ENGL 006 PZ -Beyond Bars: Mass Incarceration and Immigration Detention

Institution: Pitzer College

Description: This course introduces students to critical discourses examining mass incarceration in the U.S criminal justice and immigration detention system. Through readings, screenings, class projects, activities, and invested discussions, we unpack the rhetoric of law and order that normalizes the incarceration culture, study the economic and financial nexus that undergirds the prison-industrial complex, and consider practical alternatives to reducing violence. Students are asked to learn about, imagine their own, and implement civil practices in relation to social justice theory and practices: out in the world reportage, archival development, website, research projects, and community informational presentations. Raising awareness is the first step; building community for change is the next.