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What is American Studies? The Program in American Studies offers an interdisciplinary approach to the study of the society and cultures of the United States. American Studies majors critically examine the changing narratives and practices of American life in a curriculum that emphasizes both historical breadth and theoretical depth. Majors work closely with American Studies faculty, choosing the right combination of courses that will prepare them to write a uniquely interdisciplinary senior thesis. |
| Recent News |
Negotiating 'Illegality' in New Immigrant Destinations: Jacqueline Olvera, Lunchtime Lecture Thursday, November 12, 2009, 12:00 pm Conventionally, immigrant "illegality" has come to signify a status, assigned by law to migrants residing in the United States who arrive outside of authorized channels and without proper documentation. Conceptualizing illegality simply as status, however, overlooks the social consequences that this legal category has on the lives of the undocumented. In her study of Mexican migration to New England, Jacqueline Olvera, Term Assistant Professor at Barnard College, examines how migrants, who are constructed as socially invisible yet physically present, negotiate the complexities that illegality introduces in their everyday lives. Arguing that illegality is a social sphere that unauthorized immigrants occupy, Olvera shows how illegality shapes the decisions and actions of the undocumented, and of citizens as well. Black Malinche: The Black Woman as Traitor in African American Thought and Politics Nikol G. Alexander-Floyd, Assistant Professor of Women's & Gender Studies, Rutgers University Tuesday, November 17, 2009, 6:30 pm Nikol G. Alexander-Floyd is a lawyer and a political scientist. She is the author of Gender, Race, and Nationalism in Contemporary Black Politics (2007). Basques in California: Migration, Family, & Gender Marie-Pierre Arrizabalaga, Associate Professor at the University of Cergy-Pontoise Wednesday, November 18, 2009, 7:00 pm Go on a 150-year journey that begins in the mighty Pyrenees and wends its way into such cities as Chino, Fresno, and Bakersfield, California. Marie-Pierre Arrizabalaga, who writes extensively on French Pyrenean migration to the New World, takes you from Basque country to "The Golden State," and paints a valuable portrait of domestic and political power by examining how family structures, and women's positions in them, changed (or failed to) in the wake of the great crossing. Covering Conflict David Shipley, Deputy Editorial Page Editor and Op-Ed Editor at "The New York Times" and Former Special Assistant to the President in the Clinton Administration December 2, 2009, 6:30 pm |
