Race, Migration, and Deportation

(3 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

This course examines the histories, politics, and lived experiences of deportation and detention in the United States. Drawing on scholarship from ethnic studies, sociology, and law, the course explores how immigration enforcement and removal policies have been shaped by race, empire, and global migration from Chinese exclusion to the current moment. Particular attention is given to Asian American deportation experiences, including those involving communities from Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos, alongside Latine, African, and other migrant communities. The course also examines transnational lives after return, including family separation, health, labor integration, and community organizing across borders. Through analysis of memoir, oral histories, policy, film, and media, students will consider stories of resistance and abolition, as well as how deportation reshapes families, social mobility, and identities.