Race, Racism & American Law.

Law School

Course Description

This seminar is offered in order to allow students interested in race, racism, and American law to do advanced research and writing. The success of this course will depend, in large part, on the willingness of students to read the materials and come to class prepared to participate in lively, engaged, and informed discussions.

This course will take a Critical Race Theory approach to issues related to race and American Law. The course will begin with historical readings related to how race has been socially and legally constructed in court cases andother official government policies. We will then examine the theory of unconscious racism and how this phenomenon affects American politics and public policy.  Using a critical race theory perspective, the course will examine from both a historical and a contemporary perspective several issues related to race and civil rights such as housing, education, and affirmative action; and we will conclude with discussions on race and crime such as police and prosecutorial discretion, the war on drugs, and reparations. 

The course will include reading assignments from legal cases, historical documents, law review journals, contemporary magazines, and newspapers. Films and Internet sources will also be used to facilitate the learning process.

Course Materials

Please visit the TWEN site to access the course materials - http://lawschool.westlaw.com