Full course description
Course Description
This course explores the impact of race on the U.S. criminal legal system and how restorative justice approaches may help address the systemic racism that permeates the system. Starting with the US Constitution, the course will explore the 13th Amendment, convict leasing, Jim Crow, the War on Drugs, mass incarceration, racial disparities in arrest, prosecution, and sentencing practices. Through guest presentations, case study, film, and literature, students will tackle challenging questions about how law, policy, and practice perpetuate racial strife division and discrimination.
Required Textbook and Materials: There is no required textbook for this course. Course content will be found in the Readings and Content page of each module.
Course Objectives
Upon successful completion of this course, you will be able to:
- Explain and discuss how the U.S. was founded upon racial injustice and how white supremacy continues to guide its governance.
- Contrast the foundation and operations of the American criminal legal system with other justice systems around the world.
- Appraise how race influences modern criminal justice policy and examine the resulting unjust outcomes – including the collateral consequences – many people suffer from the criminal legal system.
- Explain the history and guiding principle of restorative justice and use them to diagnose and address modern criminal justice problems.