Final Essay
This essay will be a test of student’s ability to either craft an original essay on a topic concerning race and racism in the United States or to respond to a deep-dive question concerning race and ethnic relations in the United States using material covered thus far in class. Students are expected to properly cite all sources using ASA format. Your essay should include a thesis, evidence from the test supporting your thesis, and a summary of your argument. Please be aware, this assignment is not a test of how well students craft essays that they may believe align with positions held by the instructor. This essay should be based on what you think and the evidence that has led you to hold such positions. You will be graded on the substance of your argument, your use of material to support your argument, writing style and clarity, and how convincingly you argue your position. A separate grading rubric will be provided as a guideline for the essay. Below are two prompts from which you must choose one question to craft your essay in response to if you choose not to craft an essay based on your own topic.
Essay Prompts:
- How has ideas about gender and sexuality impacted racial formation in the United States? What were (and are) the implications of such social constructions? And finally, what role have women, both white and Black, played in the race relations?
REQUIRED TEXTS
Winant, Howard and Michael Omi. 2015. Racial Formation in the United States, third edition. Routledge: New York, New York.
ISBN: 978-0415520317
Roediger, David R. 2007. The Wages of Whiteness: Race and the Making of the American Working Class. Verso: New York, New York.
ISBN: 978-1844671458
McGuire, Daniel. 2010. At the dark End of the Street: Black Women, Rape, and Resistance—a New History of the Civil Rights Movement from Rosa Parks to the Rise of Black Power. Vintage Books: New York.
ISBN: 978-0307389244
