POLITICAL
SCIENCE 334:
THE POLITICS OF RACE, ETHNICITY AND INEQUALITY
Gary Klass
gmklass@ilstu.edu
Spring,
2004
Since its founding, no set of political
issues has more bedeviled the American political system than those having to do
with race and ethnicity. The nation’s founders devised a political system that
has done a pretty good job of addressing conflicts arising from ideological,
geographic, religious and class differences, but the institutions they created have
been largely inept when it comes to dealing with the persistent inequalities
related to race and ethnicity. Social policy problems related to education,
crime, and welfare, that might otherwise find resolution, often prove
unsolvable to the extent race and ethnicity enter into the debates.
Whether or not the nation can and if it can, how, begin to solve these problems
are the fundamental questions of this course.
At it simplest level, much of the debate
over race in the US is between those who see racism as the fundamental cause of
America's social ills and those who blame these problems on the behavior and
lifestyle of the disadvantaged themselves. Starting with either of these
first two premises -- and in some cases, compromises between the two premises
-- those how have studied and written on race in America have developed a wide
range of competing theories, and agendas.
In this course we will read many of these
books, analyze and critique them. We will read the books in part for the
knowledge and information they might contain, but mostly to gain an
understanding of the diversity of thinking about these matters. An important
objective of this course is for the students to develop an ability to
communicate their own ideas and insights about these most controversial of
subjects. This involves more than formulating ideas and putting them on paper;
it involves finding an audience, exposing one's ideas, evidence, and logic to
others and anticipating, and responding to, their reactions. In this regard,
this course will be different.
Perhaps unlike many other courses related to
race, ethnicity and social inequality, there will be no attempt to impose any
doctrine, perspective or ideology on this course (although even saying that
might do so), other than that we ought to adhere to common standards of free
and open inquiry. The books themselves have been chosen to reflect a very broad
spectrum of thought and ideology. The authors, the other students in the class,
and, perhaps, the instructor will, no doubt, express views with which you will
disagree. This should be appreciated: you will never learn much from people you
agree with. Our discussions will be guided by one general rule:
We
are all students trying to learn; it is just as important not to take offense as
it is not to offend.
Course Objectives:
Due Dates, Requirements and Grades.
Each (undergraduate) student will be
assigned to read four of the books (one from each of the four sections of the
course), to summarize the work in class, and to submit a review of each book to
the discussion list. Each reviewer will be asked to summarize and discuss the
assigned book one week prior to the date the review is due. The reviews should
be approximately 1,500 words in length. The reviews and in-class summaries will
comprise 80% of the final grade. Note that the class presentation on each book
is a part of the grade for that review. Reviews will not receive a grade higher
than a B if a) it is submitted late, or b) if the reviewer cannot adequately
summarize the book the prior week. Each review will be evaluated based on the
"Summary Grade sheet" standards.
In addition, each student will be expected
to read, but not review, one additional book from the list. For that
book, you are expected to post discussion comments to the list.
Class participation, both oral in-class participation
in class and on the discussion list, will comprise 10 percent of the grade.
This will include at least two well-thought-out messages to the discussion list
commenting on other reviews that have been posted. At least one of these must
be posted before the semester break.
Participation on the discussion list, in the
form of "commentaries" submitted to the list will require some
reading of, or reading-about, the other books on the list. Such commentaries
should consist of serious analysis of the book or the review under discussion.
At all times avoid sending quick, short, and immediate responses to reviews and
commentaries to the list.
For your first book review (only), a draft
copy must be sent to the instructor by January 28th. You are welcome to
send draft copies of your other reviews to the instructor and to each other at
any time, but please do so sufficiently in advance of the due date to receive
comments back. Not paying
attention to comments made on your draft is a big mistake.
A final take-home examination on the course
subject matter (minimum 2,000 words in length) will comprise 10% of the grade.
This will be sent to the instructor (but not the discussion list] by May 1. The
examination is intended to assess how well you grasp the ideas presented in all
of the books, particularly those you have not reviewed and to develop and
summative and integrative interpretations of many different works.
In the class schedule below, two books are
assigned each week. The dates in the schedule below are the class
presentations; the review must be posted to the discussion list the following
Tuesday at midnight (Thus, the first book will be discussed on February 3, and
the second on February 5; both reviews must be posted by February 10,
midnight).
Late reviews sent out within one week of
the due date will not receive a grade higher than a B. Later than that,
the reviews should not be sent out on the discussion list, and you will receive
a 20% grade reduction.
Graduate Students will be required to do a
background research assignment early in the semester. (see below).
Attendance:
Attendance for this course is mandatory.
Do not enroll in the course if you anticipate problems attending
class. Each absence will be penalized 1% of the grade (10% of the
participation grade). The first two of these penalties will be waived by
completing a background research assignment on one of the other books assigned
in the course.
Background research assignments.
These assignments involve background
research -- assigned by the instructor -- on some of the books we will be
reading. Typically they will involve summarizing published book reviews
and a particular issue that one of the books addresses. Approximately 600
words; emailed to the list of class email addresses; due the Sunday before the
book is to be discussed in class.
Class format:
Once we get into the book review schedule,
each class will be primarily devoted to a discussion of one of the two books to
be reviewed the next week. These discussions will be led by the students doing
those reviews.
An unusual feature of this course involves
the use of an Internet electronic mail discussion list, POS334-L . Each
student's work will be distributed on the POS334-L list to over two hundred
faculty and students across the world, some of whom will be submitting their
own writings and commentaries on each other's writings. The purpose is both to
provide an external audience for the students' ideas and to bring ideas from
the outside into the class. In effect, your writing will be on public display.
Course Schedule:
I. Introduction: (WEEKS 1-3).
The first two weeks will address general
principles of writing book reviews, an introduction to the major value
conflicts and issues concerning race and ethnicity, and some demonstration of
the use of electronic mail and discussion lists. We will examine and evaluate
previously-published book reviews, including those sent to the POS334-L
discussion list.
The following readings (available on-line)
will be discussed on Tuesday, January 20th:
Robert Jensen, "Unearned Privilege: White people
need to acknowledge benefits of unearned privilege."
Walter Williams, "Affirmative Action
Can't Be Mended"
II. BOOK REVIEW SCHEDULE:
{Note: Each student will be assigned one book from each section to review.}
Section
I:
Steele, Shelby. The Content of Our Character
(1991)
Bell, Derrick. And We are not Saved (1989)
Feagin, Joe R. Racist America: Roots, Current Realities
& Future Opportunities (2000)
McWhorter, John H. Losing the Race: Self-Sabotage in Black America
(2001)
Section II
Feb 17:
Diversity
Wood, Peter, Diversity: The Invention of a
Concept (2003)
Tusmith, Bonnie and Maureen T. Reedy (eds.) Race in the College
Classroom: Pedagogy and Politics (2003)
Feb
24: Two books, no theme
D'Souza, Dinesh. What's So Great About America (2002)
Kelley, Robin D. G. George Lipsitz, Race Rebels: Culture, Politics,
and the Black Working Class (1996)
Mar 2: Two
calls for color blindness
Wilson, William Julius. The Bridge over
the Racial Divide (1999)
Rodriguez, Richard. Hunger of Memory (1983)
Section III
Mar 16:
Education
Kozol, Jonathan. Savage
Inequalities: Children in America's Schools (1992)
Thernstrom, Stephan and Abigail. No
Excuses: Closing the Racial Gap in Learning (2003)
Mar 23: Race and Politics
Swain, Carol. Black Faces, Black
Interests: The Representation of African Americans in Congress (1995)
Yarbrough, Tinsley E, Race
and Redistricting: The Shaw Cromartie Cases (2002)
Mar 30: Two
Supreme Court cases on Affirmative Action.
Ball, Howard. The Bakke Case; (2000)
Urofsky, Melvin I. Affirmative Action On Trial (1997)
Section IV
Apr 6:
Beyond Black and White
Rodriquez, Richard. Brown: The Last
Discovery of America (2002)
Wu, Frank H. Yellow: Race in America, Beyond Black and White (2002)
Apr 13:
Indians.
Deloria, Vine. Red Earth, White Lies (1997)
Bordewich, Fergus. Killing the White Man's Indian (1996)
Apr 20:
Public Opinion
Sniderman, Paul M. and Thomas Piazza. The
Scar of Race (1993)
Smith, Robert C. and Richard Seltzer. Contemporary Controversies and
the American Racial Divide (2000)