• David E. Wilkins, 2006. American Indian Politics and the American Political System. 2nd. Edition. New York: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.. ISBN: 978-0742553460.

• Courtney Jung, 2008. The Moral Force of Indigenous Politics: Critical Liberalism and the Zapatistas. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN: 978-0521703475

• Benjamin Dangl, 2007. The Price of Fire: Resource Wars and Social Movements in Bolivia. Oakland: AK Press. ISBN: 978-1904859338.

Course Content:

This course explores the social, cultural, economic and political experiences of modern indigenous peoples in the United States and in two countries of Latin America: Mexico and Bolivia. We first focus on the rich and complex Native American experiences in the United States over the course of the XX Century, with emphasis on the tremendous social rebellions of the 1930s and 1960s and the state policies and programs that prompted and responded to them, leading to the substantial, though incomplete, recovery of Native American sovereignty, a reinvigorated indigenous identity and culture, and a mixed reality today. We then analyze the resurgence of indigenous-led national liberation movements in Mexico and Bolivia - the Zapatistas in Mexico and the MAS (Movement Towards Socialism) in Bolivia - each resulting from distinct national histories of tried and failed models of nationhood and development; both emerging in the post-Cold War era as dramatic alternatives to capitalist globalization and its neoliberal ideology; both re-asserting, via entirely different strategies, the centrality of indigenous peoples in the present and future of Latin America.

Course Structure:

The course will be run as a "semi-seminar": Students will take turns introducing the assigned readings in each class session, followed by Dr. Santos lecturing and leading the discussion. If there are two assignments, we'll have a short break and repeat the process with a different student. Attendance is, of course, mandatory, and all students must come prepared to discuss the readings.

Besides the classroom activities, students will produce two research papers on a relevant sociological topic related to the course: the first one on present-day U.S. Native Americans and the second one on an indigenous people, issue, or movement in present-day Latin America.

Class Presentations: On a rotational basis, for most of the classes a group of 3 students will introduce and summarize each of the assigned readings. If you wish to do a PowerPoint presentation that is fine, just please bring your presentation in a USB-type memory stick in format "ppt" (NOT "pptx"). When it's your turn to present, please show up early to set it up & test it. Or, if you prefer, you may bring a printed outline of your presentation and distribute copies to the class. Students will present twice for this class.

The presentations will be evaluated based on: (a) the descriptive and analytical strength of the summary, (b) critical thinking, (c) the relevance and quality of the question posed at the end, and (d) the quality of the oral presentation (including the visuals displayed).

Reading Assessments: To ensure that everybody come to every class prepared to discuss the assigned readings, students who are not presenting must bring to class a written "reading assessment" per reading (chapter) assigned, each up to two pages in length, double-spaced text. The reading assessments must be turned in to Dr. Santos at the beginning of each class session. No late reading assessments will be accepted, unless the student has a pre-authorized absence from Dr. Santos. DO NOT SEND YOUR READING ASSESSMENTS BY EMAIL.

Reading assessment content: Please always write on top of your reading assessments your name, the date, and the reading you are assessing. In contrast to the presentations, these "reading assessments" must not summarize or describe the readings, but must critically respond to them: express what the you think about them; identify the areas of strong agreement and disagreement with the author, explaining why, as well as identify the areas or topics you find most interesting to discuss, or anything in particular that impressed you greatly, caused you serious confusion, or surprise. Whatever you write, you should explain your specific academic and/or personal reasons for doing so. The reading assessment cannot and should not cover every issue found in the assigned readings for the day; you must be selective and demonstrate judgment in the choices you make to discuss (by the way, early topics are always suspect!). A very bad assessment will reveal the student read very little or very superficially just to do the assignment (it's called "going through the motion"). A good assessment will demonstrate the student really read the material and did a serious effort to select and critically grapple with some of the main issues raised. At the end of each reading assessment, students should always write their own question for class discussion.

Note: Students presenting on a given day do not need to submit any reading assessment.

Research Papers:  Students will also be asked to chose two pertinent historical/sociological topics relating to the contemporary indigenous experiences in the United States and Latin America, and do papers on each, respectively. The first paper is due on February 19 in class, and the second paper is due by noon on March 19 in Dr. Santos' office. The students must obtain approval from Dr. Santos for their paper topics. You may visit Dr. Santos at his office during his office hours posted above.

Each paper should be between 6 and 8 pages in length (apart from the bibliography), double-spaced, font 12, with one-inch margins.  Papers will be graded for clarity and organization; quality & accuracy of analysis; and quality and relevance of assembled data. Students will collaborate in their groups for these research papers.

All papers must be delivered in printed paper and also emailed to Dr. Santos in Word format (".doc" - NOT ".docx").

Extra Points: Perfect attendance will be rewarded with extra points. Another way to get extra credit is to attend those campus or public events Dr. Santos announces in class and write a two-page report on each of them. Yet another way is this: there are two general studies courses that students are strongly encouraged to take if they wish to develop their research skills, and if they do (either or both) will receive extra credit in this course: These courses will enable students to develop the necessary competencies to navigate their way around the complexities of researching print and electronic sources.  For further information contact librarian Christy Gavin (email: <cgavin@csub.edu>, phone: 661-664-3237).

Plagiarism: To prevent students from wittingly or unwittingly engaging in plagiarism, Dr. Santos strongly recommends students to carefully read and abide by the document CSUB Classifications of Plagiarism found at: http://www.csub.edu/tlc/options/resources/plagiarism/4plagiarimclassifications.htm.

Furthermore, students are advised that all electronically submitted papers will be sent to TurnItIn.com, a professional web site that some CSUB faculty subscribe to and now routinely use to quickly detect plagiarism. Anyone found guilty of engaging in plagiarism will automatically fail the course and be reported to the Office of Student Discipline and Judicial Affairs for further disciplinary action.

Grading: The class presentations are worth 10 points each (20 points total). The research papers are worth up to 20 points each (40 total). The reading assessments are worth the remaining 40 points. The extra credit students may receive for taking the suggested General Studies courses will depend on their final grade in those courses, and may range from zero to 6 points (up to 3 extra points per course). Perfect attendance will also be rewarded with 5 extra points; absences and tardiness/leaving early will be penalized with one point off per instance. The final letter grade will be assigned, on a scale of 0 to 100, as follows:

94-100 = A	87-89 = B+	77-79 = C+	65-69 = D
90-93 = A-	84-86 = B	74-76 = C	< 65 = F
	80-83 = B-	70-73 = C-

Office Hours & E-Mail to Dr. Santos & Ms. Nancy Duran

Dr. Santos will generally be available at his office, DDH-AA205, from 9:00 to 10:00 am, MWF. Students are encouraged to come see him or to call him (664-2191) during these times. Please be advised, though, given the large volume of email he receives, that email communication has to be very brief and to the point. Expect an equally brief answer.  Clearly identify your business in the subject heading, and make sure to sign off with your full name.

The T.A., Ms. Nancy Duran, will be available to tutor or meet with you by appointment only, at her office, DDH-AA204. She will be in charge of evaluating the email reports and handling email traffic. You may contact her by email at her address above. Again, be brief and to the point, and expect a brief reply, too. If you wish to set up an appointment, you should leave her a phone number where she can reach you - and always sign off with your full name.