Politics is how we determine who gets what under conditions of scare resources. Politics is also the struggle to create and preserve a civilization that is free, fair, just, diverse, and legitimate. PS1AC asks, does American politics reinforce these principles, or does it weaken them? In particular, we will investigate the ways in which race and ethnicity, as well as wealth and socioeconomic class, operate through the formal and informal institutions of American politics to create the social outcomes we observe and experience in our daily lives. The primary goal of the course is to help students become more critical, sophisticated observers and participants in American politics.
POL SCI N1AC will still fulfill all the requirements that PS1 fulfills (e.g., major, American Institutions) but now also fulfills the "American Cultures" campus requirement.
Students who wish to repeat PS1 and replace their grade must specifically retake PS1, not PS N1AC. PS N1AC will not replace the grade for PS1.
Instructor: Jacob Grumbach