ES 254 Introduction to Chicanx/Latinx Studies

This course introduces students to the fields of Chicanx and Latinx Studies. Drawing from historical, social science, ethnographic, and visual texts, it can serve as a foundation for students wanting to pursue more advanced courses in Chicanx, Latinx, Ethnic, Latin American, and Caribbean Studies. Thematically, this course emphasizes the historical foundations and political concerns surrounding contemporary Latinx experiences; colonization, migration, and immigration; questions of nation and citizenship; and histories of resistance.

Credits

4

Course Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this course, the student will be able to:
1. Summarize the basic principles (migration, labor, empire, colonization) of the history of Chicanx and Latinx people within a social and historical framework both before and after the U.S. was created.
2. Examine ways that Chicanx and Latinx people in the United States have actively shaped their own history and contributed to U.S. history.
3. Interpret historical tensions inherent in the panethnic (umbrella) term, “Latinx”.
4. Explain contemporary issues concerning Chicanx and Latinx populations in the U.S. in relational contexts and projections of identity in American political, ideological discourses, popular culture, and media.