SPN 314G - Border Cultures: Mexico and the United States

The course explores the crucial relationship of the United States and Mexico through theoretical essays, literary writings, urban chronicles, newspapers online, films, music, political caricatures, blogs, and Internet sites produced by Mexican and Mexican-American (Chicano) authors on the subject. Also, the course includes a hands-on experience with the migrant workers community in the area. This is a service-learning based course. In spite of the heated debates in the United States to keep off our southernmost neighbors, Mexico remains as one of the most important commercial partners of the USA; furthermore, a good percentage of the USA agribusiness depends entirely on the migrant workers labor that comes from Mexico –that is the case for the state of New York. The materials studied in the course and the interaction with the migrant workers community, will allow students to think on the controversial debate about “la frontera” (the border) from a scholarly point of view without losing sight of concrete impacts at the local level. The course strives to generate a better understanding of the relation between the United States and Mexico, helping students to immerse knowledgeably in current discussions about immigration policy and economics. Intermediate level of Spanish. Course Code: R.

Prerequisites & Notes
This course has a service learning project component. Liberal Arts credit, intermediate level of Spanish. Course Code: R. Term cycle: variable. Yearly cycle: variable offering.

Credits: 3

Print this Page