This course explores the African American struggle for equality, liberation, and justice from Reconstruction through to the present. We will examine how gender, class, sexuality, and ideology, among other factors, have shaped the history of black protest and community. We will visit key periods and themes including Jim Crow/segregation, The Great Migration, World War II, Civil Rights, Black Power, and Black Lives Matter, to understand the intersection of the African American lives and American history. Central to this course are the ways that African Americans have exposed American hypocrisy; have shown their historical patriotism; and have challenged American institutions to live up to their professed ideals. |