Time Schedule:
Carolyn Pinedo-Turnovsky
AES 498
Seattle Campus
Designed to provide the student an opportunity to concentrate on one specific aspect of American Ethnic Studies through a comparative, interdisciplinary approach.
Class description
Please see note below about REQUIRED READINGS. Migration, Citizenship and Identity: In this course, we will examine the relationship among labor, migration, citizenship and identity in the U.S. In particular, we will consider different understandings about the concepts and experiences of citizen[ship] and [il]legality to answer the following: How do intersecting structures like gender, race, labor and migration shape identity? How do they shape different situations and degrees of belonging? How are citizen[ship] and [il]legality simultaneously constructed? We will use course material and data collected throughout the term to study how these concepts are constructed at these intersections. And we will examine the interactions among individuals, groups and institutions in various settings like labor, education, politics, etc. to understand the impacts on social, economic, political and cultural life and see how this translates into inequality in daily life. Our goal will be to complicate our understandings about the meanings of citizen[ship] and [il]legality to capture the varied perspectives, processes and situations that reflect how "social life is messy" (Blumer,1969, Goffman,1974, Smith,1987). We will consider the implications of transnational connections whenever possible to consider the above in a comparative framework.
Student learning goals
General method of instruction
Recommended preparation
Class assignments and grading
REQUIRED READINGS: Course Reader for purchase. More info will be available closer to start of classes. Ong, Aihwa. Buddha is Hiding. Refugees, Citizenship, the New America. University of California Press, 2003. PUEBLO Education Fund. In the Shadows of Paradise. Testimonies from the Undocumented Immigrant Community in Santa Barbara, 2008. Additional reading assignments will be available on the course website or in the library reserves.
