SOCIOLOGY OF RACISM AND INTERCULTURAL RELATIONS

This course is part of the core curriculum of the Master’s Degree Programme in Labour, Social Citizenship and Interculturality, which provides students with specialised knowledge and analytical frameworks for understanding the characteristics and social processes of contemporary society. The course introduces key concepts and analytical tools for examining racism as a social phenomenon and for addressing issues related to interculturality. More specifically, it aims to: provide students with a foundational understanding of the social bases of racism and processes of racialisation; develop an in-depth knowledge of the dimensions and forms of both historical and contemporary racism; explore issues related to cultural pluralism; examine interculturality from the perspective of global citizenship; and equip students with the knowledge, skills and competencies required to engage with intercultural relations in the field of social work.

By the end of the course, students will:
- have acquired the theoretical and conceptual tools required for the study of racism and interculturality, drawing on the most recent scholarship in the field;
- have developed a general understanding of racism as a social phenomenon, including its underlying causes and the different forms it has assumed across time and space;
be familiar with the specific terminology, key research themes and major debates within the fields of racism and intercultural studies;
- have developed an in-depth understanding of racism, anti-racist practices, intercultural relations, and the social, political and cultural processes associated with them;
- understand the mechanisms through which ethno-racial discrimination is produced and reproduced;
- have been introduced to postcolonial and decolonial perspectives, as well as to Critical Race Studies, with particular reference to racism, migration and modernity;
- be familiar with methods of social research on racism, with particular emphasis on qualitative methods.

Applying Knowledge and Understanding
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
- present and discuss the course content clearly and coherently; use relevant terminology accurately; engage critically with public debates on racism and interculturality; and construct examples in support of, or in challenge to, a particular analytical hypothesis;
- gather relevant information and provide analyses and interpretations by applying the knowledge acquired during the course, including through examples developed independently.

Critical Judgement
Students will be able to identify and distinguish between the main issues and positions within public debates on racism, xenophobia, cultural pluralism and interculturality. They will also be able to recognise the mechanisms through which racial hierarchies are reproduced and contested in areas such as education, spatial segregation, violence, the media and labour, and to reflect critically on concepts including race, racialisation, coloniality, intersectionality and privilege.

Communication Skills
Students will be able to:
- engage critically and respectfully with their peers;
- communicate and interact effectively with both specialist and non-specialist audiences.

Learning Skills
Students will be able to engage critically with the core readings and teaching materials available on Moodle, and to establish connections between different issues, approaches and contexts.

No prerequisites are required.

- “Race”: theoretical perspectives, historical and social foundations, and the general characteristics of racism.
- Elements and dimensions of racial doctrine: racism as an ideology; the mystifications underpinning racial doctrine.
- Postcolonial, decolonial and Critical Race Studies perspectives on racism, migration and modernity.
- The social construction of race and processes of racialisation of the Other.
- Historical and contemporary forms of racism: Islamophobia, Romaphobia and anti-Gypsyism, Sinophobia, Afrophobia, environmental racism, welfare racism, and anti-Southern prejudice. Feminist and intersectional perspectives.
- Racism and anti-racism in educational contexts.
- Media, visuality and counter-visuality.
- Intercultural social practices: case studies, good practices, and projects promoting interculturality and global citizenship.
- Researching racisms: decolonising the imagination and learning to recognise racism in its multiple forms.

The reading list is currently being finalised and will be confirmed before the start of the course.

Assessment will consist of individual and group oral presentations delivered in class, as well as a final written examination comprising open-ended questions on the course content.

The assessment is designed to evaluate:

-students’ knowledge and understanding of the key concepts, theoretical perspectives and core content covered during the course;
-their ability to apply the knowledge and understanding acquired to the analysis of specific themes, cases and issues;
-their ability to establish connections and relationships between different concepts, approaches and contexts;
-their ability to critically and independently engage with, interpret and elaborate on the course content, developing coherent and well-supported arguments.

written and oral

The instructor is responsible for ensuring the authenticity and originality of all examinations and coursework. In cases of suspected academic misconduct, an additional on-site assessment may be required during the exams, which may differ from the standard format.

The final assessment will be graded on a thirty-point scale. Grades will be awarded on the basis of the student’s level of knowledge and understanding of the course content, their ability to apply the concepts acquired, the clarity and coherence of their arguments, their ability to establish connections between different themes and perspectives, and the degree of critical independence demonstrated.

Classes will combine lectures with dialogic and participatory activities. The course will include screenings and discussions of documentaries and films, the analysis of documents and other materials, the presentation and discussion of case studies, as well as in-class group activities.

This subject deals with topics related to the macro-area "Poverty and inequalities" and contributes to the achievement of one or more goals of U. N. Agenda for Sustainable Development