Courses

This course introduces students to the major African issues, debates, and historical patterns of social diversity, Africa's role in the globalizing world, and economic and political developments in Africa in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. The course explores a sequence of significant themes in contemporary Africa, including terrorism; dictatorships, and contested elections in Africa; Africa's position in the global economy; women and the youth's political and economic participation; climate change; health care transformations; the state of the entertainment industry in Africa; social media and everyday life in Africa; Gender and Sexuality; the state of the media in Africa: and the efforts by different ethnic, religious, LGBTQIA+, political, and racial groups to achieve equality, recognition, and constitutional protections. We will examine African governments' and citizens' responses to global issues impacting local economies, governance, cultures, social movements, natural resources management, and civil and political rights. The course will provide students with a historical framework for analyzing and assessing Africa's civil society, cultures, development, economies, and politics to help them critically think about the news and other information they encounter in their everyday life about Africa and Africans.