This course is designed as a general and broad introduction to the social scientific study of social processes related to ethnicity and race, with a focus on the United States and a secondary focus on global issues. The groups most frequently discussed in the course will be white Americans and the "white ethnics," black and/or African Americans, Latino and Asian Americans, and American Indians.
 
Some of the issues addressed in the course include the following:

• how ethnicity and race are social and historical constructs
• assimilationism and cultural pluralism
• immigration and immigrants
• the causes of ethnic pluralism in America
• discrimination, institutionalized racism, and racial inequalities
• residential segregation

 
The course is taught primarily using a lecture format, with several films and discussions of them. Readings include three books (The Ethnic Myth, Ethnicity and Race, and Who is White?) and several articles on reserve. Grades will be based primarily on performance on four or five exams, which may include all types of questions (multiple choice, short answers, and essays).