Latinxs have formed an important part of the televisual fabric of America, ranging from Desi Arnaz’s “Ricky Ricardo” in I Love Lucy to television series such as Chico and the Man, Ugly Betty, and Pose. In the last decade, Latinx independent content creators and multiplatform networks such as mitú and Pero Like have offered trailblazing content through social media entertainment. This course surveys the participation and representation of Latinxs in U.S.-based English- and Spanish-language television and new media entertainment. Throughout the quarter we will chronicle the history of Latinxs in English-language commercial, cable, and public television; the origins and workings of U.S. Spanish-language television networks and programming; and the renaissance of Latinx television in streaming platforms, such as Netflix. The course will conclude with the advent of new media, paying particular attention to Latinx independent webseries and social media entertainment.
Days: MO WE  02:00-03:20 PM

Mexico is an enigma—from tropical rainforests to searing deserts, pinnacles of wealth to depths of despair, it is a land of extremes. On the verge of collapse more than once, Mexico now boasts one of the world’s largest economies. This course introduces students to the story of Mexico’s formation and evolution from colonial times to the present. This will be a broad analysis of the place that history has played in national political structures, economic formations, and social movements. We will examine the indigenous roots of pre-Columbian Mexico, the impact of conquest and colonization, the struggle of nation-building, revolution, reconstruction, and development. Particular attention will focus on the forces—both internal and external—that have contributed to shaping a Mexican identity. These issues will be covered through lectures, videos, and primary/secondary readings.
Days: MO WE  01:00-01:50 PM

The Early Caribbean will explore the history of the Caribbean from the arrival of humans 8,000 years ago through the abolition of slavery in the 19th century. The course will explore the arrival and evolution of indigenous cultures, the colonization by Europeans and the economic and racial systems that emerged as a result. It argues that the Caribbean is the birthplace of the colonial project that would come to envelop the globe. The class will show how for several centuries the Caribbean was at the center of European economics and geo-political rivalries. It will explore the lived experiences of slavery, resistance to the institution, and abolition. It will chronicle the ways in which people of African descent resisted racial subjugation and built cultures based on their African ancestry and the new environments where they were transplanted. We will also study the experience of Black, White, and Indigenous women during the birth and expansion of the colonial project. The curriculum will draw into relief the ways in which people across all levels of society resisted colonial impositions in efforts to craft new lives in the Caribbean. Students will be presented with primary documents that highlight the ways in which the people who lived in period conceived of the Caribbean and understood themselves within its structures.

Days: MO WE  10:00-10:50 AM