Racial Capitalism the NBA

3 Credits · Level: Undergraduate

This class explores the culture of the National Basketball Association through the lens of racial capitalism. The 1st Quarter (what is racial capitalism?) explores historical analyses of racial capitalism that both explain and critique the economic system as it has expanded. The 2nd & 3rd Quarters (time & space) look at real-world examples from history. The 4th Quarter (who wins?) takes the critical tools we have learned and applies them to the current NBA season, in order to practice making sense of the world that racial capitalism is determined to produce. Classes feature op-eds, Twitter threads, films, highlight clips, and music alongside course readings, with an aim toward crafting practical tools for understanding the cultures, histories, and formations of racial capitalism.