Semester:
Offered:
How do patterns of American economic, political and social inequality shape our policy responses to working families, immigration, poverty, COVID 19, and immigration?
In a period of contentious politics, Americans are debating fundamental issues about economic wellbeing and social justice. How can the nation expand opportunity and security for workers and families following years of rising socioeconomic inequalities and shifts in the relationship of families to work? How do we regulate immigration and citizenship and cope with surges in refugees and asylum seekers? How have ongoing partisan polarization and rising economic inequalities influenced U.S. responses to the current COVID-19 pandemic and the accompanying economic crisis? Controversies in these areas are bitter and persistent, and this course will introduce students to the ways the United States has dealt with each of set of challenges.