Spring 2008 Course Description
Advanced Topics in Public Policy
| Section Title: |
American Race Policy |
| Instructor(s): |
Edwin Dorn |
| Course: |
P A 388K - Advanced Topics in Public Policy
(previously Seminar in Topics in Public Policy) |
| Unique Number: |
64260 |
| Day & Time: |
Wednesdays, 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM |
| Room: |
SRH 3.108 |
| Waitlist Information: | For LBJ Students: UT Waitlist Information
For Non LBJ Students: LBJ School Waitlist Instructions |
This course fulfills requirements for the following specialization(s):
- Social and Economic Policy
Description: This graduate level seminar traces the evolution of race policy in the United States from the development of the color line, through the current policy of equal opportunity, to alternative forecasts about the role of race in America?s future. Strong emphasis will be placed on understanding the circumstances that led to particular policies and policy changes. Students will be encouraged to read and develop their own interpretations of primary sources, such as Supreme Court cases, rather than to rely solely on the interpretations of scholars.
Students will complete two major assignments: a book review, and a research paper that deals with one of the following topics:
- Policies and practices affecting other (non-black) racial/ethnic groups in the United States,
- Policies and practices in other countries, or
- Civil rights policies in specific arenas such as education, housing or employment
Principal Texts: - Taylor Branch, Parting the Waters: America in the King Years, 1954-63, (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1988).
- W.E.B. DuBois, The Souls of Black Folk(any edition).
- Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Jay, The Federalist Papers (any edition).
- Jennifer Hochschild, Facing Up to the American Dream: Race, Class, and the Soul of the Nation, (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1995).
- Melvin Oliver and Thomas Shapiro, Black Wealth, White Wealth, (New York: Routledge, 1997).
- Edward Telles, Race in Another America: The Significance of Skin Color in Brazil, (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2004).
Course Outline: The development and evolution of race policy in the United States will be followed more-or-less chronologically for the first half of the semester. After that, the emphasis each week will depend partly on the content of students? research. The principal themes are:
- Original Intent. When, how and why did race become such an important feature of American society? Readings include selections from The Federalist Papers and the Dred Scott decision.
- Emancipation, Separate-But-Equal, and the Dawn of Protest. How did the Civil War Amendments answer the Dred Scott decision? What did Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois disagree about? Readings include Plessy, Washington?s Atlanta Exposition speech, and selections from The Souls of Black Folk.
- The Civil Rights Movement. What was the role of the black intelligentsia? How was the position of black Americans affected by the two world wars? Which branch of government proved to be most reliable in the advance of civil rights? Readings include Martin Luther King., Jr.?s ?Letter from Birmingham Jail? and Taylor Branch?s Parting the Waters.
- The New Policy Regime. What did people expect to happen as a result of the new civil rights laws? How effectively did the new policies address discrimination in education, housing and other areas? Why, with so much apparent progress, was there so much frustration? Readings include the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and President Johnson?s 1965 Howard University speech.
- Comparisons. How do the experiences of black Americans compare with those of other groups ? the internment of Japanese-Americans, for example? How does American race policy compare with that in other countries? Readings include Telles? Race in Another America.
- Outcomes and Controversies. How much better off are African-Americans today than they were before the passage of the civil rights acts? How did affirmative action become such an important part of the policy debate? Readings include selected Oliver and Shapiro?s Black Wealth, White Wealth.
- Forecasts and Policy Options. Where do we go from here? What are the alternative policy paths? Readings include Hochschild?s Facing Up to The American Dream.
Course Requirements and Expectations: Graduate students should be active participants in a process of discovery,. My responsibilities include getting the conversation started, guiding students toward existing knowledge and points of view, and assessing students? contributions to the class. I place great value on clear, concise writing and speaking, so students will be given ample opportunities to work on their communications skills. Course requirements include:
- Class attendance and participation ? 10%
- Short paper about expectations for class ? 10%
- Lead discussion of class readings ? 10%
- Book review (briefing and paper) ? 20%
- Outline and discussion of research paper ? 20%
- Research paper (15 to 20 pages) ? 30%
Discussions of race can be intellectually stimulating; they also can be emotionally challenging. Some issues may turn out to be more complicated than they initially appear. I expect us to show respect for one another?s views, to offer constructive criticism, and to observe high standards of academic integrity.
Class Size: up to 15
Return to Spring 2008 Course Schedule
