SOCY3303.01: The Social Construction of Whiteness
Spring 2016, Gasson 209
Mondays 3:00-5:30 p.m.
Prof. Deborah Piatelli
Department of Sociology
millerdp@bc.edu
Office hours: Mondays by appointment 12:00-2:00 p.m.; Thursdays 5:00-6:00 p.m.
McGuinn 425
Seminar Description
This discussion-based seminar course explores the social construction of race through the lens of
whiteness. Why talk about whiteness? Contrary to popular belief that we are now living in a post-racial
society, systemic racial discrimination and inequality persists. By considering whiteness as both a race
and historical system of privilege, we can gain a deeper understanding of the persistence of racism that
can better inform our strategies to end it. Over the course of the semester, we will draw upon the work of
critical race scholars and theoretically and practically examine the distribution of privilege within
American society, as well as consider how whiteness operates within the social constructs of class and
gender.
Through writing and in-class group discussion in both small and larger groups, students will examine
their own identities and lived experiences and consider how consciously or unconsciously they are
affected by these processes, as well as discuss and develop strategies for challenging racism and privilege
at the individual and structural levels.
This seminar will encourage reflection and questioning of how and why we think in certain ways and the
influence (intended or unintended) this can have on our interactions. Although these topics may be
uncomfortable to talk about, it is important to realize that we can learn a great deal from each other
through active listening and dialoguing. Therefore classroom participation is a mandatory requirement for
this course. In order to move from reflection to dialogue to action, each student will be asked to
participate in an action of their choice and present their experiences engaging in racial justice advocacy.
“Hidden biases are bits of knowledge that are stored in our brains because we encounter them so
frequently in our cultural environments. Once lodged in our minds, hidden biases can influence our
behavior toward members of particular social groups, but we remain oblivious to their influence. Most
people find it unbelievable that their behavior can be guided by mental content of which they are
unaware.” [Banaji and Greenwald, 2013 in Blindspot, pp. xii]
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Seminar Objectives
§
Increase one’s cultural competency: Identify and articulate your personal feelings, fears, attitudes and
behaviors about the issues of privilege and racism in order to build a better understanding of self.
Develop an empathetic understanding of a perspective different from your own and demonstrate
receptiveness to being challenged on views and beliefs. Recognize and discuss how white privilege
operates in everyday discourse.
§
Build the components of a racial consciousness: Explain the historical relationship between white
privilege, inequality and racism and how it has and continues to structure contemporary society. Be
able to clearly define and differentiate the concepts of prejudice and racism. Understand one’s own
racism and racial prejudices and how that influences one’s behavior and interactions with others.
Articulate your own path to racial conscious and identify steps for becoming more racially aware.
§ Develop a racial justice advocate identity: Describe the ways in which you can be critical racial justice
advocate in your everyday life. Conduct a mini-sociological research project on how whiteness,
privilege, and racism operates in everyday life. Describe and develop specific strategies designed to
challenge racism on both the individual and institutional levels through an action project focused on
racial justice.
Seminar Requirements
Class participation (25% of your grade)
Class participation is required, as much of the learning will take place in the classroom through
participation in class discussions. It is expected that when you are in class you will participate and come
to each class session having completed the assigned readings and prepared to discuss the material. The
quality of your participation as well as absences and lateness will be noted as this has an effect on group
discussion. More than one unexcused absence* from class will result in points deducted from your class
participation grade.
Four (4) Reflection Papers (10% of your grade)
You will be asked to submit a reflection paper to Prof. Piatelli at the end of each week as noted on the
syllabus (for a total of 4 reflection papers). Note that the frequency of these papers will decrease as you
begin to write your thematic papers. These papers should be a maximum of three (3), double-spaced
pages and emailed to Prof. Piatelli no later than Friday at 11:59 p.m. for the week they are due.
Dates are listed on the course schedule.
In these papers, you should discuss how you are interacting with the course material and discussions (the
ideas presented by the authors, the way that you are integrating the readings into your thinking, the way
your personal experiences may/may not related to the issues raised by the readings/discussions). The
writing can be informal, but should be thoughtful, reflective and draw upon the reading and discussion.
Your papers should NOT simply be a summary of a reading, film or class discussion, but rather
demonstrate how you are relating the readings/film/class discussion to each other, to readings from other
weeks, and/or your own life. You may also explore ideas that may not be covered in class or that you may
be hesitant to assert verbally.
Possible questions to think about when writing: How do the readings, films, and/or discussions make me
feel? Do I sometimes feel uncomfortable? Why? Do the readings make me think differently about my
own life experiences? Does the author raise issues I have not thought about before? Is there something
that has been bothering me that I have felt reluctant to bring up in class? Is the class raising issues I want
to learn more about? Is this class making me think about things in new ways?
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Each paper will be evaluated based on its thoughtfulness, insight, and engagement with the course
material and discussion. I may draw on your reflections (anonymously) in the classroom to foster
discussion. I also encourage you to share your reflections in the classroom.
Four (4) Thematic Papers (45% of your grade)
You will be asked to complete four, longer, essay-based papers on a particular theme discussed in class.
These papers are more formal than the reflection papers and MUST draw on and cite the readings from
the course syllabus in a more detailed manner. These guides, along with page requirements, can be found
on Canvas.
Thematic paper #1 Historical Memories of Race (10%)
Thematic paper #2 Racial Identity Awareness (10%)
Thematic paper #3 Observing and Analyzing Racetalk (15%)
Thematic paper #4 Institutional Racism (10%)
Due: Friday, February 26
Due: Friday, March 18
Due: Friday, April 8
Due: Friday, May 6
Action Project and Presentation (20% of your grade)
This assignment involves working with a small group of your classmates (3-4 students) in analyzing and
presenting a critical issue regarding race. As a group, you will develop and present your project to the
class on one of the class presentation sessions (see course schedule). Presentations will be scheduled in
30-minute increments. As a part of your presentation, you should plan to leave at least 5 minutes for class
discussion. (We may adjust timeframe depending on how many presentations we have scheduled for the
semester.) More information on this assignment will be forthcoming during the semester and a copy can
also be found on Canvas.
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Required Texts (available in bookstore and on reserve)
*Rothenberg, Paula S. (2015). White privilege: Essential readings on the other side of racism. Fifth
edition. New York: Worth Publishers.
*Tatum, Beverly Daniel. (2003). Why are all the Black kids sitting together in the cafeteria? New York:
Basic Books. (Any edition is fine.)
*Trepagnier, Barbara. (2010). Silent racism: How well-meaning white people perpetuate the racial divide.
Boulder, Colo.: Paradigm Publishers. (Any edition is fine.)
*Wise, Tim. (2011). White like me: Reflections on race from a privileged son. Berkeley, Calif.: Soft Skull
Press. (Any edition is fine.)
Seminar Policies
Grading scale and late work: 95-100 (A); 90-94 (A-); 87-89 (B+); 84-86 (B); 80-83 (B-); 77-79 (C+);
74-76 (C); 70-73 (C-), etc. As the assignments build upon your knowledge throughout the course, it is
important that you complete your assignments on time so that you are able to receive feedback to improve
your learning and I can evaluate my effectiveness in the classroom.
*If you have extenuating circumstances that will prevent you from meeting the above requirements, you
must make an appointment to discuss your situation with Prof. Piatelli. You may be required to provide a
letter from your health services provider or Dean if you are seeking an excused absence from class or
extra time for your assignments. Otherwise, you will lose 5 points each day the assignment is late.
Students requiring accommodations
If you have a learning disability and are requesting accommodations for this course, please register with
Dr. Kathy Duggan (dugganka@bc.edu), Associate Director, Connors Family Learning Center. For other
types of disabilities, register with Ms. Paulette Durrett (paulette.durrett@bc.edu), Assistant Dean for
Students with Disabilities. Advance notice and appropriate documentation are required for all
accommodations.
Academic integrity
All students are expected to understand the university’s policy about academic integrity. It can be found
at www.bc.edu/offices/stserv/academic/integrity.html. Any violations of this policy will result in penalties
prescribed by the university. A list of writing resources to assist you in citing sources is available from the
library and can be found at http://www.bc.edu/libraries/help/citation/formatting.html.
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Seminar Schedule
I: THEORIZING AND DEFINING WHITENESS
Monday, January 25
Dialoging about whiteness
Reflection Due Friday
Required Readings:
* Tatum, Chapter 2 (The complexity of identity)
* Tatum, Chapter 10 (Embracing a cross-racial dialogue)
* Rothenberg, Chapter 3 in Part Four (How white people can serve as allies to people of color
in the struggle to end racism)
Recommended Reading:
* Warren, Mark R. (2010). Working with white people: Challenging racism in the context
of inclusion. In Fire in the heart: How white activists embrace racial justice (pp. 113148). COURSE RESERVES
Monday, February 1
Social construction of whiteness
Reflection Due Friday
Required Readings:
* Bonilla-Silva, Eduardo. (2007). Racialized social systems approach to racism. In
Charles Gallagher (Ed.), Rethinking the color line: Readings in race and ethnicity (pp.
46-55). COURSE RESERVES
* Rothenberg, Introduction; Chapter 3 in Part One (The invisible whiteness of being)
* Wellman, David. (1993). Introduction to the second edition. In Portraits of white
racism (pp. 1-26). COURSE RESERVES
* Wilson, William Julius. (1980). From racial oppression to economic class subordination.
In The declining significance of race (pp. 1-23). COURSE RESERVES
Recommended Reading:
* DuBois, W.E.B. (1920). The souls of white folk. In Darkwater: Voices from within the
veil (pp. 17-29). COURSE RESERVES
* Hobgood, Mary Elizabeth. (2009). An ethical agenda for elites. In Dismantling privilege:
An ethics of accountability (pp. 14-41). COURSE RESERVES
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Monday, February 8
Historical construction of whiteness
Reflection Due Friday
Film in class: Race: The power of an illusion, Episode 2: The story we tell
Required Reading:
* Horsman, Reginald. (1997). Race and manifest destiny: The origins of American
racial Anglo-Saxonism. In Richard Delgago and Jean Stefancic (Eds.), Critical white studies:
Looking behind the mirror (pp. 139-144). COURSE RESERVES
* Mukhopadhyay, Carol C. (2011). Getting rid of the word ‘Caucasian.’ In Mica Pollock (Ed.),
in Everyday antiracism: Getting real about race in school (pp. 12-16). COURSE
RESERVES
* Rothenberg, Chapter 7 in Part Two (Global white supremacy)
Recommended Reading:
* Gallagher, Charles A. (2008). The end of racism as the new doxa: New strategies
for researching race. In Tukufu Zuberi and Eduardo Bonilla-Silva (Eds.), White logic, white
methods: Racism and methodology (pp. 163-178). COURSE RESERVES
Monday, February 15
Fluidity of whiteness
Reflection Due Friday
Required Readings:
* Huntington, Samuel P. (2004). Forward and Components of American identity. In Who are
we? The challenges to America’s national identity (pp. xv-xvii and 37-58). COURSE
RESERVES
* Rothenberg, Chapter 6 in Part Three (Are Iranians people of color?)
* Yancey, George. (2003). How to become white. In Who is white? Latinos, Asians, and
the new Black/Nonblack divide (pp. 27-62). COURSE RESERVES
Recommended Reading:
* Rothenberg, Chapters in Part 2
Monday, February 22
Defining whiteness
Thematic Paper #1 Due Friday
Film in class: White privilege: Racism, white denial & the costs of inequality
Required Readings:
* Rothenberg, Chapter 3 in Part Three (White privilege: Unpacking the invisible knapsack)
* Tatum, Chapter 1 (Defining racism)
* Trepagnier, Chapter 1 (Rethinking racism) and Chapter 4 (The production of
institutional racism)
Recommended Reading:
* Kivel, Paul. (2011). Part V: Fighting institutional racism. In Uprooting racism: How white
people can work for racial justice (pp. 209-278). COURSE RESERVES
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II. WHITENESS IN EVERYDAY LIFE
Monday, February 29
Racial identity and awareness
Required Readings:
* Tatum, Part II (Understanding blackness in a white context, all chapters); Part III
(Understanding whiteness in a white context, Chapter 6); Part IV (Beyond black
and white, all chapters)
* Trepagnier, Chapter 5 (Race awareness matters)
* Wise, Tim. Entire book
Recommended Readings:
* Carbado, Devon and Mitu Gulati. (2013). Acting out the racial double bind (or being
black like Obama). In Acting white? Rethinking race in post-racial America (pp. 1-20).
COURSE RESERVES
* García, José. (2007). The hatred within. In Andrew Garrod, et.al. (Eds)., Mi voz, mi vida:
Latino college students tell their life stories (pp. 72-88). COURSE RESERVES
* Lee, Leah. (2007). Korea is my heart and soul, America is my mind and spirit. In Andrew
Garrod and Robert Kilkenny (Eds.), Balancing two worlds: Asian American college
students tell their life stories (pp. 108-122). COURSE RESERVES
* Ozaki, C. Casey and Kristen A. Renn. (2014). Engaging multiracial college students. In
Stephen John Quaye, et.al. (Eds.), Student engagement in higher education: Theoretical
perspectives and practical approaches for diverse populations (pp. 91-104). COURSE
RESERVES
SPRING BREAK
Monday, March 14
White talk
Thematic Paper #2 Due Friday
Required Readings:
* Bonilla-Silva, Eduardo. (2006). The central frames of color-blind racism. In Racism
without racists: Colorblind racism and the persistence of racial inequality in the United
States (pp. 25-52). COURSE RESERVES
* Kivel, Paul. (2011). It’s not just a joke. In Uprooting racism: How white people can work for
racial justice (pp. 130-133). COURSE RESERVES
* Trepagnier, Chapter 2 (Silent racism)
Recommended Readings:
* Tatum, Beverly Daniel. (2007). What kind of friendship is that? The search for authenticity,
mutuality, and social transformation in cross-racial relationships. In Can We Talk About
Race? (pp. 83-104) COURSE RESERVES
* Trepagnier, Chapter 6 (Antiracist practice)
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III. INSTITUTIONAL WHITENESS
Monday, March 21
Whiteness on the college campus
Readings:
* Chesler, Mark, et.al. (2005). Students of color in the university. In Challenging racism in
higher education (pp. 79-98 and 99-120). COURSE RESERVES
* Chesler, Mark, et.al. (2005). White students in the university. In Challenging racism in
higher education (pp. 79-98). COURSE RESERVES
* Lewis, Amanda E. and Michelle J. Manno. (2011). The best education for some:
Race and schooling in the United States today. In Moon-Kie Jung, et.al., State of white
supremacy: Racism, governance and the United States (pp. 93-109). COURSE RESERVES
Recommended Readings:
* Feagin, Joe, and Eileen O’Brien. (2003). Issues of interracial dating and marriage.
In White Men on Race: Power Privilege and the Shaping of Cultural
Consciousness (pp. 131-154). COURSE RESERVES
* Nenga, Sandi Kawecka. (2011). Volunteering to give up privilege? How affluent
youth volunteers respond to class privilege. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography,
40:263-289. COURSE RESERVES
EASTER MONDAY
Thematic Paper #3 Due Friday
Monday, April 4
Whiteness and the workplace
Readings:
* Feagin, Joe, and Eileen O’Brien. (2003). Views on public policy: Affirmative action. In
White men on race: Power, privilege and the shaping ofcultural consciousness (pp. 189-225).
COURSE RESERVES
* Tatum, Part III (White identity and affirmative action, Chapter 7)
Recommended Readings
* Sander, Richard J. and Stuart Taylor, Jr. (2012). The idea of mismatch and why it matters.
and Why academics avoid honest debate about affirmative action. In Mismatch: How
affirmative action hurts students it’s intended to help, and why universities won’t admit it (pp.
3-14 and 175-184). COURSE RESERVES
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Monday, April 11
Whiteness and the criminal justice system
Required Readings:
* Alexander, Michelle. (2010). The rebirth of caste and The new Jim Crow. In The new Jim
Crow: Incarceration in the age of colorblindness (pp. 40-57 and 173-208). COURSE
RESERVES
* Rothenberg, Chapter 5 in Part One (Dead black man, just walking) and Chapter 8 in Part
Three (I taught my black kids that their elite upbringing would protect them from
discrimination. I was wrong) and Chapter 9 in Part Three (Where do we go after Ferguson?)
Recommended Readings:
* Carbado, Devon and Mitu Gulati. (2013). (Not) acting criminal. In Acting white? Rethinking
race in post-racial America (pp. 96-115). COURSE RESERVES
MARATHON MONDAY
Monday, April 25
Presentations
Monday, May 2
Presentations
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Thematic Paper #4 Due Friday
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