Interdisciplinary survey of people of African descent that draws on the overlapping approaches of history, literature, anthropology, legal studies, media studies, performance, linguistics, and creative writing. This course connects the experiences of African-Americans and of other American minorities, focusing on social, political, and cultural histories, and on linguistic patterns.

An introduction to the cross-cultural study of ethnic and national identity. We examine the concept of social identity, and consider the ways in which gendered, linguistic, religious, and ethno-racial identity components interact. We explore the history of nationalism, including the emergence of the idea of the nation-state, as well as ethnic conflict, globalization, identity politics, and human rights.

This course analyzes theories of gender and politics, especially ideologies of gender and their construction. Also discussed are definitions of public and private spheres, gender issues in citizenship, the development of the welfare state, experiences of war and revolution, class formation, and the politics of sexuality.
Graduate students are expected to pursue the subject in greater depth through reading and individual research.

Within this series of lessons, students will explore these essential questions:
What basic human necessities are needed to thrive in society?
How do we measure wealth?
How to move from oppression to resiliency?
How to move from oppression to social change?
Students will examine the extent to which people pass judgment, discriminate and violate human rights in communities of color and to what extent these same communities remain resilient. Students will learn and apply their knowledge of non-violent communication to increase self awareness, school and career readiness skills in the social-emotional domain, and develop an understanding about their bio-reactions. Students will research and analyze strengths and challenges within their community. They will then identify a need and develop action steps to meet that need. We will move our instruction from broad to personal perspectives of understanding the conditions in the larger world as well as their own. By moving from the global/community perspective into the relational/historical experience and end with their personal perspective, students will develop a deeper understanding and appreciation of themselves within time and space.

During the fall of 2017, art educator B. Stephen Carpenter II began a residency at the MIT Center for Art, Science & Technology (CAST). He provided new perspectives on issues of access, privilege, and the global water crisis through a series of seminars, performances, and workshops. Carpenter’s seminars illustrated ways of disrupting systems of oppression and ways to increase access to potable water in politically marginalized communites in the United States and abroad.

Courses in the Topics in Social Theory and Practice series feature in-depth considerations of such topics with reflections on their implications for social change.
The topic for Fall 2014 is race and racism. We will consider a variety of arguments for and against the biological and / or social “reality” of race—taking into account purported races other than those defined by the black / white binary and the intersection of race with other social categories. We will then consider a number of accounts of racism, contemporary manifestations of racism, and potential counter-measures.

This collection uses primary sources to explore the Transatlantic Slave Trade. Digital Public Library of America Primary Source Sets are designed to help students develop their critical thinking skills and draw diverse material from libraries, archives, and museums across the United States. Each set includes an overview, ten to fifteen primary sources, links to related resources, and a teaching guide. These sets were created and reviewed by the teachers on the DPLA's Education Advisory Committee.

How do you teach world current events? From history textbooks? From the internet? From watching the news? The 21st Century World: Crises and Solutions, aims to remedy a scarcity of comprehensive analysis of world events. It recollects the recent past, analyzes the factors that destabilize and threaten human life, and examines sustainable and fair solutions. The chapters are organized in four parts: sustainability, demographics, literacy, and freedoms. Coverage includes the sustainability of land and water use, poverty-induced issues such as health, hunger, and homelessness, the global economy, population distribution and location, migrations and refugees, education and information and issues of violence that find outlets in oppression, protests, war, and terrorism.