HIS 270 - African American History I (4 Cr.)

This course surveys the history of African Americans in the United States between 1619 and 1877. Beginning with a brief overview of the various African cultures that informed black life in early America, the course proceeds with an in depth exploration into historical processes that linked race, gender, and class during the eras of slavery and abolition. Some of the broad themes that we will explore are: 1) The historical relationship between African culture & African American cultural development; 2) The importance of resistance and social struggle in the formation of black identity; 3) The social construction of race and its connection to both legal regimes and lived realities; and 4) The relationship between race & African American ideas about belonging. Students interested in topics such as slavery and resistance, the historical origins of black folk culture, the Haitian and American Revolution, and the role of black abolitionists and intellectuals during the age of Dred Scott and the Fugitive Slave Act will find this class interesting. First offered 2013. Dator