Class

Course Description | Syllabus

Course Description

Lecturer: Sherman Teichman Course: EXP 91F T/Th, 4:00-6:00pm, Tisch 316 2000-2001 (2 semesters)

In an era of mass migrations, ethnic cleansing and discrimination, EPIIC will confront the contentious transnational constructs and realities of race and ethnicity. What are their theories and histories? What are the vexing ethical and biological issues? How do identity formation (race, ethnicity, class, nationalism, gender), citizenship, political participation, power relationships, and nation-state consolidation affect public policy and inter- and intra-group interactions? We will probe meanings and manipulations of the politics of recognition, of culture and identity, and consider the principles and the practice of justice. Against the backdrop of historical and contemporary stratification, segregation, discrimination, oppression, and xenophobia -- in Bosnia, Chiapas, China, Fiji, Germany, Lebanon, Nigeria, South Africa, the U.S. and beyond -- we will study the political and psychological factors in racial and ethnic conflict. This will include a global comparative look at such issues as affirmative action in such countries as India, Sri Lanka, South Africa, and the United States. And, we will investigate peacemaking in multiethnic societies, strategies of inter-racial and inter-ethnic coalition building and means of transforming cultures of intolerance.

THE EPIIC COLLOQUIUM As the preparatory class for EPIIC's annual international symposium, the colloquium offers the unique opportunity of fusing serious academic coursework with the planning and enactment of the symposium, simulations, professional workshops, and special events. EPIIC enables students to produce tangible, intellectual products such as CD-Roms and the opportunity to mentor high school students in Inquiry. EPIIC's approach affords students both a broad, multidisciplinary survey of an expansive topic and opportunities for in-depth, independent research. Throughout the two-semester course, students are exposed to diverse perspectives, regularly discoursing with authors of required readings and other eminent thinkers and practitioners. Students also can utilize EPIIC as a platform to pursue senior honors theses and to conduct original field research. Over the last few years, students have traveled to Australia, Bosnia, Chiapas, China, Costa Rica, Egypt, France, The Hague, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Jerusalem, Lebanon, Nepal, Nigeria, Northern Ireland, South Africa, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates.

Syllabus

Texts, in part and in whole, required and recommended, for the fall and spring semesters include:

• The Mismeasure of Man (revised edition), Stephen Jay Gould
• The Skull Measurer's Mistake: and Other Portraits of Men and Women Who Spoke Out Against Racism, Sven Lindquist (ed.)
• French Hospitality: Racism and North African Immigrants, Tahar Ben Jelloun
• Minorities At Risk: A Global View of Ethno-Political Conflict, Ted Robert Gurr
• Multiculturalism: Examining the Politics of Recognition, Charles Taylor (ed.)
• Making Race and Nation: A Comparison of South Africa, the United States, and Brazil, Anthony Marx
• Scattered Belongings: Cultural Paradoxes of Race: Nation, and Gender, Jayne O. Ifekwunigwe
• The Comparative Imagination: On History of Racism, Nationalism, and Social Movements, George Frederickson
• Power and Prejudice: The Politics of Diplomacy of Racial Discrimination, Paul Gordon Lauren
• Against Race: Imagining Political Culture Beyond the Color Line, Paul Gilroy
• Ethnicity and Race: Making Identities in a Changing World, Stephen Cornell and Douglas Hartmann
• Race and Ethnicity in Comparative Perspective, Georgia Persons, The National Political Science Review, Volume 7
• Harvest of Empire: A History of Latinos in America, Juan Gonzalez
• Conflict and Peacemaking in Multiethnic Societies, Joseph Montville, Editor
• Riots and Pogroms, Paul Brass, Editor
• Beyond Racism: Embracing an Interdependent Future -- Brazil, South Africa, The United States
  • Overview Report
  • Three Nations at the Crossroads
  • In Their Own Voices
  • Color Collage

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