Politics 318: Special Studies in Politics - Intermediate Level: Race, Citizenship, & Reparations

In the United States, citizenship is often described in idealistic terms. Not only are all American citizens meant to have equal standing in society, but so too should those who desire to become American citizens have equal access to the protections and promises of citizenship. Yet when attention is paid to the legal, political, and social histories of American citizenship practices, it is possible to see that these ideals are marked by the colonization, domination, and disenfranchisement of groups defined as racially "other" -- and therefore outside the bonds and boundaries of citizenship. In this course, we will explore how shifting notions of race condition who can claim status as a citizen and whether that status provides access to lived experiences of equality, liberty, and freedom. We will ask: How do we understand the coexistence of claims to equal citizenship in the United States given the historical realities of enslavement and race-based exclusion? What does it mean to be an American citizen and how has that meaning been shaped by the construction of racial identities across space, time, and geographies? How might considerations of race in matters of citizenship also be shaped by other factors like sex, gender, national origin, religion, and class? Is citizenship actually a universal concept -- that is, a concept that is open, in principle, to anyone at any time? Or is it an exclusive concept -- reserved for a select few? And if racial injustice is not separable from citizenship, is it possible to remake American citizenship among more egalitarian lines -- or offer reparations for continued exclusion from a body politic?