This course critically examines health status and health care disparities among racial/ethnic minority groups in the United States. We will review the complex relationship between social class (socioeconomic status) and health status, the effect of race/ethnicity on health outcomes and access to healthcare, and specific health issues for major racial/ethnic minority groups in the U.S. The topics include conceptual issues central to understanding how low socioeconomic status leads to poor health, understanding how conscious, unconscious, and institutionalized racial bias affects medical care and health outcomes, and addressing ideas for reducing health disparities among racial/ethnic minorities. Jiwon Jeon, Ph.D. The University of Texas at Austin View Syllabus
Hip Hop: Art, Culture, and Politics
Professor Sarah Hentges University of Maine at Augusta College of Arts & Sciences Hip Hop is an umbrella term for art, music, dance, literature, identity, style and politics. We will begin to understand the art, culture, and politics of Hip Hop by looking at the movements and politics that inspired the birth of Hip Hop as a form of art and music. We will consider the art and aesthetics of Hip Hop and the musical styles that made Hip Hop music possible. Students will create a piece of art or music inspired by Hip Hop. The ways in which Hip Hop speaks to youth and speaks about oppression, violence, identity, culture, and power will also be considered. We will then explore Hip Hop as a form of cultural politics and activism toward social justice. Students will create art or music toward Hip Hop inspired social justice. Finally, we‘ll consider the…
Introduction to LGBTQ Studies
This course will provide an introduction into Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ) Studies. Considering LBGTQ Studies as an interdisciplinary field using humanities text-based critical analysis, this course will focus on how the central concepts of sexual orientation and gender identity work within history, politics, literature, technology, art, music, philosophy, and literature. Throughout this course, students will work towards a deep understanding of the intersectional dynamics of privilege and oppression as they relate to LGBTQ individuals and culture by exploring the lived experiences of LGBTQ individuals and their partners/families. Critically read, discuss, analyze, and write about the assigned readings and central course themes. A key part of this process will be the application of course concepts to current cultural conversations and, potentially, students’ lived experiences. Build both a specific and general knowledge of the history and current dialogues regarding LGBTQ issues across multiple disciplines and across multiple forms of…
DISCRIMINATION AND FAIR HOUSING
“A multidisciplinary investigation into the nature, motivations, consequences, and legal/public policy implications of racial/ethnic discrimination in housing and related markets (mortgage, insurance) in US metropolitan areas.” The course will explore the following questions regarding racial/ethnic discrimination in housing and related markets (“discrimination” hereafter): What constitutes illegal discrimination? How does one know when it is occurring? What motivates those who discriminate? How often does discrimination occur? What are the individual and societal consequences of discrimination? What are the strengths and weaknesses of various legal and public policy strategies for ending discrimination? Though discrimination on the basis of race/ethnicity will be the primary focus of the course, other fair housing topics will be presented. Dr. George Galster View syllabus
African American Multigenerational Trauma & Issues of Violence
This course focuses on the suffering and traumas associated with the African experience in America inclusive of the periods of capture, transport, enslavement, emancipation leading up to current times. Multigenerational patterns of adaptive behaviors passed along through generations will be explored with an emphasis on assessment and interventions using evidence based, culture specific, and social justice models. The course will provide practical tools that will inform practice and empower individuals, families, groups, organizations and communities throughout the change process. Dr. Joy Degruy Portland State University View Syllabus
Race, Crime, and Criminal Justice
This course offers an examination of race in the context of the American criminal justice system. Emphasis is placed on the treatment of racial minorities as victims and offenders by law enforcement, courts, and corrections. Dr. Thomas Alexander University of Maryland, College Park View syllabus
Freedom Dreams Syllabus
By Alice Kim Prison + Neighborhood Arts Project, Stateville Prison This course explores the freedom dreams of political thinkers, artists, writers, activists and ordinary people in the US and beyond. We will engage with multiple genres (personal narrative, graphic memoir, poetry, speeches) to explore the meaning of freedom. Using an intersectional lens, we will consider the ways in which race, class, gender, and historical/social/cultural context impact our understanding and dreams of freedom. We will also explore the power of imagination to transform individuals, communities, and society.
The African Diaspora in the Americas: Constructing Identity
The syllabus is a conceptual and thematic exploration of the forces that have shaped African-Diasporic identities and communities in the Americas and parts of Western Europe after Emancipation and during the 20th century. The comparative approach that the course adopts also exposes students to common issues that descendants of enslaved Africans in various parts of the Americas and Western Europe have confronted in their attempts to construct Africa-Diasporic identities. Students will leave the course with a deeper appreciation of the commonalities and divergences between various African-Diasporic populations in the Americas and Western Europe today. Professor Linda Heywood Boston University Read More
Black Panther Film Movie Companion for Middle Grades
This curriculum is designed for students who are seeing Black Panther, as a means to having them engage more critically and thoughtfully with the film. The curriculum assumes that students, like mine, have previous experience of studying the African continent, its diversity and colonialism. Tess Raser Grades: 5th-8th (works for high school too) View Syllabus
Introduction to African American History
This course examines the history, legacy, and controversy of the Black Panther Party (1966- 1982). Founded as the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense in October 1966 by radical college students Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale, the Black Panther Party (BPP) became one of the most popular and infamous Black Power era organizations. The Black Panthers’ combination of militant rhetoric and paramilitary accouterments (which included black berets, leather jackets, guns, rifles, and at times bandoliers) turned the group in modern revolutionaries engaged in a quest for black liberation by any means necessary. Dr. Peniel E. Joseph Read More