Perspectives on Racial Inequality

Perspectives on Racial Inequality SOC 695/CRJS 695 Dr. Roderick Graham Wednesday, 4:20 – 7:00, BAL 2060 Dr. Roderick Graham Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice BAL 6012 Office Hours: Monday and Wednesday 1:00 – 2:30, and by appointment rgraham@odu.edu Course Description The question guiding this class is: Why, in 21st Century United States, are there still different social outcomes for the descendants of American slaves and descendants of European Immigrants? There are four broad answers: • African Americans in the United States must navigate institutions and informal social milieus that are discriminatory or prejudiced against them. This creates an uneven playing field, or one might say “the game is rigged” in favor of White people. We can call this the structural inequality perspective. • Whites hold prejudices and stereotypes towards racial minorities. Because Whites occupy positions of authority and control resources in society, their antipathy blocks the progress of African Americans. This can be called the white bias perspective. • A capitalistic society requires an emphasis on educational development, adherence to social norms and the law, and frugality. The behaviors of African Americans make them noncompetitive in a capitalist society. This can be termed the cultural deficit perspective. • People of European descent and people of African descent possess different genetic makeups. In a modern capitalistic society, intelligence is a strong predictor of success and African Americans lack the intelligence necessary to compete with Whites. This can be called the biological deficit perspective. The course has a major focus on black-white inequality. Theoretically, scholars have reasoned that understanding racial inequality through the historical black-white lens is a key to understanding present and future phenomena with other racial groups. However, several readings explore racial inequality more broadly. Moreover, students will have the opportunity during class discussions and in their final paper to address other racial and ethnic groups. 1 Course Outcomes Students will be able to… • Define the common concepts and ideas in the study of race and ethnicity • Demonstrate their mastery of a given topic or idea through classroom discussions • Relate or apply a given writing to their everyday lives • Summarize and compare different explanations for racial inequality • Evaluate different explanations for racial inequality, and choose the explanation (or combination of explanations) that they believe is best supported by their experiences and understanding of research The Challenges The first meeting will be devoted to setting the context and expectations for the course. The assignments will be discussed, and everyone will get to know each other. In the first meeting, and periodically during the semester as needed, these challenges will be discussed: • Trying to find the happy medium between free speech and potentially offensive speech – Learning occurs when people grapple with different ideas and concepts. It is important that students who want to verbalize an opinion that is not popular be allowed to do so (valuing free speech). It is equally important that the unpopular opinion be expressed in a respectful way (avoiding offensive speech). • Acknowledging our own biases (alternatively, knowing that “reason is a slave to the passions”) – There may be an assumption that “facts are facts” and if we can uncover them the truth will reveal itself. This is a problematic view. Facts are indeed facts and often social science can give us a glimpse into the reality of nature or provide clues for the most effective social policy. Unfortunately, the facts we choose to uncover, and how we interpret those facts are contingent upon our self-interests. • Disengaging in the face of difference – There is a tendency to demonize and dismiss a person if they vocalize different opinions than you. This works on television, as a person can be reduced to an adjective “she is a racist”, “she is a socialist” or made fun of as being ignorant. But in an academic setting, one should do the opposite – they should try and learn more about the person’s opinion! 2 Course Materials There is one main text for this class, supplemented by a series of materials including research articles, book chapters, op-ed pieces, and podcast episodes. Main Text (Required) • Caliendo, Stephen M. and Charlton D. Mcllwain. 2011. The Routledge Companion to Race and Ethnicity. Routledge: New York, NY. Additional Materials (in order of use in class) 1. “Conflating Apples and Oranges: Understanding Modern Forms of Racism”, by W. Carson Byrd 2. “Racist Nativism in the 21st Century”, by Cameron D. Lippard 3. White Fragility - Chapter 5 - “The Good/Bad Binary”, Chapter 6 – “Anti-Blackness”, and Chapter 7 – “Racial Triggers for White People”, by Robin DiAngelo 4. “‘Because they tip for shit!’: The Social Psychology of Everyday Racism in Restaurants”, by Sarah E. Rusche and Zachary W. Brewster 5. “Racism in Toyland”, by Christine L. Williams 6. “Stealing a Bag of Potato Chips and Other Crimes of Resistance”, by Victor M. Rios 7. Please Stop Helping Us, Chapter 2 – “Culture Matters”, Chapter 3 – “The Enemy Within”, by Jason Riley 8. “Culture and Achievement: Families Shape Their Children’s Prospects More Profoundly Than Anything Government Can Do”, in City Journal, by Kay Hymowitz 9. “Why Milwaukee Burns: Black Social Breakdown and Anti-Cop Ideology put Another American City to the Torch”, in City Journal, by Heather Mac Donald 10. “Conservatives, Black Lives Matter, Racism”, a conversation between Larry Elder and Dave Rubin, https://youtu.be/IFqVNPwsLNo 11. Race, Evolution and Intelligence, a conversation between Linda Gottfredson and Stefan Molyneux https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZPsXYo7gpc 12. “How Stifling Debate Around Race, Genes and IQ Can Do Harm”, by Noah Carl 13. “How Structural Racism Works”, a talk given by Tricia Rose – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KT1vsOJctMk 14. “How Racism Makes Us Sick”, a Ted talk given by David R. Williams https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VzyjDR_AWzE 3 15. Selections from “Racist America”, “Ch. 1: Systemic Racism, A Comprehensive Perspective”, “Ch.7: Systemic Racism, Other Americans of Color”, by Joe Feagin 16. The Case for Reparations”, in The Atlantic, by Ta-Nehisi Coates 17. “The Other America”, speech given by Dr. Martin Luther King in 1967 Assignments Assignment Reading Takeaways Student Led Discussions Final Paper In-Class Participation Number ~ 11 2 1 --- Percentage 50% 20% 20% 10% Reading Takeaways At the beginning of each class, students will submit a typed copy of a takeaway (about 1 page) from the assigned readings. They will then discuss these takeaways in class. These takeaways are personal reflections and do not need to follow a standard format. However, consider answering one or more of these questions: • What are your initial reactions to the materials? What were your first thoughts after taking in the material? How did you feel? • What did you learn? Can you summarize the general ideas in the materials? Were there some ideas or concepts presented that you were newly exposed to? • How did the material integrate with your own life? - We are talking about race and racial dynamics in this class. Everyone is assigned by society and/or identifies with a racial group. Every discussion we have in class will in some degree be useful in your life. The question will be...do you want to write about it? • What questions do you have after reading the material? - The discussions we have in this class are meant to stimulate your thinking about racial inequality. We cover a wide range of issues, and we sacrifice depth for breadth. You can reflect and think of other questions that needed to be asked during class time but weren’t. 4 Student Led Conversation Twice during the semester, students will lead a 10 to 15-minute discussion on a topic chosen from Part II of the main text. The purpose of the assignment is to introduce the topic to their peers, put the topic in context, and then ask questions to generate a conversation between the speaker and the audience. For example, a student may decide to talk about “Eugenics”, found on pages 138 – 141 in The Routledge Companion. The student will start by explaining that eugenics is, and why it is important to the study of racial inequality. The student will then field questions from their peers. In-Class Participation Students are expected to contribute to the dialogue in class with informed comments. Students are expected to read/view/watch the materials before class and be prepared to give their impressions. Final Paper Student will write a final paper of approximately 10 double-spaced pages that answers this question: “Why, in 21st Century United States, are there still different social outcomes for the descendants of African slaves [or another minority group] and descendants of European Immigrants?” Student Obligations • If you have a disability or medical condition, which may affect your performance in class, you need to speak to me as soon as possible. Students with disabilities must self-advocate. You will need to provide recent, appropriate documentation, which verifies the need for reasonable academic accommodation. • Student athletes must provide written verification of your absences in class from your coach. Late notice of absences will not be accepted. • Students are expected to adhere to the Student Code of Conduct as expressed in your College Student Handbook. In particular, you are expected to engage in the course work with integrity and honesty. Students found in violation of integrity and honesty in this class will earn a zero for the assignment and sent through the judicial system for further punishment. 5 Tentative Course Schedule • 1 Aug. 28th 2 Sep. 4th 3 Sep. 11th 4 Sep. 18 th 5 Sep 25th 6 nd • • • • • • • • • • • Oct. 2 • 7 Oct. 9th 8 Oct. 16th • • • • 9 Oct. 23rd • • • 10 Oct 30th 11 th • • Nov. 6 • Readings and Activities (Read Before Class) Unit I - Foundations “Conflating Apples and Oranges: Understanding Modern Forms of Racism”, by W. Carson Byrd “Racist Nativism in the 21st Century”, by Cameron D. Lippard The Routledge Companion – Ch.1, “Origins of the Concept of Race” The Routledge Companion – Ch. 2, “Ethnicity” The Routledge Companion – Ch. 3, “Whiteness” The Routledge Companion – Ch. 4, “Colonialism/Postcolonialism” The Routledge Companion – Ch.5, “Race, Politics, and Public Policy” The Routledge Companion – Ch.7, “Motivations, Immigration and the Immigrant” The Routledge Companion – Ch.8, “Race, Gender, and Sexuality” The Routledge Companion – Ch. 9, “Race, Media and Popular Culture” The Routledge Companion – Ch.10, “Race, Ethnicity, and Globalization” [Student Led Conversation] Unit II - Bias White Fragility - Chapter 5 - “The Good/Bad Binary”, Chapter 6 – “AntiBlackness”, and Chapter 7 – “Racial Triggers for White People”, by Robin DiAngelo “‘Because they tip for shit!’: The Social Psychology of Everyday Racism in Restaurants”, by Sarah E. Rusche and Zachary W. Brewster “Racism in Toyland”, by Christine L. Williams “Stealing a Bag of Potato Chips and Other Crimes of Resistance”, by Victor M. Rios Unit III - Culture Please Stop Helping Us, Chapter 2 – “Culture Matters”, Chapter 3 – “The Enemy Within”, by Jason Riley “Culture and Achievement: Families Shape Their Children’s Prospects More Profoundly Than Anything Government Can Do”, in City Journal, by Kay Hymowitz “Why Milwaukee Burns: Black Social Breakdown and Anti-Cop Ideology put Another American City to the Torch”, in City Journal, by Heather Mac Donald “Conservatives, Black Lives Matter, Racism”, a conversation between Larry Elder and Dave Rubin, https://youtu.be/IFqVNPwsLNo Unit IV – Biology Race, Evolution and Intelligence, a conversation between Linda Gottfredson and Stefan Molyneux - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZPsXYo7gpc “How Stifling Debate Around Race, Genes and IQ Can Do Harm”, by Noah Carl Unit V - Structure “How Structural Racism Works”, a talk given by Tricia Rose – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KT1vsOJctMk “How Racism Makes Us Sick”, a Ted talk given by David R. Williams 6 12 Nov. 13th 13 Nov. 20th 14 Dec. 4th Dec 9th https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VzyjDR_AWzE • Selections from “Racist America”, “Ch. 1: Systemic Racism, A Comprehensive Perspective”, “Ch.7: Systemic Racism, Other Americans of Color”, by Joe Feagin • “The Case for Reparations”, in The Atlantic, by Ta-Nehisi Coates • “The Other America”, speech given by Dr. Martin Luther King in 1967 [Student Led Conversation] Final Papers Due 7