PAM 3370 - Race and Public Policy

(crosslisted) SOC 3370
(D-HE, HA-HE, SBA-HE)

Fall. 3 credits. Student option grading.

S. Sassler.

This course provides an overview of perspectives used in social scientific studies of race and ethnicity in the United States. We will explore how these perspectives have shaped American public policies regarding equity, equality, and citizenship, interrogating the centrality of white privilege in structuring outcomes. Section I reviews theories on race/ethnic relations and addresses issues related to the social construction of race, racial identities, and the impact of immigration on racial dynamics. This section explores the demography of race. The second part of the course examines how racial differences have been institutionalized in the United States and addresses the goals of major policies designed to redress racial/ethnic discrimination, and their challenges, in housing, education, and employment and wealth. Through this course students will gain a better understanding of how race has been institutionalized in American society via public policies that differentially impact the well-being of individuals in the U.S.

Outcome 1: Describe how race has historically been defined in the United States, and how racial and ethnic classifications have changed over time. Assess how racial hierarchies have changed/are changing, and how discrimination is measured.

Outcome 2: Understand public policies designed to redress racial inequalities, why such policies have changed over time, and determine whether the evidence continues to support the need for such programs.

Outcome 3: Analyze current public policies designed to measure race, address racial inequality, assess targets of opportunity for policy change that might better address the demographic reality of particular groups.