Music of the Civil Rights Movement (MHI2211.01)

Kathy Bullock

This course will study the African-American Struggle for Freedom and Civil Rights in the United States through the music that emerged, accompanied and embodied this journey. Using the award winning documentary “Eyes on the Prize” series as our primary text, we will focus on the Civil Rights Movement, 1950-1970s, singing the songs, and exploring audio and video recordings, songbook publications, selected readings and more.  Author Reiland Rabaka states,“The mixture of music and politics emerging out of the Civil Rights Movement is an incredibly important site and source of spiritual rejuvenation, social organization, political education, and cultural transformation”. Indeed this journey can both inform and transform us as we look back and move forward.


Learning Outcomes:
Successfully completing this course, the student will be able to:
1) define and describe the Civil Rights Movement in the U.S. – past and present
2) define African-American music and its critical role in the Civil Rights Music
3) appreciate the significant contributions of African-American music and culture to world society
4) understand how mechanisms of institutionalization, privilege, power, and cultural stereotyping affect African-Americans, and how these groups have resisted patterns of domination
5) discuss and write about music—the people and their performances-- in a succinct and informative way



Delivery Method: Fully in-person
Course Level: 2000-level
Credits: 4
M/Th 1:40PM - 3:30PM (Full-term)
Maximum Enrollment: 16
Course Frequency: One time only

Categories: All courses , Fully In-Person , History
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