The course focuses on the structuring power of racism in making the modern world. Through a critical assessment of a diverse body of theoretical and empirical literature, the course will provide students with the conceptual tools to understand the historical formation of racism, how it became entangled with nationalism and capitalism as well as its subsequent diffusion and sedimentation across the world. Racism and capitalist modernity will also recover from the condescension of posterity those important currents in contraflow, particularly those individuals and social movements that sought to actualise the demand for freedom and racial justice. The course will be genuinely interdisciplinary, bringing into dialogue distinctive literatures from sociology, politics, and history.

TBA

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  Class essay of 4,000 words worth 100% of final mark.

The formative assessment for this course requires students to outline a plan for how they intend to answer their essay (summative assessment). By connecting the two pieces of writing, I invite students to begin thinking and preparing early about how they intend to answer their essay question. This strategy has worked well in UG courses that I have taught over the past eight years. Specifically, students have benefitted from the detailed feedback on their learning - both structural and substantive. And it allows them to incorporate those comments and prepare fuller and more effective answers when it comes to their summative assessment. Student feedback on UG courses where I have adopted this mode of assessment has very much welcomed it.

The aim of the course is to introduce students to the structuring force of racism in making the modern world. This will include an exploration of its relationship to capitalism, colonialism, nationalism as well as a consideration of how racism was collectively challenged by racialized outsiders. It will provide students with a range of different inter-disciplinary perspectives for thinking critically about the historical formation of racism, its contemporary reproduction as well as how it might be overcome.

The course will provide students with an opportunity to:

 1.apply their informed working knowledge of major theoretical perspectives on the historical formation of racism and its contemporary manifestations. And demonstrate the ability to articulate this understanding effectively in writing.

2. develop an educated awareness of the role played by social movements in actualizing the demands for freedom and racial justice. And understand the historical context, strategies and impact of social movements in addressing issues of racial inequality.

3. enhance analytical skills through active participation in seminars and written work. Analyze complex concepts related to racism, freedom and racial justice, demonstrating a critical understanding through both oral and written communication.

4. Synthesize insights from various theoretical perspectives and historical contexts related to racism to form a nuanced understanding of the complex and multifaceted nature of racism and its contemporary manifestations.

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