GVPT479Q

This course examines race, ethnicity, and politics in the United States through histories that are often ignored, minimized, or erased in standard political narratives. Using NPR's Code Switch as a central text, the course highlights how racial and ethnic groups have shaped political institutions, policy debates, and collective action in ways that rarely appear in textbooks. We explore topics including immigration restriction, colonial governance, Indigenous sovereignty, labor politics, coalition building, and public goods, drawing on cases across Black, Indigenous, Asian American, Latinx, Arab American, and Pacific Islander communities. Students will analyze how political power operates through memory, law, and institutions, and how forgotten histories change how we understand democracy, citizenship, and political participation today.