SOC 187 A-Z - (BH) Special TopicsSemester Hours: 3
Fall, Spring
The course deals with innovative topics.
Current Special Topics
SOC 187C - Social Justice and Social Change
This course will focus on concepts, processes, practices, and goals of social justice. It will involve a discussion of social justice as equal/equitable access and distribution of resources, a process and practice that is inclusive and participatory, and goals that ensure the rights and human well-being of all. We will discuss why and how sociologists frame social justice and highlight some of the sites, contexts, and connections in which social justice issues are raised. Special attention will be devoted to examining social justice to social and economic inequalities. We will consider intersecting systems of domination, oppression, forms of resistance, and visions for transformative social change. Concepts of power, privilege, diversity, inclusion, identity, vulnerabilities, and resilience will be drawn upon. We will explore individual action, policy, advocacy, and collective action and consider how we can use our sociological imagination to effectively partner to build a more just world.
SOC 187H - Sociology of Hip-Hop
This course explores the cultural reach of Hip Hop music. Once a small genre of urban music localized to New York City’s disc jockey culture in the1980s, Hip Hop has grown into one of the most listened to and copied genres in the world, while also being one of the most emblematic expressions of American capitalist desire. From Blues, Jazz, and Gospel, to Rock and Roll and Funk, this course will trace the ancestral lineage of Hip Hop music, and its influence on American culture, trends, youth movements, politics and social deviance. Hip Hop music began as a reflection of exclusivity, but rapidly came to define what we eat, what we wear, and most importantly, how we interact with others.
SOC 187K - Islamophobia
A current surge in anti-Muslim sentiments and their religion, Islam, has been widely manifested in political and social discourse. These are all signs of Islamophobia based on the belief in stereotypes that marginalize people who are Muslim. This course explores these anxieties, covering topics such as the role of the media, the rise in hate crimes and bigotry and the funding of hate groups. The course also examines how Islamophobia can be understood within the broader history and of race relations in the U.S.
SOC 187L - Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities in the United States
There are large racial and ethnic health disparities in the United States and many similar countries around the world. Focusing on the United States, this course explores the patterns of racial and ethnic disparities in health and the social sources driving these persistent gaps in health. More specifically, this course examines racial and ethnic disparities in health between White and non-White populations and social forces linked to ongoing gaps in health, such as socioeconomic status, neighborhoods, segregation, interactions with the healthcare system, and racial discrimination. This course will also discuss some of the challenges related to the study of racial and ethnic disparities in health.
SOC 187Z - Violence and Society
Even though the study of violence is an important part of sociology, its study has been pushed to the margins of our discipline. We rarely take the time to reflect on this prevalent social fact. And when we do it, it is to morally judge the agents of violence. But what is violence? Is it only a physical phenomenon? Do we only experience violence individually, or is it also a collective experience? What are the sources of organized violence? Do social structures and institutions produce violence? Do power and domination relate to violence? Is the use of violence a rational enterprise? Violence and Society explores these and other important social inquiries. To do so, it takes a marked structural approach to the examination of violence. The readings selected focus - not exclusively but mainly- on how the State produces violence and how non-state organizations implement violence to match, respond to, and/or contest what they perceive as State, economic, and/or cultural violence.
Prerequisite(s)/Course Notes:
May be repeated for credit when topics vary. As individual subjects are selected, each is assigned a letter (A-Z) which is affixed to the course number. Specific titles and course descriptions for special topics courses are available in the online class schedule.
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