CALS 219

Chicano/Latino Identity and Heritage

Friday 9-11:40am, Stevenson 2006

 

Professor Patricia Kim-Rajal

NH 208, 664-3294, patricia.kim-rajal@sonoma.edu

Office Hours: Tuesday 1-2pm and 5-6 pm, Thursday 5-6pm and by appointment

 

Course Description

Identity gives us a sense of who we are; it describes how we think of ourselves both as individuals and in relation to others.  In this course we will analyze this concept in relation to Latina/o populations in the United States.  We will begin by examining some of the key issues affecting Latinas/os today, including immigration, employment, education and ethnic politics.  This will highlight how shared concerns shape contemporary Latina/o identities.  The course also contains a brief overview of the historical heritage of major Latina/o groups in the United States that highlights the unique immigration and settlement patterns of various communities.  Finally, we will consider U.S. Latina/o identities in relation to questions of class, race, gender, sexual orientation, and national origins. 

 

Please note that some of the media, readings and lectures in this course may contain nudity, sexuality and/or vulgar language.  If you feel uncomfortable reading, watching, listening to or discussing this material, please consider dropping the course. 

 

Evaluation

Attendance and Participation                             10%

Response Paper                                       10%

Midterms (2, 20% each)                            40%

Short Essay                                                   20%    

Final                                                                 20%

Attendance and Participation

You are expected to attend class on a regular basis having first completed the assigned readings in a timely manner.  While this is a lecture-driven course, I encourage all of you to participate by sharing your thoughts or questions on the material at hand.  Please remember that the classroom is a safe space for discussion of political, social and cultural differences.  Improper and rude behavior, such as side conversations, repeated tardiness, or use of a condescending tone toward your peers is not acceptable.  

Response Paper

A short (3-5 pages) response paper in which you will be expected to effectively argue for or against a particular text—in effect “responding” to it.  Details will follow.   

Midterms

The midterms will follow a definition and short answer format.  Please remember to bring a bluebook to class on the scheduled dates. 

Short Essay

Toward the end of the course you will be expected a short essay (4-6 pages) discussing Latina identities as presented in The Dirty Girls’ Social Club.  Details will follow.

Final

The final exam will be an in-class essay.  The prompt will be distributed during our last class meeting.  While you will not be penalized for collaborating while preparing for the exam, keep in mind that plagiarism is a serious offense that can result in suspension and expulsion.  

 

Any students needing special accommodations are urged to contact me during the early part of the course so that suitable arrangements can be made. 

 

Required Readings

Available at North Light Books, 550 E. Cotati Avenue:  

 

In addition, reading assignments followed by an [R] in the weekly schedule can be found in the course reader available at The College Copy Shop (E. Cotati at Colegio).

 

 

 

 

Weekly Schedule

Week 1            What is identity?

2/2                   Introduction to and overview of the course.  Definitions of “identity” from             Dictionary.com (http://dictionary.reference.com/).

 

Week 2            Group Identities and Their Uses

2/10                 Richard T. Schaefer “Prejudice” and “Discrimination” in Race and                           Ethnicity in the United States [R]

George Lipsitz “The Possessive Investment in Whiteness” in The Possessive Investment in Whiteness [R]

                        Media: Excerpts from Race: The Power of An Illusion

 

Week 3            Inventing Latinos and the Fear of “Hispanization”

2/17                 Suzanne Oboler “’So Far From God, So Close To the United States’: The Roots of Hispanic Homogenization” (17-44) from Ethnic Labels, Latino Lives [R]

                        Samuel Huntington “José, Can You See?” in Foreign Policy (March/April 2004) [R]

                        Gonzalez, chapter 12

 

Week 4            Parallel histories, Common ground?

2/24                 RESPONSE PAPER DUE

                        Gonzalez, chapters 1-3

                        Ana Celia Zentella “Latin@ Languages and Identities” in Latinos:                                               Remaking America

 
Week 5            Common concerns: Immigration

3/3                   Wayne A. Cornelius “Ambivalent Reception: Mass Public Responses to the ‘New’ Latino Immigration to the United States” in Latinos: Remaking America

                        Jacqueline Hagan and Nestor Rodriguez “Resurrecting Exclusion: The Effects of 1996 U.S. Immigration Reforms on Communities and Families in Texas, El Salvador and Mexico” in Latinos: Remaking America

                        Gonzalez, chapter 11

                        MEDIA???

 

Week 6            Common concerns: Changes in la cultura and la familia

3/10                 Peggy Levitt “Two Nations Under God? Latino Religious Life in the                                United States” in Latinos: Remaking America

Pierrette Hondageneu-Sotelo “Families on the Frontier: From Braceros in the Field to Braceras in the Home” in Latinos: Remaking America

                        Celia Jaes Falicov “Ambiguous Loss: Risk and Resilience in Latino Immigrant Families” in Latinos: Remaking America

                        Ricardo C. Ainslie “The Plasticity of Culture and Psychodynamic and Psychosocial Processes in Latino Immigrant Families” in Latinos: Remaking America

 

Week 7             Midterm #1

3/17                 FIRST MIDTERM EXAM

 
Week 8            Common concerns: Education

3/24                 Patricia Gándara “Learning English in California: Guideposts for the Nation” in Latinos: Remaking America

                        Luis C. Moll and Richard Ruiz “The Schooling of Latino Children” in Latinos: Remaking America

                        Jorge Chopa “Affirmative Action, X Percent Plans, and Latino Access to Higher Education the Twenty-first Century” and Gary Orfield “Commentary” in Latinos: Remaking America

                       

Week 9            Common concerns: Labor and Healthcare

3/31                 John Trumpbour and Elaine Bernard “Unions and Latinos: Mutual Transformation” in Latinos: Remaking America

                        E. Richard Brown and Hongjian Yu “Latinos’ Access to Employment-based Health Insurance” and Paul Farmer “Commentary” in Latinos: Remaking America

                        David Hayes-Bautista “The Latino Health Research Agenda for the Twenty-First Century” in Latinos: Remaking America

           

Week 10             Latino Political Participation

4/7                   De Sipio and de la Garza “Forever Seen as New: Latino Participation in American Elections” in Latinos: Remaking America

                        Lisa J. Montoya “Gender and Citizenship in Latino Political Participation” in Latinos: Remaking America

                        Gonzalez, chapter 10

 

Week 11            Midterm #2

4/14                 SECOND MIDTERM EXAM

 

Week 12            Spring Break

 

Week 13            The Two Territories: Cuba and Puerto Rico

4/28                 Juan Flores “Islands and Enclaves: Caribbean Latinos in Historical Perspective” in Latinos: Remaking America

                        Stepick and Stepick “Power and Identity: Miami Cubans” in Latinos: Remaking America

                        Gonzalez, chapters 4 and 6

 

Week 14             Dominicans, Mexicans and Centrals Americans

5/5                   Gonzalez, chapters 5, 7 and 8

                        Begin reading The Dirty Girls Social Club (due next week)

 

Week 15            Gender and Latina/o Identities

5/12                 SOMETHING FROM ANZALDUA

                        Robert C. Smith “Gender, Ethnicity and Race in School and Work

Outcomes for Second Generation Mexican-Americans” in Latinos: Remaking America

Finish The Dirty Girls Social Club

Media: Sexuality in Mesoamerica: Machismo and Marianismo (VHS 3635)

 

Week 16            Race and Sexuality

5/19                 SHORT ESSAY DUE

                        Silvio Torres-Saillant “Problematic Paradigms: Racial Diversity and Corporate Identity in the Latino Community” in Latinos: Remaking America

Román “Teatro Viva!: Latino Performance and the Politics of AIDS in Los Angeles” (211-227) in Latinos: Remaking America

 
5/24                 Final exam