Question 1
Two recent high profile cases demonstrate themes of our course. They both have racial components and can be analyzed in light of Critical Race Theory, and the Ibram Kendi book.
Choose either the Kyle Rittenhouse case in Kenosha,Wisconsin – a case around self-defense & vigilantism or the Ahmaud Arbery case in Georgia. Choose one of these cases.
Describe the events that led to the case, but deeply and comprehensively analyze the case from a racial lens using both our textbooks and conversations in class. How does race, racism, systemic, and individual have relevance to the
case?
Write a full essay with an introduction,body and conclusion.
Textbooks [in reading order]
(1): Kendi, I. (2016), Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist
Ideas in America. New York: Bold Type Books.
(2): Schwartz, J. & Chaney, J.R., (2021) Gifts from the Dark: Learning from the
Incarceration Experience. Lanham, Maryland: Lexington Books.
(3): Alexander, M., (2012), The New Jim Crow. New York: The New Press.
(4)Optional and suggested: Mauer, M., (2006) Race to Incarcerate. Washington, D.C.:
The Sentencing Project.
Other optional texts will be discussed as well.
http://jjay.textbookx.com/institutional/index.php?action=browse#books/
2096966/
Question 2
The exoneration of two individuals who spent decades in prison for the murder of Malcolm X was recently in the media. Critical Race Theory (CRT) has also been prominent in the media. Choose either the Malcolm X exonerations or the CRT controversy.
Write a full essay that connects our studies in class (lectures, research, textbooks) to either the exonerations or CRT.
Center the role of race in your essay. How do you understand your topic through the history of racial thought?
Cite examples from class readings and discussion. Write a full essay with an introduction,body and conclusion.
Textbooks [in reading order]
(1): Kendi, I. (2016), Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist
Ideas in America. New York: Bold Type Books.
(2): Schwartz, J. & Chaney, J.R., (2021) Gifts from the Dark: Learning from the
Incarceration Experience. Lanham, Maryland: Lexington Books.
(3): Alexander, M., (2012), The New Jim Crow. New York: The New Press.
(4)Optional and suggested: Mauer, M., (2006) Race to Incarcerate. Washington, D.C.:
The Sentencing Project.
Other optional texts will be discussed as well.
http://jjay.textbookx.com/institutional/index.php?action=browse#books/
2096966/
