Black Studies (BL_STU)
BL_STU 1000: Introduction to Black Studies
An interdisciplinary introduction to the basic concepts and literature in the disciplines covered by Black Studies. The role of historical, political, social, and economic forces in shaping cultural expression will be stressed. This course prepares students at all levels with a good foundation for advancement in Black Studies but also with a useful set of guidelines for further achievement in the humanities, behavioral and the social sciences.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 1000H: Introduction to Black Studies - Honors
An interdisciplinary introduction to the basic concepts and literature in the disciplines covered by Black Studies. The role of historical, political, social, and economic forces in shaping cultural expression will be stressed. This course prepares students at all levels with a good foundation for advancement in Black Studies but also with a useful set of guidelines for further achievement in the humanities, behavioral and the social sciences.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: Honors eligibility required
BL_STU 1250: World Theatre Workshop
(same as THEATR 1250). Provides a diverse ensemble of student performers, writers, and technicians with an intensive immersion in the process of theatrical production through the public presentation of dramatic literature that focuses on global issues of ethnicity and culture.
Credit Hours: 2
BL_STU 1335: Introduction to Soul and Country
(same as MUSIC_NM 1335). Examination of musical cultures signified by "soul" and "country". Study of the evolution and aesthetics of these genres and how they deal with concepts like identity, class, race, and ethnicity; gender and sexuality; politics and patriotism.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 1410: African American History
(same as HIST 1410). Survey of social, political and economic development to the African American people in American life from 1619 to the present.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 1700: Black Studies in Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Class: Introduction
This course introduces students to basic terminology, historical and contemporary dimensions of social inequality centered in race, gender, class and sexuality. Using multidisciplinary lenses to examine social, cultural, political and economic experiences of diverse Black populations, communities and individuals to learn core concepts: race, class, gender, and sexuality toward understanding the implications of socially-constructed identities for distinct groups of Black societies navigating various gendered modes of being. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
Recommended: BL_STU 1000
BL_STU 1704: Introduction to Black Politics
(same as POL_SC 1704). This course is oriented toward the development of concepts and theory in the study of black politics. The readings in the course are divided into political science categories such as ideology, electoral participation, movement politics and public policy. In addition, major periods in black political history are examined in the light of the behavioral and theoretical concerns prominent in political science. Black Politics seeks an increased understanding of Black Diaspora history as a group and the various political effects of the history of slavery and racism; and (2) studies Black Diaspora struggles for racial justice, civil rights, political equality, and fundamental respect in the face of both explicit and structural or systematic racism. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 1704H: Introduction to Black Politics - Honors
(same as POL_SC 1704). This course is oriented toward the development of concepts and theory in the study of black politics. The readings in the course are divided into political science categories such as ideology, electoral participation, movement politics and public policy. In addition, major periods in black political history are examined in the light of the behavioral and theoretical concerns prominent in political science. Black Politics seeks an increased understanding of Black Diaspora history as a group and the various political effects of the history of slavery and racism; and (2) studies Black Diaspora struggles for racial justice, civil rights, political equality, and fundamental respect in the face of both explicit and structural or systematic racism. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: Honors eligibility required
BL_STU 1705: Introduction to Black Studies in Culture
Introduction to the concepts, terms, themes, and practices in the study of the African diaspora cultures, through readings in literature, music, and the arts that demonstrate concepts, terms, themes, and practices. Recommended for prospective Black Studies Majors. Program consent for repetition.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 1705H: Introduction to Black Studies in Culture - Honors
Introduction to the concepts, terms, themes, and practices in the study of the African diaspora cultures, through readings in literature, music, and the arts that demonstrate concepts, terms, themes, and practices. Recommended for prospective Black Studies Majors. Program consent for repetition.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: Honors eligibility required
BL_STU 1720: African-American Theatre History
(same as THEATR 1720). A historical and critical analysis of the evolution of African American cultural performance in the American theatre and entertainment industry.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 1790: History of Early Africa
(same as HIST 1790). This course introduces students to the early history of Africa. It focuses on political, social, economic and cultural developments based on primary and secondary sources available in print and online.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 1800: History of Modern Africa
(same as HIST 1800). This course introduces students to the recent history of Africa. It provides them with an opportunity to understand the main challenges Africans faced since colonial times based on primary and secondary sources.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 1800H: History of Modern Africa - Honors
(same as HIST 1800). This course introduces students to the recent history of Africa. It provides them with an opportunity to understand the main challenges Africans faced since colonial times based on primary and secondary sources.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: Honors eligibility required
BL_STU 1801: Introduction to Africa and the African Diaspora
This course introduces students to the content and contours of Diaspora Studies as a field of study--its genealogy, development, and future challenges. The course focuses on historic and contemporary experiences of African-descended peoples in the Americas, particularly the United States, the Caribbean, and Latin America. We will also give some attention to how members of the Diaspora remember and encounter Africa, and to how Africans respond to the history of enslavement, colonialism, apartheid, racism and globalization. In addition to literature and research, film, music, photography, and artwork will be used to develop a critical understanding of the African Diaspora. These non-written texts will make abstract readings come to life while stimulating the development of critical thinking skills. Students are encouraged to draw connections between these visual/audio representations and the ideas and issues that we uncover from course readings. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2001: Undergraduate Topics in Black Studies-General
Organized study of selected topics. Subjects and credits may vary from semester to semester. Program consent for repetition.
Credit Hour: 1-3
BL_STU 2001H: Undergraduate Topics in Black Studies-General - Honors
Organized study of selected topics. Subjects and credits may vary from semester to semester. Program consent for repetition.
Credit Hour: 1-3
Prerequisites: Honors eligibility required
BL_STU 2003: Undergraduate Topics in Black Studies-Behavioral Science
Organized study of selected topics. Subjects, specific content, and credits may vary from semester to semester. Repeatable up to 6 hours with program consent.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2003W: Undergraduate Topics in Black Studies-Behavioral Science - Writing Intensive
Organized study of selected topics. Subjects, specific content, and credits may vary from semester to semester. Repeatable up to 6 hours with program consent.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2004: Topics in Black Studies-Social Science
Organized study of selected topics. Subjects, specific content, and credits may vary from semester to semester. Repeatable up to 6 hours with departmental consent.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2004H: Topics in Black Studies-Social Science - Honors
Organized study of selected topics. Subjects, specific content, and credits may vary from semester to semester. Repeatable up to 6 hours with departmental consent.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: Honors eligibility required
BL_STU 2004W: Topics in Black Studies-Social Science - Writing Intensive
Organized study of selected topics. Subjects, specific content, and credits may vary from semester to semester. Repeatable up to 6 hours with departmental consent.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2005: Topics in Black Studies - Humanities
Organized study of selected topics focusing on Black history and culture. Specific content may vary from semester to semester and will be announced in advance.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2005W: Topics in Black Studies - Humanities/Writing Intensive
Organized study of selected topics focusing on Black history and culture. Specific content may vary from semester to semester and will be announced in advance.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2200: Social Inequalities
(same as SOCIOL 2200). Survey of inequalities based upon criteria such as race, ethnicity, sex, age, religion and social class in contemporary societies. Focus on dynamics by which privilege and inequality are structured.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2200H: Social Inequalities- Honors
(same as SOCIOL 2200). Survey of inequalities based upon criteria such as race, ethnicity, sex, age, religion and social class in contemporary societies. Focus on dynamics by which privilege and inequality are structured.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: Honors eligibility required
BL_STU 2210: The Black Americans
(same as SOCIOL 2210.) Analysis of history of blacks in the United States. Assessment of contemporary black community in terms of its institutions, style of life, patterns of work and intergroup relations.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: SOCIOL 1000 or equivalent or instructor's consent
BL_STU 2303: Studies in Black Relationships
This course examines constructions of Black American coupling and therefore, gender, race, sexuality, and class in the 20th and 21st centuries. Blackness has been and continues to be reconstructed via marriage, dating, and other forms of coupling. Emphasis will be placed on the role of socialization, institutions, mass media, myth, and individual and group practices. Students will have the opportunity to explore their own socialization and personal construction through assigned readings, self-reflection, experiential activities, and small group presentations.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2320: Brazilian Civilization
(same as PORT 2310, PEA_ST 2310). This course provides an introduction to Brazilian history, culture, and society from the period of Portuguese colonization (1500-1822) to the present day. It covers a survey of Brazilian history, arts, and culture and is open to any student interested. No knowledge of Portuguese is required, and the course is graded on an A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: Sophomore Standing
Recommended: The standard College requirements for 2000-level courses
BL_STU 2400: Introduction to African Diaspora Literature
(same as ENGLSH 2400). Introduces students to African Diaspora literature with an emphasis on literature written originally in English. No more than six hours may be taken in the Introduction to African Diaspora Literature series.
Credit Hours: 3
Recommended: ENGLSH 1000
BL_STU 2405: Understanding Africa
The purpose of this course is twofold. First, it provides an introduction to the cultures and societies of Africa. It begins by discussing common misunderstandings and stereotypes about the African continent and its people. As the course proceeds, we will look at fiction and scholarship from Africa which respond to these misunderstandings and also offer glimpses into aspects of the lives of black African peoples. We will proceed to discuss aspects of history, culture, politics, gender, the environment, health and development in Africa. Second, this course is designed to sharpen our analytical and writing skills. As we discuss each of the assigned readings and videos, we will talk about the purposes of authors and filmmakers. Recognizing that authors and filmmakers have specific artistic and intellectual goals in telling their stories is the first step in gaining the ability to analyze their work. We will, therefore, ask how the author's or filmmakers' purpose influences the historical and social context in which the story is set, the decisions by the author about what information to include or to omit and, finally, the point-of-view taken by the author and filmmaker. We will put these skills to use in writing our one of own papers for this course.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2409: Introduction to African Diaspora Literature, 1890-Present
(same as ENGLSH 2409). See BL_STU 2400 for course description.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2409W: Introduction to African Diaspora Literature, 1890 to Present - Writing Intensive
(same as ENGLSH 2409W). See BL_STU 2400 for course description.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2410: African American Women in History
(same as HIST 2410 and WGST 2410). African American Women in history is a topics course covering major issues affecting black women since their introduction into english-speaking North America to the present.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2425: Race and the American Story
(same as POL_SC 2425, CNST_DEM 2425). This course represents a collaboration between the University of Missouri's Department of Black Studies and the Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy. Building upon the existing Citizenship@Mizzou program, the course aims to carry forward the goals of the Citizenship program and to further solidify and magnify its impact on campus. In so doing, the course will also serve as a model for improving diversity education on campuses across the country and contribute to a more informed and unified national culture. The core syllabus will consist in readings that tell the story of the confrontation between American political principles and the practice of racial injustice throughout our history. Students will read and discuss the Declaration of Independence, the slavery clauses in the Constitution, the poetry of Phillis Wheatley, and the speeches of Frederick Douglass, Abraham Lincoln, and Martin Luther King, Jr., among others. They will achieve a greater understanding of how diversity relates to humanity, and will learn to dialogue productively and civilly with others who may not share their background or opinions.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2425H: Race and the American Story - Honors
(same as POL_SC 2425, CNST_DEM 2425). This course represents a collaboration between the University of Missouri's Department of Black Studies and the Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy. Building upon the existing Citizenship@Mizzou program, the course aims to carry forward the goals of the Citizenship program and to further solidify and magnify its impact on campus. In so doing, the course will also serve as a model for improving diversity education on campuses across the country and contribute to a more informed and unified national culture. The core syllabus will consist in readings that tell the story of the confrontation between American political principles and the practice of racial injustice throughout our history. Students will read and discuss the Declaration of Independence, the slavery clauses in the Constitution, the poetry of Phillis Wheatley, and the speeches of Frederick Douglass, Abraham Lincoln, and Martin Luther King, Jr., among others. They will achieve a greater understanding of how diversity relates to humanity, and will learn to dialogue productively and civilly with others who may not share their background or opinions.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: Honors eligibility required
BL_STU 2601: Languages of Africa
(same as ENGLSH 2601 and LINGST 2601). Introduction to the diversity of the 2000+ African languages, including first-hand experience exploring a few in detail with native speakers. Features of African languages are compared with others of the world. Political and social aspects of language in Africa are discussed.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2604: Caribbean History and Culture
This course surveys the historical and cultural development of the Caribbean region from colonial times to the present. It emphasizes the colonial decimation of Amerindians and the evolution from plantation societies to slave societies, along with tracing the history of racial and gender relations, imperial rivalries, economic dependency, and ultimately nationalism and political independence.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2700: Black Studies in Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Class: Intermediate
This course explores the historical and contemporary dimensions of social inequality centered in gender, race, class and sexuality. Using an interdisciplinary lens and feminist analysis this course will analyze social, cultural, political and economic experiences of various individuals and communities. Readings, lectures, films and discussions will focus on diverse structures of power and inequality and their relationship to constructions of patriarchy, capitalism, heterosexism, racism, nationality, and ability. Emphasis will be placed on the socially constructed definitions of various groups and how these definitions affect individual and group experiences. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
Recommended: BL_STU 1000
BL_STU 2704: African Political Thought
This course investigates African political philosophy and debate throughout the period leading to decolonization and the reflective years of thought following independence. Course will focus on individual political thinkers and cultural phenomena beginning with indigenous African theoretical approaches. Topics will include African Nationalism, populism and Marxism, Pan-Africanism, and concludes with contemporary perspectives on democracy, development, and the African State.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2715: Studies in Black Culture
This course will survey selected forms of black cultural expression, from a range of U.S., Africa, and the African Diaspora cultures in various media including literature, music, film studies, as will as other related disciplines. Program consent for repetition.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2715H: Studies in Black Culture - Honors
This course will survey selected forms of black cultural expression, from a range of U.S., Africa, and the African Diaspora cultures in various media including literature, music, film studies, as will as other related disciplines. Program consent for repetition.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: Honors eligibility required
BL_STU 2715HW: Studies in Black Culture - Honors/Writing Intensive
This course will survey selected forms of black cultural expression, from a range of U.S., Africa, and the African Diaspora cultures in various media including literature, music, film studies, as will as other related disciplines. Program consent for repetition.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: Honors eligibility required
BL_STU 2715W: Studies in Black Culture - Writing Intensive
This course will survey selected forms of black cultural expression, from a range of U.S., Africa, and the African Diaspora cultures in various media including literature, music, film studies, as will as other related disciplines. Program consent for repetition.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2750: Black Religion in America
An interdisciplinary exploration and approach to the study of black religion which takes into consideration the unique past experiences of the African Diaspora community as lived through and with their faith and religious values, as it underwent the terror of forced migration, slavery, segregation, discrimination, and transformations into the present day. Focus will be on religion throughout the America (North, Central, South) and Caribbean.
Credit Hours: 3
Recommended: BL_STU 1000
BL_STU 2750H: Black Religion in America - Honors
An interdisciplinary exploration and approach to the study of black religion which takes into consideration the unique past experiences of the African Diaspora community as lived through and with their faith and religious values, as it underwent the terror of forced migration, slavery, segregation, discrimination, and transformations into the present day. Focus will be on religion throughout the America (North, Central, South) and Caribbean. Recommended: BL_STU 1000
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: Honors eligibility required
BL_STU 2804: Black Political Thought
Black Political Thought develops a set of critical tools to help explain the distinctiveness of Black Politics. The distinctiveness of Black Political Thought first emerged from spaces of exclusion in Western nations and colonies. The thinking surrounding Black Political Thought originates in a standpoint, or perspective, profoundly different from that of mainstream Political Theory. Out of this encounter comes a deeper understanding of Black intellectual traditions as well as an enhanced understanding of Political Theory's core concepts. Black Political Thought uses the lens of the African diaspora to investigate the abiding concerns of Political Theory, i.e. the meanings of justice, freedom, and equality; the nature of power, obligation, and "the good life."
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2804H: Black Political Thought - Honors
Black Political Thought develops a set of critical tools to help explain the distinctiveness of Black Politics. The distinctiveness of Black Political Thought first emerged from spaces of exclusion in Western nations and colonies. The thinking surrounding Black Political Thought originates in a standpoint, or perspective, profoundly different from that of mainstream Political Theory. Out of this encounter comes a deeper understanding of Black intellectual traditions as well as an enhanced understanding of Political Theory's core concepts. Black Political Thought uses the lens of the African diaspora to investigate the abiding concerns of Political Theory, i.e. the meanings of justice, freedom, and equality; the nature of power, obligation, and "the good life."
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2830: Environment and Development in Africa
(same as HIST 2830). This course introduces students to the global and local forces that have affected how Africans have historically managed their environments and ensured their wellbeing. It further analyses the footprints development projects leave on African societies and ecologies. Topics include colonialism, environmental control, economic development, environmental change. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2904: Black Studies in Slavery and Freedom
(same as HIST 2904). This course provides study of historical background, economic, political and social implications of slavery and freedom in the African Diaspora (Americas, Africa, Europe, Asia) as well as the legal and extralegal struggles for and meaning of (global, local, and national) freedom.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 2904H: Black Studies in Slavery and Freedom - Honors
(same as HIST 2904). This course provides study of historical background, economic, political and social implications of slavery and freedom in the African Diaspora (Americas, Africa, Europe, Asia) as well as the legal and extralegal struggles for and meaning of (global, local, and national) freedom.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: Honors eligibility required
BL_STU 2975: Traditions and Concepts in Black Studies
This course provides a broad understanding of the diverse theoretical traditions within the field of Black Studies, through a comparative examination of concepts, developments, and debates in humanities, social and behavioral sciences, including literature, languages, and music, sociology, psychology, political science, women's and gender studies, and history. Course graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 3001: Undergraduate Topics in Black Studies - General
Organized study of selected topics. Subjects, specific content, and credits may vary from semester to semester. Repeatable up to 6 hours with program consent.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 3003: Undergraduate Topics in Black Studies - Behavioral Sciences
Organized study of selected topics focusing on Black history, culture, or other relevant disciplines. Subjects, specific content, and credits may vary from semester to semester. Repeatable up to 6 hours with program consent.
Credit Hour: 1-3
BL_STU 3004: Undergraduate Topics in Black Studies - Social Science
Organized study of selected topics focusing on Black history, culture, or other relevant disciplines. Subjects, specific content, and credits may vary from semester to semester. Repeatable up to 6 hours with program consent.
Credit Hour: 1-3
BL_STU 3004W: Undergraduate Topics in Black Studies - Social Science - Writing Intensive
Organized study of selected topics focusing on Black history, culture, or other relevant disciplines. Subjects, specific content, and credits may vary from semester to semester. Repeatable up to 6 hours with program consent.
Credit Hour: 1-3
BL_STU 3005: Undergraduate Topics in Black Studies - Humanities
Organized study of selected topics focusing on Black history, culture, or other relevant disciplines. Subjects, specific content, and credits may vary from semester to semester. Repeatable up to six credit hours with program consent.
Credit Hour: 1-3
BL_STU 3022: Peacebuilding and Peacemaking in the Modern Caribbean
(same as PEA_ST 3022). The course will be for one month, starting in the summer of 2022, at the University of the West Indies (UWI). It may also be offered for two weeks during the winter intersession. The UWI is ranked number one in Latin America and the Caribbean and in the top 1.5% of universities worldwide (Times Higher Education Ranking). This course examines peacebuilding and peacemaking in contemporary Jamaica and the wider Caribbean region. The course explores these peace initiatives in the context of the historical and cultural development of the area from pre-colonial times to the present. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
Recommended: PEA_ST 1050 or BL_STU 1000
BL_STU 3100: African American Psychology
(same as ESC_PS 3100, PSYCH 3880). The course focuses on understanding the attitudes, behaviors and psychosocial realities of African Americans. It explores social inequalities experienced by African Americans and examines psychological science from the African American perspective.
Credit Hours: 3
Recommended: PSYCH 1000
BL_STU 3200: Black Freedom Movement, 1955-1973
(same as HIST 3200). Examines the dismantling of American apartheid and its transformation into a new racial control system. It also explores how and why the Civil Rights Movement was converted into a struggle for Black Power.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 3230: Studies in Black Sexual Politics
Course explores Black transnational politics of sex/sexuality and examines the theoretical, historical, and socio-cultural context that race, gender, and sexuality are used as analytical concepts. Students learn a transdisciplinary approach and apply this newly acquired information to analyze shifts in the field of Black sexuality studies. May be repeated for credit.
Credit Hours: 3
Recommended: sophomore standing required
BL_STU 3230W: Studies in Black Sexual Politics-Writing Intensive
Course explores Black transnational politics of sex/sexuality and examines the theoretical, historical, and socio-cultural context that race, gender, and sexuality are used as analytical concepts. Students learn a transdisciplinary approach and apply this newly acquired information to analyze shifts in the field of Black sexuality studies. May be repeated for credit.
Credit Hours: 3
Recommended: sophomore standing required
BL_STU 3303: Black Athletes
This course examines Black Athletes in the 20th and 21st centuries. Emphasis will be placed on how Blacks entered competitive athletics and the role of racism and power, socialization, institutions, mass media, myth, and individual and group practices. Students will have the opportunity to explore their own socialization and personal construction through assigned readings, self-reflection, experiential activities, and small group presentations.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 3400: Survey of African American Literature, Beginnings to 1900
(same as ENGLSH 3400). A survey of major authors and movements in African American literature from its beginnings to 1900.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: ENGLSH 1000
BL_STU 3400W: Survey of African American Literature, Beginnings to 1900 - Writing Intensive
(same as ENGLSH 3400). A survey of major authors and movements in African American literature from its beginnings to 1900.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: ENGLSH 1000
BL_STU 3410: Survey of African American Literature, 1900-Present
(same as ENGLSH 3410). A survey of major authors and movements in African American literature from 1900 to the present.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: ENGLSH 1000
BL_STU 3605: The History of Blacks in Germany
(same as GERMAN 3605). This course investigates the history of Africans and African Americans in Germany and Central Europe, from Antiquity to today. Special focus on Medieval Africans in Europe, travelling African American intellectuals around 1900, and African American GIs in occupied Germany. This course will challenge your understanding of race and racism.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 3605H: The History of Blacks in Germany - Honors
(same as GERMAN 3605). This course investigates the history of Africans and African Americans in Germany and Central Europe, from Antiquity to today. Special focus on Medieval Africans in Europe, travelling African American intellectuals around 1900, and African American GIs in occupied Germany. This course will challenge your understanding of race and racism.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: Honors eligibility required
BL_STU 3624: Comparative Approaches to Black Studies in History
(same as HIST 3624). Comparative approach to the study of Black Diaspora history that focuses on the theory, method, structure, and application of modes of cultural production within the history of Black Diaspora cultures. Program consent for repetition.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 3624W: Comparative Approaches to Black Studies in History - Writing Intensive
(same as HIST 3624). Comparative approach to the study of Black Diaspora history that focuses on the theory, method, structure, and application of modes of cultural production within the history of Black Diaspora cultures. Program consent for repetition.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 3670: History of Black Nationalism in the United States
(same as HIST 3410). Examines the struggle of African Americans to construct autonomous institutions, to build all Black communities or to acquire an independent nation-state. We will study the ideology, structure, strategy and tactics.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: HIST 1410 or SOCIOL 2210
BL_STU 3700: Black Studies in Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Class: Advanced
This course provides in-depth study, reading, analysis, and application of key of race, class, gender, and sexuality, and related systemic racism, sexism, classism, and homophobia that impact social institutions, histories and cultural practices for diverse groups of Black people across the gender, color, age, and ability spectrums, with attention to intersecting modes of being that frame our understanding of Black culture, history, and societies and their implications for inequality and equity. Importantly the course examine the importance of social identities, oppression and privilege, social spaces and how differences and similarities historically, psychologically, and culturally construct symbolic and political Blackness that matters, to whom, for whom, and to what end, by exposing students to culturally-specific forms of internal and external oppression and suppression of voices and the responses of underrepresented, oppressed, and/or exploited groups to recover narratives of empowerment and effect change within their diverse communities and societies. Students will engage in diverse disciplinary methods for studying historical, cultural, and sociological phenomena in Black studies such as double-consciousness and internalized racism, and critique existing models and develop new ways of thinking about, engaging, and critically challenging socially constructed and reconstructed notions of Black gendered monolithic otherness. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
Recommended: BL_STU 1000
BL_STU 3703: Themes in Black Society
Examines various themes, issues, and perspectives in political science, psychology, sociology, and other related disciplines related to social and historical institutions in the U.S., Africa, and the African Diaspora. Recommended for Black Studies or Behavioral Science Majors. Program consent for repetition.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 3703H: Themes in Black Society - Honors
Examines various themes, issues, and perspectives in political science, psychology, sociology, and other related disciplines related to social and historical institutions in the U.S., Africa, and the African Diaspora. Recommended for Black Studies or Behavioral Science Majors. Program consent for repetition.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: Honors eligibility required
BL_STU 3705: Themes in Black Culture
Examines various themes, issues and perspective in literature, music, the arts, and other related disciples related to social and historical institutions in the U.S., Africa, and the African Diaspora. Recommended for Black Studies Majors. Program consent required for repetition.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 3804: Resistance in the Black Atlantic
Enslaved black people resisted slavery in the Americas in a variety of ways. From everyday forms of resistance to the planning of revolts, enslaved people displayed an unwillingness to yield to slavery, assertions of their freedom built on political, philosophical, and economic concepts about society and the rights of human beings. Resistance in what is known as the black Atlantic can be divided into nonviolent and violent forms, but within each of these categories were scores of activities validating the claim that the enslaved never accepted slavery or lost their sense of freedom as human beings. By focusing on nonviolent, violent, everyday and periodic forms of resistance, this course examines how the agency of the enslaved served as a foundation for the culture of freedom in the Americas. Resistance is used to explore the influence of blacks on the historical evolution of the Americas, and the overall aim of this course is to give students an understanding of black resistance as one of the most important sources of the progress of the Atlantic world.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 3805: Hip-Hop: Global Music and Culture
Hip-Hop has captured the minds of youth worldwide, spawning themes, trends, attitudes, and behaviors that are similar to but distinct from the manifestation of hip-hop in the US. This course is designed as an intellectual excursion to explore the US and global creation and consumption of hip-hop through the lens of cultural studies. The class will study processes of imitation, appropriation, translation, and customization and their impact on themes of gender, hegemony, commercialism, sexuality, race, and identity.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 3815: Africa and the World: Studies in African Histories, Cultures and Politics
(same as HIST 3815). For millennia, Africans have interacted with people from other parts of the world. Africans from the south central and eastern parts of the continent have, for example, participated in the Indian Ocean global network for over a thousand years. Those from West Africa have participated in a vast commercial network through the Sahara. Since the sixteenth century millions of Africans were forcibly shipped across the Atlantic Ocean to toil in mines and plantations in the Americas. They carried with them knowledge, expertise and cultures fundamental to the making of this world. This course traces this history of Africa's interactions with the wider world. It is organized around two broad themes: the impact of these interactions on African societies and the impact of Africans on the societies with which they interacted.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 3977: Black Studies Methodologies
Advanced research, writing, and application of knowledge and critical paradigms in Black Studies, through study of such topics as slavery, colonialism, urbanization and migration, environment, gender, race, identity, intellectual movements, cultural studies and popular culture. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
Recommended: BL_STU 2975
BL_STU 4001: Undergraduate Topics in Black Studies-General
Organized study of selected topics. Subjects and credit may vary from semester to semester. Program consent for repetition.
Credit Hour: 1-3
Prerequisites: junior standing
BL_STU 4001W: Undergraduate Topics in Black Studies-General - Writing Intensive
Organized study of selected topics. Subjects and credit may vary from semester to semester. Program consent for repetition.
Credit Hour: 1-3
Prerequisites: junior standing
BL_STU 4003: Topics in Black Studies-Behavioral Science
Organized study of selected topics. Subjects, specific content, and credits may vary from semester to semester. Repeatable up to 6 hours with departmental consent.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4004: Topics in Black Studies-Social Science
Organized study of selected topics. Subjects, specific content, and credits may vary from semester to semester. Repeatable up to 6 hours with departmental consent.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4005: Topics in Black Studies-Humanities
Organized study of selected topics. Subjects, specific content, and credits may vary from semester to semester. Repeatable up to 6 hours with departmental consent.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4020: Studies in Black Feminist Thought
(same as WGST 4020; cross-leveled with BL_STU 7020, WGST 7020). Examines recent problems and critical debates within feminist theory. May be repeated for credit (up to 6 credits) with different semester themes.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4040: Slavery and the Crisis of the Union: The American Civil War Era
(same as HIST 4040, CNST_DEM 4040; cross-leveled with BL_STU 7040, HIST 7040). This class explores the history of the Civil War era, a transformative moment in both U.S. and world history. Our goal is to explore and answer a number of questions of great historical significance: How and why did slavery persist in an age of liberal democracy? Why did the pre-war Union prove unable to tolerate the plural visions and diverse institutions of its people? Was the descent into war more a measure of institutional weakness than of the intensity of moral conflict? What were the constituent elements of the competing wartime 'nationalisms' that evolved in both north and south? How and why did a war that began to restore the Union become one for emancipation? How was it the forerunner of modern, 'total' warfare? Did the governmental, socio-economic and racial changes wrought by war constitute a 'second American revolution'? Were the limits or the achievements of post-war Reconstruction more notable? And, last but certainly not least, how did the triumph of the Union condition the political and economic development of a rapidly globalizing world?
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4130: African-American Politics
(same as POL_SC 4130). Surveys political participation of African-Americans in American politics. Analyzes their public lives in the context of elections, behavior of political organizations, social movements, parties, and level of government.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4210: African-American Religion
(same as REL_ST 4210). Examines the organization of major African American Christian denominations, Islam and religious movements. Twentieth century issues will be discussed, including sexism, classism and homophobia in church communities.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: junior standing
BL_STU 4230: Women, Development, and Globalization
(same as SOCIOL 4230, WGST 4230, PEA_ST 4230; cross-leveled with BL_STU 7230, SOCIOL 7230, WGST 7230). Examines the history and structure of "development" discourse and practices. Stresses the interconnections and impact on women globally. Reviews women's strategies in defining and instituting programs to improve quality of life in communities.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4270: African-Americans in the Twentieth Century
(same as HIST 4270; cross-leveled with BL_STU 7270, HIST 7270). Surveys the African-American experience from 1900 to the present. Attention is given to economic, political, social, and cultural trends.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4300: Black Children, Youth, and Families
(same as H_D_FS 4300). This course examines the unique social, economic, religious, educational, and political environments that have affected the structure and function of Black children, youth, and families. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: junior standing
Recommended: H_D_FS 2200 or equivalent
BL_STU 4303: Black Studies in Race, Class, Gender, and U.S. Policy
(same as HIST 4303; cross-leveled with BL_STU 7303, HIST 7303). Examines the causes and effects of the vast social and economic inequalities that exist between blacks and whites in US society, including the role federal, state and local government play in creating and addressing such inequalities as financial, tax, environmental, trade, and foreign policies as well as issues of human and social welfare.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4335: The Wire: Race, Urban Inequality, and the "Crisis" of the American City
(same as HIST 4235; cross-leveled with BL_STU 7335, HIST 7235). The HBO series "The Wire", a crime drama based on the border city of Baltimore, exposed the interlocking, structural realities giving shape to the landscapes, neighborhoods, and lived experiences of urban America during the early twenty-first century. Through vivid storytelling, "The Wire" complicates understandings of the "urban crisis" through a focus on the inner workings of major institutions such as the media, public schools, politics, underground economies, public housing, and the criminal justice system and on the ways in which poor and working-class black residents negotiate power and survival. Using the cable series as a lens, this class offers students the opportunity to critically examine the historical, economic, social, and political dimensions of urban inequality.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4352: Historical Studies in African Music
(same as MUS_H_LI 4352). Ethnomusicological introduction to the music and culture of countries and ethnic groups in Africa. Traditional and contemporary popular styles are explored, and influences of Islamic invasions, missionary arrivals, colonial conquests, neo-colonial trends, and globalization.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: Open to upper-level undergraduate students with instructor's consent
BL_STU 4360: Working with Minority Youth
(same as SOC_WK 4360). Develops awareness and understanding of social/psychological/ cognitive realities influencing the behavior of black youth. Content draws upon theories, research, and practice skills relevant to understanding black youth. Minority groups included.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: junior standing or instructor's consent
BL_STU 4400: Studies in African Diaspora Literature
(same as ENGLSH 4400; cross-leveled with BL_STU 7400, ENGLSH 7400). Topics (e.g., African American Poetry, African Diaspora Drama) announced at time of registration. No more than six hours may be taken in the Studies in African Diaspora Literature series.
Credit Hours: 3
Recommended: junior standing
BL_STU 4409: Studies in African Diaspora Literature, 1890 to Present
(same as ENGLSH 4409; cross-leveled with BL_STU 7409, ENGLSH 7409). See BL_STU 4400 for course description.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4415: African Americans and American Justice
(same as HIST 4415; cross-leveled with BL_STU 7415, HIST 7415). This course provides opportunities to review and discuss selected court cases and legislation in which black men, women, or children were plaintiffs and defendants or affected by the laws.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: senior standing required
BL_STU 4415W: African Americans and American Justice - Writing Intensive
(same as HIST 4415; cross-leveled with BL_STU 7415, HIST 7415). This course provides opportunities to review and discuss selected court cases and legislation in which black men, women, or children were plaintiffs and defendants or affected by the laws.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: senior standing required
BL_STU 4420: Africana Womanism
(same as ENGLSH 4420; cross-leveled with BL_STU 7420, ENGLSH 7420). An intensive study of Africana Womanism, focusing on selected Africana women writers. May be repeated to six hours with departmental consent.
Credit Hours: 3
Recommended: junior standing
BL_STU 4480: Major African Diaspora Women Writers
(same as WGST 4480, ENGLSH 4480; cross-leveled with BL_STU 7480, WGST 7480, ENGLSH 7480). Study of selected Africana Diaspora women writers, focusing on texts originally in English. Repeatable with department's consent. Maximum of 6 hours for Black Studies 4180 and 4480.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4488: Major African Diaspora Women Writers, 1789 to 1890
(same as WGST 4488, ENGLSH 4488; cross-leveled with BL_STU 7488, WGST 7488, ENGLSH 7488). See BL_STU 4480 for course description.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4489: Major African Diaspora Women Writers, 1890 to Present
(same as WGST 4489, ENGLSH 4489; cross-leveled with BL_STU 7489, WGST 7489, ENGLSH 7489). See BL_STU 4480 for course description.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4489W: Major African Diaspora Women Writers, 1890 to Present - Writing Intensive
(same as WGST 4489W, ENGLSH 4489W; cross-leveled with BL_STU 7489, WGST 7489, ENGLSH 7489). See BL_STU 4480 for course description.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4500: Special Problems in Black Studies
Independent project or paper, not leading to dissertation.
Credit Hour: 1-99
Prerequisites: instructor's consent
BL_STU 4604: Advanced Studies in Black Politics
(cross-leveled with BL_STU 7604). This is an advanced undergraduate, graduate cross-level course exploring political systems through the lens of the Black cultural and political experience. The overall goal of the course is to get students to think about and understand the importance of politics. The issues that will be focused upon are ones that are of specific importance to Black politics. This course is a challenging one in the sense that students will be required to think and write critically and thoughtfully about the issues. It will also be an interesting one given that all students keep up with the readings and participate actively and regularly. This course is intended to sharpen analytical thinking about Black politics, discuss contemporary issues and problems with respect to political systems, examine various avenues of political expression, and raise questions and new ideas pertaining to the exploration of Black politics. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4640: African Politics
(same as POL_SC 4640). A general comparative course focusing on post-independent Africa. Theories and concepts related to decolonization, nationalism, democratization, and ethnicity; also institutional forms and organizations: political parties, parliaments, and executives.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4640W: African Politics - Writing Intensive
(same as POL_SC 4640). A general comparative course focusing on post-independent Africa. Theories and concepts related to decolonization, nationalism, democratization, and ethnicity; also institutional forms and organizations: political parties, parliaments, and executives.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4704: Religion and Black Freedom
(same as REL_ST 4704). In this course, we will explore the role of religion in the shaping of the African diaspora in the Americas through discussions of the readings. We will focus on the use of religion to pursue emancipation from enslavement and the concept of full freedom. Research and theories from mainly history, religious studies, and literature will be used to examine some of the ways in which black people have improved their condition through religion. The main objective of this course is to study the connections between religion and the fashioning of black resistance to slavery and systems of domination after slavery.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4705: Advanced Studies and Themes in Black Culture
(cross-leveled with BL_STU 7705). This cross-level course provides students with an advanced understanding of the cultural traditions and social organization of Black communities across the African Diaspora. The selected topics covered include family structure, social institutions, religious forms, musical genres, folklore and oral histories. The course explores the cultural continuities from a shared African heritage and emphasizes the regionally distinctive cultural practices resulting from local transformations through cultural adaptation. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
Recommended: The Department recommends students complete BL_STU 3977 or another approved methods or writing intensive course prior to registering for this course
BL_STU 4710: Themes in African Diaspora Folklore
(same as ANTHRO 4160 and ENGLSH 4710.) Intensive study in a selected area of African Diaspora Folklore: folk narrative, folk song, myth, proverb, etc., folklore and literature, or the folklore of a particular group. 4710 may be repeated for a maximum of six hours with instructor's consent.
Credit Hours: 3
Recommended: junior standing
BL_STU 4773: Pan Africanism
(cross-leveled with BL_STU 7773). Geographically this course will focus heavily on Pan-Africanism in the United States and the U.K. as well as Africa and the Caribbean. The course will also touch briefly on Pan-Africanism in Latin America and Asia. In addition to the concept of Pan-Africanism, we will explore related themes such as Black Nationalism, Ethiopianism, and Negritude while situating key figures of the African diaspora within the intellectual genealogy of Pan-African thought. Lectures will be supplemented with documentary films and other multimedia sources. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
Recommended: The department recommends that students complete BL_STU 3977 or another writing intensive course
BL_STU 4804: Historical Studies of Black Women
This course offers a comprehensive examination of the origins, developments, and productions of the specified time period with emphases on black women as creative artists, activists, performers, musicians, and writers.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4825: Africa from the Slave Trade to Independence
(same as HIST 4825; cross-leveled with BL_STU 7825, HIST 7825). This course offers an examination of the lives of Africans as they encountered the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade and European Colonialism. These two forces had a lasting impact on African societies. Topics include the origins, impact and legacies of both the Slave Trade and European colonialism on African societies. The course will especially pay attention Africans' struggles to free themselves from slavery and colonial domination. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4835: Race and Politics in South Africa
(same as HIST 4835, CNST_DEM 4835; cross-leveled with HIST 7835, CNST_DEM 7835, BL_STU 7835). Between 1948 and 1994, race was the formal organizing principle of the South African state. However, way before the institutionalization of the policy of Apartheid in 1948, race had underlined social, economic and political relations in what is now South Africa. Significantly, democratic South Africa is still grappling with the legacies of racialized rule. This course is about this nexus between race and politics in the history of South Africa. Organized around seminars, guest lectures and tours, the course introduces students to how scholars have understood race and politics in this Southern African nation. It further examines the social and economic context in which race was deployed as an instrument of making difference and exercising power and how this is contested. Finally, the course examines the legacies of racialized rule in democratic South Africa. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4835H: Race and Politics in South Africa - Honors
same as HIST 4835, CNST_DEM 4835; cross-leveled with HIST 7835, CNST_DEM 7835, BL_STU 7835). Between 1948 and 1994, race was the formal organizing principle of the South African state. However, way before the institutionalization of the policy of Apartheid in 1948, race had underlined social, economic and political relations in what is now South Africa. Significantly, democratic South Africa is still grappling with the legacies of racialized rule. This course is about this nexus between race and politics in the history of South Africa. Organized around seminars, guest lectures and tours, the course introduces students to how scholars have understood race and politics in this Southern African nation. It further examines the social and economic context in which race was deployed as an instrument of making difference and exercising power and how this is contested. Finally, the course examines the legacies of racialized rule in democratic South Africa. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: Honors eligibility required
BL_STU 4875: Black Studies: Study Abroad-Humanities
This interdisciplinary study abroad course provides students with global experience within the African Diaspora, the opportunity to study in a foreign culture, augment their "global competencies," and support their study and/or career development.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4877: Black Studies: Study Abroad-Social Science
This interdisciplinary study abroad course provides students with global experience within the African Diaspora, the opportunity to study in a foreign culture and augment their "global competencies" and support their study and/or career development. Graded A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4904: Historical and Contemporary Slavery
(same as HIST 4904). An exploration of slavery in both its historical and contemporary context, focusing on the origins, characteristics, and struggles to abolish the practice. Historical slavery examined using African enslavement in the Americas, and contemporary slavery using human trafficking and forced labor in the developed and developing world.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 4975: Black Studies Internship
(cross-leveled with BL_STU 7975). Work experience in a public or private organization that is relevant to the Black Studies major coordinated by a faculty member.
Credit Hour: 3-6
Prerequisites: junior standing with a 3.0 GPA; or senior standing with 2.67 GPA. Must be in good standing
BL_STU 4977: Black Studies Capstone
This course is designed to permit students to integrate general and specialized knowledge within the three Black Studies tracks (History, Society, Culture) using an interdisciplinary approach. Topics vary according to instructor and core discipline. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: Junior standing
BL_STU 7020: Studies in Black Feminist Thought
(same as WGST 7020; cross-leveled with BL_STU 4020 and WGST 4020). Examines recent problems and critical debates within black feminist theory.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 7022: Peacebuilding and Peacemaking in the Modern Caribbean
The course will be for one month at the University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona in Jamaica. The course examines peacebuilding and peacemaking in contemporary Jamaica and the Caribbean region. It explores these peace initiatives in the context of the area's shared historical and cultural development from pre-colonial times to the present. It emphasizes the evolution from indigenous societies to plantation societies to independent nation-states, tracing the histories of medicine, education, race, class, and gender relations in the broader context of global colonialism and imperialism to explore how these have shaped the prospects for peace in Jamaican and Caribbean communities in the present. Essentially, the course explores the complex intersections of economics, culture, and politics with peacemaking processes in the Caribbean region. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
Recommended: BL_STU 8000 or BL_STU 4904
BL_STU 7040: Slavery and the Crisis of the Union: The American Civil War Era
(same as HIST 7040; cross-leveled with BL_STU 4040, HIST 4040, CNST_DEM 4040). This class explores the history of the Civil War era, a transformative moment in both U.S. and world history. Our goal is to explore and answer a number of questions of great historical significance: How and why did slavery persist in an age of liberal democracy? Why did the pre-war Union prove unable to tolerate the plural visions and diverse institutions of its people? Was the descent into war more a measure of institutional weakness than of the intensity of moral conflict? What were the constituent elements of the competing wartime 'nationalisms' that evolved in both north and south? How and why did a war that began to restore the Union become one for emancipation? How was it the forerunner of modern, 'total' warfare? Did the governmental, socio-economic and racial changes wrought by war constitute a 'second American revolution'? Were the limits or the achievements of post-war Reconstruction more notable? And, last but certainly not least, how did the triumph of the Union condition the political and economic development of a rapidly globalizing world?
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 7270: African-Americans in the Twentieth Century
(same as HIST 7270). Surveys the African-American experience from 1900 to the present. Attention is given to economic, political, social, and cultural trends.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 7300: The Black Family: Past, Present and Future
(same as H_D_FS 7300). This course reviews classic and contemporary research and theories on Black families in the US and across the African Diaspora; examines socio-historical influences on the development, structure, and processes of Black individuals and families; and promotes critical reflection of social structures and research methods. Graded on A-F basis only. .
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 7303: Black Studies in Race, Class, Gender, and U.S. Policy
(same as HIST 7303; cross-leveled with BL_STU 4303, HIST 4303). Examines the causes and effects of the vast social and economic inequalities that exist between blacks and whites in US society, including the role federal, state and local government plays in creating and addressing such inequalities as financial, tax, environmental, trade and foreign policies as well as issues of human and social welfare.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 7335: The Wire: Race, Urban Inequality, and the "Crisis" of the American City
(same as HIST 7235; cross-leveled with HIST 4235, BL_STU 4335). The HBO series "The Wire", a crime drama based on the border city of Baltimore, exposed the interlocking, structural realities giving shape to the landscapes, neighborhoods, and lived experiences of urban America during the early twenty-first century. Through vivid storytelling, "The Wire" complicates understandings of the "urban crisis" through a focus on the inner workings of major institutions such as the media, public schools, politics, underground economies, public housing, and the criminal justice system and on the ways in which poor and working-class black residents negotiate power and survival. Using the cable series as a lens, this class offers students the opportunity to critically examine the historical, economic, social, and political dimensions of urban inequality.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 7400: Studies in African Diaspora Literature
(same as ENGLSH 7400). Topics (e.g., African American Poetry, African Diaspora Drama) announced at time of registration. No more than six hours may be taken in the Studies in African Diaspora Literature series.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 7420: Africana Womanism
(same as ENGLSH 7420). An intensive study of Africana Womanism, focusing on selected Africana women writers. May be repeated to six hours with departmental consent.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 7480: Major African Diaspora Women Writers
(same as WGST 7480 and ENGLSH 7480). Study of selected African Diaspora women writers, focusing on texts originally in English. May be repeated for credit with departmental consent. Maximum of 6 hours for Black Studies 7180 and 7480.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 7604: Advanced Studies in Black Politics
(cross-leveled with BL_STU 4604). This is an advanced undergraduate, graduate cross-level course exploring political systems through the lens of the Black cultural and political experience. The overall goal of the course is to get students to think about and understand the importance of politics. The issues that will be focused upon are ones that are of specific importance to Black politics. This course is a challenging one in the sense that students will be required to think and write critically and thoughtfully about the issues. It will also be an interesting one given that all students keep up with the readings and participate actively and regularly. This course is intended to sharpen analytical thinking about Black politics, discuss contemporary issues and problems with respect to political systems, examine various avenues of political expression, and raise questions and new ideas pertaining to the exploration of Black politics. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 7705: Advanced Studies and Themes in Black Culture
(cross-leveled with BL_STU 4705). This cross-level course provides students with an advanced understanding of the cultural traditions and social organization of Black communities across the African Diaspora. The selected topics covered include family structure, social institutions, religious forms, musical genres, folklore and oral histories. The course explores the cultural continuities from a shared African heritage and emphasizes the regionally distinctive cultural practices resulting from local transformations through cultural adaptation. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 7773: Pan Africanism
(cross-leveled with BL_STU 4773). Geographically this course will focus heavily on Pan-Africanism in the United States and the U.K. as well as Africa and the Caribbean. The course will also touch briefly on Pan-Africanism in Latin America and Asia. In addition to the concept of Pan-Africanism, we will explore related themes such as Black Nationalism, Ethiopianism, and Negritude while situating key figures of the African diaspora within the intellectual genealogy of Pan-African thought. Lectures will be supplemented with documentary films and other multimedia sources.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 7825: Africa from the Slave Trade to Independence
(same as HIST 7825; cross-leveled with BL_STU 4825, HIST 4825). This course offers an examination of the lives of Africans as they encountered the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade and European Colonialism. These two forces had a lasting impact on African societies. Topics include the origins, impact and legacies of both the Slave Trade and European colonialism on African societies. The course will especially pay attention Africans' struggles to free themselves from slavery and colonial domination. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 7835: Race and Politics in South Africa
(same as HIST 7835, CNST_DEM 7835; cross-leveled with HIST 4835, CNST_DEM 4835, BL_STU 4835). Between 1948 and 1994, race was the formal organizing principle of the South African state. However, way before the institutionalization of the policy of Apartheid in 1948, race had underlined social, economic and political relations in what is now South Africa. Significantly, democratic South Africa is still grappling with the legacies of racialized rule. This course is about this nexus between race and politics in the history of South Africa. Organized around seminars, guest lectures and tours, the course introduces students to how scholars have understood race and politics in this Southern African nation. It further examines the social and economic context in which race was deployed as an instrument of making difference and exercising power and how this is contested. Finally, the course examines the legacies of racialized rule in democratic South Africa. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 7975: Black Studies Internship
(cross-leveled with BL_STU 4975). Work experience in a public or private organization that is relevant to the Black Studies major coordinated by a faculty member.
Credit Hour: 3-6
Prerequisites: Must be in good standing
BL_STU 8000: Independent Readings in Black Studies
Readings on selected topics in Black Studies, with emphasis on the implications of the interdisciplinary and intersecting areas of History, Society, and Culture. May be repeated to a maximum of six hours.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: Department Consent Required
BL_STU 8001: Graduate Seminar in Black Studies
This research seminar introduces students to the central themes, traditions, and scholarly work in Black Studies on a graduate level. It also emphasizes critical thinking, research, and writing in order to prepare students for undertaking effective and successful scholarly writing projects. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: This course is designed for graduate and professional students
BL_STU 8400: Seminar in African Diaspora Literature
(same as ENGLSH 8400). Topic (e.g., Autobiography, Black Women Writers) announced at time of registration. May be repeated to 12 hours with departmental consent.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 8415: Readings in African-American History
(Same as HIST 8415). Readings on selected topics in African-American history from 1619 to the present, with emphasis on conflicting interpretations. May be repeated to a maximum of six hours.
Credit Hours: 3
BL_STU 8510: Ecology, Conservation, and Environmental Justice
(same as F_W 8510). The goal of this course is to introduce graduate students in natural resource management and conservation biology to the ecological and management concepts that underlie environmental justice issues, and to explain how broader environmental justice concepts are relevant to natural resource and conservation fields. Graded on A-F basis only. Prerequisites: One undergraduate course from the following list of disciplines: ecology, natural resource management, conservation biology, sociology or equivalent.
Credit Hours: 2
BL_STU 8901: Graduate Topics in Black Studies
Graduate seminar arranged by topics or themes related to Black Studies. Graded on A-F basis only.
Credit Hours: 3