Each quarter the History Program offers a one-credit-hour seminar to provide students the opportunity to explore special topics of interest. The seminars are listed under Humanities 294. Topics have included a study of Tecumseh, an overview of museum administration, and a study of the war against terrorism. Current seminars are described below.
Humanities 294--Spring 2008: Lynching in America
(Dr. William Coil)
Recent national news stories have brought the horrific history of lynching out of the past and into the present. In Jena, Louisiana white teenagers hanged a noose from a tree. Did they act with malice, with a clear racist intent to intimidate black students? Or were they ignorant teens, unaware that a noose is a charged symbol of brutal white supremacy? This class will explore the history of lynching from the late 19th century through the mid 20th century. The awful irony of lynching is that this form of racial violence spiked just as America became a world power, claiming its status as the world's greatest democracy gave Americans the right to fight for freedom throughout the world. Yet as Americans tried to free the world in two global wars and a decades long Cold War, they countenanced the lynching of African Americans. From the late 19th century to the mid-20th century whites lynched on average one African American every week. The American Century, the golden age of American prosperity and power in the world, was built on racial violence at home.
Course Requirements:
This course is graded S/U, and the requirements are to attend all of the sessions, read a book, and write a four-page paper.