Fall 2024 Courses

Instructor: N. Fadeke Castor

CRN: 21731

Days, Time: TF 1:35 pm – 3:15 pm

Description:

Explores several of the possible historical, sociological, cultural, and political avenues of study in the broad interdisciplinary spectrum of African-American studies. Provides an introductory overview of the field and offers an opportunity to identify areas for more specific focus.

Instructor: Margot Abels

CRN: 21741

Days, Time: TF 1:35 pm – 3:15 pm

Description:

Examines the basic tenets of “scientific objectivity” and foundational scientific ideas about race, sex, and gender and what these have meant for marginalized groups in society, particularly when they seek medical care. Introduces feminist science theories and contemporary as well as historical examples to trace the evolution of “scientific truth” and its impact on the U.S. cultural landscape. Offers students the opportunity to question assumptions about science and view the scientific process as a site for critical analysis.

Instructor: TBD

CRN: 21870

Days, Time: MWR 10:30 am – 11:35 am

Description:

Focuses on the social construction of race and ethnicity and the nature of dominant/minority relations in the United States. Emphasizes the peculiar evolution of race relations in U.S. history, the political and economic conditions that have transformed race relations, and the nature of contemporary racial and ethnic relations in the United States. Topics include immigration, ethnic and racial identity, discrimination, and race-based policies (e.g., residential restrictive codes, Jim Crow segregation). Offers students an opportunity to develop a critical lens from which to observe and interpret contemporary debates over structural racism.

Instructor: Alanna Prince

CRN: 20633

Days, Time: MW 2:50 pm – 4:30 pm

Description:

Surveys the development and range of black American writers, emphasizing poetry and prose from early colonial times to the Civil War. ENGL 2296 and AFM 2296 are cross-listed.

Instructor: Régine Jean-Charles

CRN: 20634

Days, Time: MR 11:45 am – 1:25 pm

Description:

Invites students to study the history and contemporary landscape of Black feminist scholarship. Covers a range of disciplines and historical periods to introduce students to important texts and theoretical developments in this vast and interdisciplinary field.

Instructor: Layla Brown

CRN: 17912

Days, Time: TF 1:35 pm – 3:15 pm

Description:

Introduces the history of Afro-Latin America and of Black identities particular to this region. Frameworks such as transnational migration and diaspora provide an entry to the specific histories of African-descended people in the countries in the region known as Latin America and contemporary interpretations and revisions of that history. Covers topics including the history of slavery in the Americas; the Haitian Revolution; debates about “racial democracy”; and the relationship between gender, race, and empire. Explores the relationship between scholarship and struggle, social analysis, and social transformation.

Instructor: Matthew Lee

CRN: 21506

Days, Time: MW 2:50 pm – 4:30 pm

Description: Examines racism, racial identity, and theories of social change and racial empowerment primarily
within the U.S. context. Highlights different ways in which racism and racial privilege have been experienced by different racial communities, more specifically at the micro-, meso-, and macro-levels. Offers students an opportunity to learn ways to promote racial empowerment and equity. Using theory from primarily psychology and sociology, the course investigates the impact of social systems and institutions on individual-level and group experiences of racism. Investigates students’ own racial identities, a deeper understanding of institutional inequalities and intersectionality, and practical skills in leadership and community building that can promote positive social change and racial equality. Cross-listed with SOCL and HUSV 2355.

Instructor: Patrice Collins

CRN: 20636

Days, Time: TF 3:25 pm – 5:05 pm

Description: Focuses on how the Black family functions, both interpersonally and as a social unit within a carceral state. Introduces the diverse institutional, cultural, and historical issues relating to past and present circumstances from the effects of slavery and colonization on the Black family structure. Explores policies and practices within carceral institutions dealing with childhood, motherhood, and fatherhood. Assesses the social and psychological harms of incarceration on Black children and their families.

Instructor: Anjanette Chan Tack

CRN: 20637

Days, Time: MR 11:45 am – 1:25 pm

Description:

Examines the comparative racialization of Blacks and Asians in the Americas and relations between these communities. Introduces sociological theories of race/ethnicity, a chronology of Afro-Asian relations in the United States, and the impact of 1970s deindustrialization and post–1965 Asian immigration. Covers the internationalism of Black and Asian leaders (e.g., W.E.B. du Bois and Mao Tse-Tung) in the developing nations and the overlapping Civil Rights, Black Power, and Asian American movements. Cross-listed with SOCL 4526.

• AFCS 1101 – Introduction to African American and Africana Studies

• AFCS 2296 – Early African American Literature
• AFCS 2337 – African American History Before 1900
• AFRS 3900 – Gender and Black World Literatures

• AFCS 2355 – Race, Identity, Social Change, and Empowerment
• AFCS 4526 – Afro-Asian Relations in the Americas
• AFCS 2330 – Afro-Latin American Studies
• AFRS 1270 – Introduction to Global Health
• AFRS 2325 – Black Feminist Studies
• AFRS 3305 – Beyond the Binary: Race, Sex, and Science
• AFRS 3424 – Epidemiology of Pandemic Diseases & Health Disparities in the African Diaspora

All courses listed.