Race and Politics
Day & Time: Tuesday, 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
The study of both race and politics are fraught with preconceived notions, assumptions, and anecdotal evidence supporting personal views. In this course we will learn how race is studied by scholars, organizers, and activists who not only submit their preconceived notions to the test of scientific scrutiny, but who also engage issues of race, power, domination, and society as a matter of grave importance.
The purpose of this course is to understand race and it’s study from a social scientific perspective, and to understand the ways that identity politics are integral to our interpretation and understanding of the American political sphere broadly. Our class will work under the assumption that students have little to no prerequisite methodological training. While our readings use multiple methodologies between them, the course provides room for students to learn how to interpret data and theoretical arguments without sacrificing their ability to understand the substance of each text.
Students will have an opportunity to introduce alternative texts that help diversify our conversations.
Marcus Board Jr.
Marcus Board Jr., Ph.D. is an Associate Professor of Political Science at Howard University in Washington D.C. and author of Invisible Weapons (Oxford 2022). His research engages social movements, radical Black feminist theories of power, and public opinion. Marcus’ community work has grown over the past twenty years, building politically and personally connected communities while advocating for youth empowerment, abolition, and systemic accountability.
