Graduate seminar on identity politics within the U.S. context; primary focus will be on ethnic, racial and religious identities. We will tackle questions about when, why and to what extent group identities take on significance in American politics. In so doing we will examine theories of identity development and change; consider strategies for measuring identity; and assess empirical approaches to the study of identity groups in American politics. We will also explore how context, institutions and elections work to politicize identities under some conditions.

We will engage...

What is Latino politics and is it different from American politics? What do we know about Latino voting and attitudes in U.S. elections? How do policies and institutions impact Latinos, and how are policies and institutions impacted by them? What methods can we use to find out? In this course we will use social science to examine questions about Latino politics in the U.S. Topics include: Latino party identification and policy preferences; patterns of political participation among Latinos; ethnic and national identity in politics; immigration, demographics and their political impact;...