Ethnic Studies and Education

EDST 127 Subject & Catalog Number

Description

How might the study of our collective past and present through a comparative, humanizing lens support our ability to contextualize and confront the challenges of our present? This course introduces students to the origins, epistemologies, frameworks, key concepts, and central questions in the field and community of Ethnic Studies, while applying these concepts and questions to our own educational experiences and the various contexts that we navigate. The course begins with an examination and analysis of self and impact of dominant and counter narratives throughout history, which will provide a foundation for the second half of the course when we examine more recent histories and issues faced by communities of color, including the ongoing struggle for Ethnic Studies here at Harvard. Topics will include, but are not limited to: settler colonialism, race, racism, ethnicity, migration, labor, colonialism, social movements, oppression, intergenerational trauma and resilience, white supremacy, power, agency, liberation, intersectionality, community action, healing centered engagement, solidarity, and social change. This course is designed to be both an individual and collective journey that challenges each of us to critically reflect upon what it means to authentically exercise solidarity in ways that actively interrupt oppression and humanize all participants in classrooms, communities, and beyond.