ASRC 6310 - Engaging NYC: Oral History and Ethnography

Spring. 4 credits.

Co-meets with ASRC 4310.

O. LaBennett.

This engaged-learning course offers students a unique chance to gain valuable experience collaborating with a social justice organization in New York City. The class will impart proficiency in the research methods used by ethnographers and oral historians studying urban communities of color. Students will work with community partners to conceptualize real-world solutions to the problems community members are experiencing. We will address questions including: How can we use anthropology and oral history to influence public policies on education, housing, police practices and income inequality? How do differences in positionality (i.e. race, class, gender, age) between the interviewer and the interviewee affect the production of ethnography and oral history? The course will include travel to New York City and will require a significant commitment to engaged-learning.