas will answer questions and conduct optional workshops on Monday (11:00 am-1:00 pm) and on Wednesday (1:30 - 3:00 pm); in Sem II E3107. He is also available at the Quantitative Resource Center, Library 2304. Call him to set up an appointment.


REQUIREMENTS FOR CREDIT & GENERAL EXPECTATIONS

Thirty-two credits (sixteen at the end of each quarter) will be awarded to all students who successfully fulfill the program expectations. Students receiving less than twelve credits in the fall cannot continue into the winter quarter except in extenuating circumstances. To receive fall quarter credits, students will be expected to:

1. Regularly attend all program meetings;

2. Prepare for and participate in seminar, group discussions, and group work;

3. Write two detailed seminar paragraphs with questions and/or comments for each seminar's readings;

4. Write an analytical synthesis essay (in two parts) drawing on a range of program materials;

5. Successfully complete sets of economics problem/questions;

6. Participate fully in economics workshops;

7. Contribute to popular education workshop and submit short overview of your contribution.

8. Participate in an end-of-quarter evaluation conference and submit written self-evaluation and faculty evaluations.

Engagement: Evergreen programs are not simply a collection of classes, but a deeper effort to form a learning community. We learn from each other, and are therefore responsible to each other to participate in the learning community. Participation is defined as active listening, speaking, and thinking. Communication and attendance are vital to build relationships among students, and between students and faculty. In the interest of fairness, we want all students to have equal access to all information, and to have their attendance count. The program and seminar e-mail lists are a critical part of staying informed about any changes to the syllabus, and any current events that relate to the program. If you do not use your @evergreen.edu address, you are required to forward e-mails to your preferred address. You should check your e-mail every weekday for any updates, and you are encouraged to pass along interesting news items that relate to the program.

All-program Attendance: Attending seminars and all-program activities is the other critical aspect of participating in the learning community. As Woody Allen once said: "80 percent of life is just showing up." Many students make great efforts to coordinate their transportation, jobs and family in order to attend class. In fairness to students who attend, there will be a sign-in sheet at all-program lectures, films, workshops, etc. for students to initial. Since attendance is a precondition of participation, absences will diminish your ability to earn full credit; more than three absences will likely lead to reduced credit. Three occasions of tardiness will equal one absence; it is in your own interest to be on time since class instructions are usually at the beginning. Absences will only be excused under extenuating circumstances (documented in an e-mail or phone message to your seminar's faculty member, preferably in advance).

Note-taking is strongly encouraged to retain information for discussion and assignments (such as the synthesis essay). Some powerpoints and other lectures can be downloaded and printed from links on the web to aid in note-taking. You should identify a friend who can take detailed notes in case of your excused absence.

Cooperative efforts. All-program work (and seminars) require collaborative and cooperative efforts from both faculty and students. Students should familiarize themselves with the Program Covenant, the Evergreen Social Contract and the Student Conduct Code regarding issues such as plagiarism and disruptive behavior. Normal adult behavior, of course, is expected and disruptive or disrespectful behavior will be grounds for being asked to leave the program.  In all program activities, please make sure your cell phones are turned off, and you do not make it difficult for students or faculty to listen or concentrate. Laptops are to be used only for taking notes, if at all.

Seminar Attendance: Seminar attendance, preparation, and participation is also considered very important to your individual success, as well as to the collective success of the group. We will not be dealing with settled questions, and the various authors will not always be in agreement or use the same theoretical frameworks. We will be considering topics of immense relevance to the lives of each and every one of us as well as to the larger society. The faculty anticipate lively and respectful discussion, differences, and controversy. The seminar will be a collaborative, exploratory undertaking and is the place where most of the integration, insights, and intellectual breakthroughs will be made. We are looking forward to engaged and vital seminar groups. Part of Pete and Zoltan's Friday seminars will be for group presentation planning (Weeks 1-4) and current events discussions (Weeks 5-10).

Discussion questions/comments: In order to help facilitate careful and critical reading, each student will compose two questions and/or discussable comments for each seminar's reading that will be turned in at seminar, beginning the first Friday. These thoughtful comments will be useful for beginning the seminars. They should be detailed, and refer or respond to specific passages or aspects of the reading (not vague, general questions).  These discussion questions will have your name and the seminar date, since they will constitute your attendance in the seminar, and verify that you have completed and reflected on the reading.  Students must always bring the reading itself to the seminar (and any assigned readings to all-program meetings).

Evaluation: Your evaluation will consist of your seminar leader's written evaluation of your work, your self-evaluation, and the evaluation conference. You will be evaluated on your level of comprehension of the material, on your skills (writing, thinking, speaking, listening, research, presentation), and on your intellectual engagement with the major themes of the program as reflected in assignments and seminar discussions.

Accommodations: Please let your faculty know at the beginning of the quarter if there are any reasonable accommodations that you will need that will be coordinated through Evergreen's Access Services.


MEDIA AND CULTURE

In both all-program and seminar meetings, we will often be discussing current events in the context of our program themes, and presentations and workshops may also relate to current events. One way to keep track is to read the New York Times, which is available free every morning in the CAB. You can also check out the New York Times website everyday at http://www.nytimes.com to keep up with world news; the registration is free. Check the boxes "Today's Headlines" and  "Breaking News Alerts" to get daily news briefs e-mailed to you.

Another way we are engaging contemporary life in the U.S. and the world is through culture. On most Wednesdays after Week 3, you are encouraged to bring in cultural or media items of interest that relate to our program themes. These can include reciting a poem, showing art pieces, playing a song with pertinent lyrics, viewing a music video clip with a social message, showing a political cartoon, viewing a short on-line video, etc. These items should preferably relate to the week's themes (particularly Wednesday's topics), or recent readings and discussions, but this is not absolutely necessary. From 10:00 to 10:30 on most Wednesdays, we will hear and discuss your cultural contributions; this is a required part of the class. If you need to use electronic media, you must come in 15 minutes early to set up any equipment (such as to test-run a laptop), so you do not unnecessarily use up any class time. You can present your own work or the work of others; there is no pressure, or evaluation of your presentation. Use your imagination and creativity; we want to get beyond the "facts" to discuss how meanings are constructed in our society today.


WINTER 2007 WEEKLY CLASS SCHEDULE

(P)= Pete Bohmer; (Z)= Zoltan Grossman; (T)= Tony Zaragoza

WEEK ONE: JAN. 9-12 -- GLOBALIZATION & WAL-MART

Tuesday Jan. 9, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Introduction and overview of the quarter and assignments (T); Economics overview (P)

VIEW Global Assembly Line

Why Walmart? Key Issues (Z)

VIEW Frontline: Is Wal-Mart Good for America?

Tuesday seminar 2:00-4:30 pm

Seminar introductions

Read Lichtenstein, Chapters 1-6

Wednesday Jan. 10, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

VIEW Wal-Mart: the High Price of Low Cost (P)

Read BER, Chapter 14, RW Macro, Chapter 2

Economics: Introduction to Macro, Economic Statistics (P)

Friday Jan. 12, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Introduction to Popular Education (T)

Walldart Strategy Game (T) and puzzle

HANDOUT Economic Problem Set #1: Worksheet and Excel spreadsheet

Friday seminar 2:00-4:30 pm

Read Lichtenstein, Chapters 7-12

For more on Wal-Mart, see Store Wars, Sprawlbusters, LabourStart, & Wal-Mart website


WEEK TWO: JAN. 16-19 -- GLOBALIZATION, THE IMF, WORLD BANK & WTO

Tuesday Jan. 16, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Economic Geography and World-Systems Theory (Z) 15 MB ppt

The Rise & Fall of Neoliberalism (P)

Read BER, Chapter 15

Tuesday seminar 2:00-4:30 pm Read Juhasz, Chapters 1-5 (pp 1-184)
Wednesday Jan. 17, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

VIEW Life and Debt (Z)

The Rise & Fall of Neoliberalism, the IMF, World Bank, and WTO (P) [continued]

Friday Jan. 19 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Economics: Free Trade, Balance of Payments (P)

SAPlandia Workshop (T)

Read RW Macro, Chapter 8.1-8.6

Friday seminar 2:00-4:30 pm

Read Juhasz, Chapters 6-9 (pp 185-343)

Seminars meet 2:00-2:45; then go to Lecture Hall 1 for guest speaker at 3:00-4:30.

Guest speaker: Antonia Juhasz Institute for Policy Studies visiting scholar; author of The Bush Agenda


WEEK THREE: JAN. 23-26 -- SOCIAL CONTROL, WOMEN & GLOBAL ECONOMY

Tuesday Jan. 23, 10:00 am-12:30 pm

Perspectives on Macroeconomics (P)

Read RW Macro, Chapter 7

VIEW Maquilopolis (by Mexican women workers in Tijuana "City of Factories")

DUE Economic Problem Set #1

CLASS POTLUCK with labor singer Anne Feeney, 12:45-2:15 pm in CAB 110 (please bring a tasty dish)

Tuesday seminar 2:15-4:30 pm Read Aguilar, Intro & Chapters 1- 5 (pp 11-153)
Wednesday Jan. 24, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Guest speaker: Ruth Wilson Gilmore USC geography professor; author of The Golden Gulag on the prison-industrial complex

Writing workshop on synthesis essays (T)

Friday Jan. 26, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Prisons: Social Control, Political Economy and Women (T)

Economics Workshop: Neoliberalism in the Neighborhood (T)

Read RW Macro, Chapter 8.7-8.12

Friday seminar 2:00-4:30 pm Read Aguilar, Chapters 6-9 , 12 (pp 154-277, 347-403)


WEEK FOUR: JAN. 30-FEB. 2 -- GLOBAL WOMEN'S MOVEMENT

Tuesday, Jan. 30 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Introduction to Keynesian Economics (P)

VIEW Say I Do (on mail-order bride industry)

Read BER, Chapter 16, 1st half (pp 403-429)

Tuesday seminar 2:00-4:30 pm Read Smith (on library reserve), Chapters 4, 7-8 (pp. 79-107, 137-191); Aguilar, Chapters 11 & 13 (pp 313-346 & 387-403)
Wednesday, Jan. 31, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Popular Education Workshop

First cultural segment; e-mail grossmaz@evergreen.edu in advance

Friday, Feb. 2, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Keynesianism and the U.S. Macroeconomy (P)

VIEW Casa de los Babys

Read RW Macro, Chapter 1

Friday seminar 2:00-4:30 pm

Read Aguilar, Chapters 10 & 14 (pp 278-312 & 404-422); and Hernandez (Darraj, pp. 295-311; Mody, pp. 268-78; Ijeoma A., pp. 215-29)

DUE: FIRST DRAFT OF SYNTHESIS PAPER


WEEK FIVE: FEB. 6-9 -- ANTIWAR & G.I. MOVEMENTS

Tuesday, Feb. 6, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

VIEW Sir! No Sir! about GI resistance in Vietnam War (Z)

Introduction to Keynesian Economics, part II (P)

Read BER, Chapter 16, 2nd half (pp 423-444); review 423-29

HANDOUT Economic Problem Set #2

Tuesday seminar 2:00-4:30 pm Read Benjamin, Foreword, Preface, Introduction, Part I (pp xi-xviii & 1-115), Rose Part 3 (pp 75-112).
Wednesday Feb. 7, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Student Pop Ed Workshop: Options for Youth (T seminar group)

Guest Speakers Michael Cuzzort (Afghan War veteran, member of Iraq Veterans Against the War),; and Carlos Arredondo (Gold Star father from People United for Peace; lost his Marine son in Iraq.

For more on Lt. Ehren Watada's case, see ThankYouLt.org, WarTribunal.org, and 18-min. video

Friday Feb. 9, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

GI and Draft Resistance (Z)

The Vietnam War and Antiwar Movement (P)

Fiscal policy and government deficit (P)

Read RW Macro, Chapter 4

Friday seminar 2:00-4:30 pm Read Benjamin, Part II & Afterword (pp120-225); Rose, Selections from Part 4 (pp 115-145 & 166-205)


WEEK SIX: FEB. 13-16 -- GLOBAL CULTURE & POLITICAL ECONOMY

Tuesday Feb. 13, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Exploitation, Oppression, and Transformation (T) Handouts: Films, Rodriguez, Review of Prashad & Roediger

Dilemmas of macroeconomic policy in an open economy (P)

Read BER, Chapter 17

DUE Economic Problem Set #2

Tuesday seminar 2:00-4:30 pm Read Prashad, Forethought, Chs 1 & 2 (pp ix-xii & 1-69); and Samir Amin article "Obsolescent Capitalism"
Wednesday Feb. 14, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Student Pop Ed Workshop (T seminar group)

Workshop: Globalization and Culture (Friedman, Gregoire, Huntington)

Friday Feb. 16, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

VIEW Dirty Pretty Things

Savings and Investment (P)

DAY OF ABSENCE (if you attend events during class time you are required to submit a 1-page report by Tuesday)

Read RW Macro, Chapter 3; Review BER Chapter 17

Friday seminar 2:00-4:30 pm Read Prashad, Chapters 3-5 (pp 70-149); and Samir Amin article, "Beyond U.S. Hegemony"


WEEK SEVEN: FEB. 20-23 -- ALTERNATE SYSTEMS

Tuesday Feb. 20, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Participatory Economics (Parecon) (P)

Future of Capitalism, Obsolescent Capitalism (T)

Read BER, Chapter 20

HANDOUT Economic Problem Set #3

Tuesday seminar 2:00-4:30 pm Read Hahnel, Parts I, II, III (pp.1-250); Chapters 8-9 particularly important
Wednesday, Feb. 21, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

DAY OF PRESENCE Attendance mandatory for at least one workshop; you need to write a 1-page report for Friday.

The Day of Presence Schedule lists many workshops (you can attend any on the schedule).

Friday, Feb. 23, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Student Pop Ed Workshop (P seminar group)

Cuba (P); Handout on Cuba

Friday seminar 2:00-4:30 pm

NOTE ROOM CHANGE!

Read Hahnel, Part IV (pp. 251-385); and review Part III

Seminar together on Hahnel in Sem II B1107 (our morning room)

Panel on Alternative Economies and Workshop on Socializing U.S. Society

DUE 1-page report on Day of Presence workshop (in addition to usual seminar paper)


WEEK EIGHT: FEB. 27-MAR. 2 -- CASE STUDY: THE PHILIPPINES

Tuesday Feb. 27, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Guest speakers: Claudia Paras and Katrina Pestano (PINAY sa Seattle)

Inflation (P)

Read BER, Chapter 18

Tuesday seminar 2:00-4:30 pm

Read Grossman, "Inside the Philippine Resistance" (Race & Class;14 MB pdf);

Philippine history primer;

President Fidel Ramos speech (1995);

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo: Paying a High Price (IBON Foundation, 2005)

Wednesday Feb. 28, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Student Pop Ed Workshop on sexual exploitation of Filipinas (Z seminar group)

Paper Revision Workshop (T)

VIEW Golf War and Savage Acts and Tagumpay

DUE Economic Problem Set #3

Friday Mar. 2, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Philippine anti-imperialism, social movements and rebel zones (Z)

Economics Workshop: Money and Finance (P)

Read RW Macro, Chapter 5

Friday seminar 2:00-4:30 pm

Read Walden Bello's The Anti-Development State (67 pp), Chapters Intro, 1, 2, 5; Conclusion

Read E. San Juan on the Arroyo Regime (Monthly Review)

For more on Philippine economy & news, see IBON Foundation and Bulatlat news


WEEK NINE: MAR. 6-9 -- NATURAL RESOURCES & ANTI-CORPORATE MOVEMENTS

Tuesday, Mar. 6, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Water Wars: Global resource politics (Z)

VIEW Thirst

Government and the Macroeconomy (T)

Read BER, Chapter 19

HANDOUT Cumulative Economic Problem Set

Tuesday seminar 2:00-4:30 pm Read Gedicks, Chapters 1-3, 6 (pp 1-122, 181-99)
Wednesday Mar. 7, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Student Pop Ed Workshop on water privatization (Z seminar group)

VIEW Strong Roots, Fragile Farms and Java Jive (Z)

CLASS POTLUCK with Rochelle Gause on Oaxaca 1:00 pm in CAB 110

Friday Mar. 9, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Global Agribusiness [25 MB ppt] (Z)

Washington's Global Apple (T)

VIEW Broken Limbs

Economics Workshop: Unemployment and Inflation (P)

Read RW Macro, Chapter 6

DUE Expanded draft of synthesis paper

Friday seminar 2:00-4:30 pm Read Roy (pp 1-103)




WEEK TEN: MAR. 13-16 -- CASE STUDY: VENEZUELA

Tuesday Mar. 13, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

VIEW The Revolution Will Not Be Televised

The U.S. Economy and Empire (Thomas Herndon)

Read: RW World Macro, (p. 4) and Selection 1.1, (pp. 5-9); Handout

Tuesday seminar 2:00-4:30 pm Read Gott, Introduction, Parts I-IV; Part V Chapter 20, 21 (pp. 1-156)
Wednesday Mar. 14, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Venezuela: the Bolivarian Revolution (P)

Student Pop Ed Workshop (P seminar group) on Venezuelan communcal councils

DUE Cumulative Economic Problem Set

Friday Mar. 16, 10:00 am-1:00 pm

Marxism and Indigenism [19 MB ppt] (Z)

Economics Workshop: Alternatives to Structural Adjustment (P)

Friday seminar 2:00-5:30 pm

NOTE EXTENDED TIME & ROOM CHANGE!

Read Gott, Parts V & VI, Epilogue (pp 143-291); Handout: Michael Lebowitz, Chapter 7, "The Revolution of Radical Needs," in Build It Now (pp. 85-118); critiques of Venezuelan model

For more on Venezuelan economy & news, see Venezuela Analysis

We will be in our usual seminar rooms 2:00-3:20, then End-of-program POTLUCK & FILM (with cultural segment) at 3:30-5:30 pm in Sem II A1105



EVALUATION WEEK: MARCH 19-23, 2007

Guest speaker: Delia Aguilar (co-author /editor of Women and Globalization), on "Feminism and the Denial of Empire," Sem II D1105, 7-9 pm


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Made by: Zoltán Grossman grossmaz@evergreen.edu

Last modified: 4/2/2007